Lois Guarino ALL LIVING THINGS

Keenly aware of magnificence in the natural world and the fragility of living things, multimedia artist Lois Guarino spent her life participating in, and deeply observing, the inherent beauty and complexity of relationships—past and present and between animals, people, objects, dreams, and other worlds.

Her work spans more than four decades and includes painting, photography, writing, teaching, mentoring, and creating relationships that intuitively connected her to memories that informed her art-making processes.

The work chosen for this exhibition is intentional and provides an intimate glimpse of a particular project, “The Wonder Wall.” A collection of favorite objects, details, preliminary works, and inspirational subjects are on view creating a narrative framework for the artist’s intention.

“The Wonder Wall” is as much a monumental work of art as it is a detailed observation cataloging life on our planet. This exquisite work consists of 1,000 individual oil paintings connecting hundreds of species together where they coexist on a surface of cerulean, cobalt, and turquoise—favorite colors of the artist.

Kathleen Laucius

Senior Director of Creative and Art Curator at Omega

June 3—July 22, 2023

THE OMEGA CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE LIVING

The Wonder Wall oil on canvas, waiting for overall size (cover and all panels this page)

The 1000 paintings that comprise Wonder Wall represent a very tiny cross section of our planet’s animal species.

About 8.7 million (give or take 1.3 million) is the current estimated total number of species on the planet, with 6.5 million species on land and 2.2 million in oceans.

There are now 37,400 species threatened with extinction (including both endangered animals and endangered plants), with 3,483 species classified as critically endangered.

.

Self-Portrait as a Deer (right)

Deer are considered a keystone species, meaning they directly impact the lives of other plants and animals. When their populations are balanced with other species, deer increase biodiversity and encourage new plant growth.

Family of Origin (above)

Deer can see short (blue) and middle (green) wavelength colors, but they’re less sensitive to long wavelength colors such as red and orange.

Celebration (left)

All living beings, from tiny microbes to huge predators, depend on each other to obtain energy and other basic resources.

Gemology (left)

Approximately 200 varieties of gemstones exist in the world that are chosen for their beauty and durability, then cut and polished for human enjoyment and adornment.

Fireflies 1 (above)

The Lampyridae are a family of insects in the beetle order Coleoptera, with more than 2,000 described species.

Fireflies 2 (right)

These soft-bodied beetles are commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their magical production of light flashes during twilight to attract mates.

Moths Matter (right)

Moths and their caterpillars are food for songbirds, mammals, and other insects. They are important pollinators, particularly those that are active after dark, when many other pollinating animals have retired for the night.

Fungi & Lichens (far left)

The DNA in fungi more closely resembles the DNA of the animal kingdom than the plant kingdom; we are nearly 100% alike as humans and similarly related to mushrooms.

Foliage (left)

In a study conducted by the Royal Horticultural Society, research demonstrated that plants do respond to human voices and to touch.

Starfish (above)

Starfish are considered a keystone species in the marine environment, which means they prey on animals that have no other natural predators and keep things in balance. Never touch or remove a starfish from the water, as this could lead to them suffocating; they have a complex nervous system and can feel pain.

Snowflakes (right)

Each snowflake is not unique, and not all snowflakes are all white.

Studio

“I am drawn to objects with a lot of history, things that connect to memories, although a lot of the things I’m attracted to are not directly linked to my own conscious memories. I am drawn to elaborate objects that are mostly pre-twentieth century, in particular things that refer to the medieval and the Victorian periods. They can be ordinary things, like a picture frame, sewing notions, a mirror or handmade clay marbles, or more unusual objects, like a gilded treasure chest, an icon, or enormous copper Pegasus wings.”—Lois

Guarino