“Flowers Shall Grow” by Mery McNett
TAC Gallery
Through April 26
“Flowers Shall Grow”—a solo exhibition by Mery McNett, on view through tomorrow at the TAC Gallery—feels especially enticing in late April, as the world awakens from the depths of winter.
That continuum of life and loss is McNett’s subject here, in oil paintings that explore grief with stunning colors and pensive, often supernatural subjects. Each work contains its own pattern of fluorescents, which viewers can probe with flashlights provided in the gallery. Also provided are 3D glasses that further animate these works. The overall experience is otherworldly; McNett successfully recreates the surreal nature of losing someone and trying to piece together a life afterward.
Music provides another layer to the paintings; viewers can scan each work’s accompanying QR code to hear the songs McNett listened to when she was creating them. The tunes range from the Midsommar and Antichrist soundtracks to Bjork, Madonna, Les Baxter, and Patricia Wolf, all ethereal and most instrumental. The music adds a restful element, inviting visitors to linger a bit longer with each work and to sit with what they’re seeing and hearing for a richer experience.