Local art displayed in historic Horace Williams House

The art exhibit at the Horace Williams House, opening today, showcases two exhibits featuring paintings of brilliant colors and sculptures celebrating playfulness.

Painter Warren Hicks and sculptor Renee Leverty will have their exhibits on display until July 27.

“I am honored to be showing at the Horace Williams House,” Hicks said. “It’s a goal for every local artist.”

Hicks titled his exhibit “Scents of Humor,” and said he hopes people will enjoy the playfulness of his paintings.

Around 75 percent of his part of the exhibit has never been shown before, and he said he believes that it is his strongest work.

Hicks said he never sketches a design beforehand; he begins with choosing the dominant colors of the painting and places these colors randomly on the canvas. From there, he uses black paint to bring out the shape of the painting.

Hicks said he has had exhibits displayed across the country and the world, including Chapel Hill, and he said he is excited to show his artwork here again.

Leverty said the centerpiece of her exhibit, titled “PLAY” is a chess piece – the queen.

It was the first piece that she created for the exhibit and the one she developed the theme around.

“Part of what I believe is that we all create,” Leverty said. “We can all play, and we can all create.”

Leverty said she made each piece as if it is a snapshot of time. The sculptures range from an outline of a figure skateboarding to a swing set.

“For this show, I chose the theme of play because I had started a sculpture of a chess piece,” Leverty said.

Leverty works primarily with metal and said she enjoys the technicality of sculpting it and the ability to make it look light even though it is a heavy material.

Leverty’s exhibit is a departure from her previous exhibit at the Durham Art Guild which explored the theme of repression. This time, she said she wanted to present a lighter theme.

The Horace Williams House hosts a variety of local artists throughout the year, and is owned by the Preservation Society of Chapel Hill, which seeks to preserve the heritage of Chapel Hill by hosting events and exhibitions.

The exhibit is free and open to the public.

Contact the Arts Editor at arts@dailytarheel.com.