Dyed Silk

53”W x 61”L

2026

Rebecca Cross revisited these layered pieces as a way to keep developing her thoughts about onespreviously made. These color field lightscapes (of land? lake? sea? ) are color experiments that suggest horizons, and reflections of light. The translucency of silk fabric and the repeated information on both layers creates a kind of visual echo, as the forms and colors oscillate between layers. The effect of perpetual, subtle shifts challenges your eyes to land on something fixed.

Cross spends time looking at ever-changing Lake Erie, and, in general, contemplating with wonder both the intricacy and grandeur of the natural world. These observations inform these pieces, which are her modest attempt to respond to the wonder.  Close attention helps Cross keep the “crazy human world in perspective, and makes me remember why a world of such natural beauty is worth preserving.”

Perhaps, too, these lightscapes complement her paintings in this show: some are roughly the size of Cross’ height and wingspan, providing serene “bodies” or contexts for all those painted heads. And certainly, both Cross’ portraits and silk lightscapes resonate with the scale, energy and concerns of her co-exhibitor and art sister, Liz Maugans’ extraordinary pieces about self-reflection as they age.