Karen Woods: The Way to Wilder

May 21 – September 11, 2016

Boise artist Karen Woods presents a new body of work based on a recent journey to Wilder, Idaho. Her paintings of rain-soaked roads and highways situate the viewer in the front seat of a car, making it possible to experience the beauty and disorientation of traveling through a storm.

In this latest series, Woods has introduced an increased scale and a loose painting style, aiming to heighten the unsettling sensation of the storm. Although water covers the windshield, viewers can imagine that, in just another moment, the wiper blades will open the scene and provide a sense of clarity. The rain-diffused Idaho landscape has been given a monumental presence in these works in which the commonplace drive has been transformed into something extraordinary.

Organized by the Boise Art Museum

IMAGE: Karen Woods, Finer Things (detail), 2015, oil on canvas, 26″ x 40″, courtesy of the artist.

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