Richard Boyd Art Gallery is pleased to announce the opening of a solo exhibition of paintings by internationally renowned landscape artist and educator Deena S. Ball on August 1st at 11:00 a.m. Recognized for her innovative use of mixed media with textured grounds and specialized surfaces, Ball presents “Natural Forces,” featuring paintings from Maine, Italy, and Nova Scotia—unified by natural elements such as sunlight, ocean, and sky. Her landscape paintings capture moments in time and evoke emotional responses, fostering a deeper appreciation for our land, nature, and relationship with the earth.

“Light’s interaction with the landscape serves as my primary inspiration—from the crisp northern light across expansive vistas to sunlight refracting off jagged shoreline rocks and the ocean’s perpetual shimmer. I’m drawn to how light dances through dense stands of pines, birches, and oaks in the forest. On foggy days, my focus shifts to subtle changes in color and value. Each scene evokes its own mood: invigorating when the sun sparkles across rocks and ocean, tranquil when dawn bathes the world in pink, bringing calm and hope. Maine’s landscape reveals its darker side too—in silent deep pine woods, powerful rivers that destroy roads, and a rising ocean that claims human structures. Perhaps these frequent gray skies help artists better appreciate both the subtle nuances of shadow and the profound impact of sunlight.”

She holds a BA in Art History and Studio Art from Colby College, Waterville, Maine, and continued her studies at Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and Tyler School of Art. She is an active teaching artist for both adults and children, and she has led artist retreats at Hotel Leone in Italy and Bar Harbor Historical Society. In 2025, she served as artist-in-residence at the Friends School of Portland. Deena will be participating in the Parrsboro Plein Air Festival in Canada, Hudson to Harbor in Bar Harbor, Art for Humanity in Belfast, Maine, and several other plein air festivals this summer.

Deena is a past president of the Philadelphia Watercolor Society and co-founder of LandArt Events, a nonprofit in Chester County, PA, that connected artists with land trusts and highlighted human interaction with the land. After the nonprofit ceased operations in 2022, she continued her engagement with land trusts, painting at numerous Falmouth Land Trust properties. This work culminated in the 2023 exhibition “Light on the Land: Falmouth’s Conserved Beauty.” That same year, she founded the Falmouth Open Studio Tour, partnering with the Falmouth Land Trust to raise public awareness about land use. In April 2024, the Richard Boyd Art Gallery hosted “Maine Moods,” a solo showcase of Deena’s work.

She has achieved signature status at the Philadelphia Watercolor Society, Baltimore Watercolor Society, Pennsylvania Watercolor Society, and Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen. Her work has been published in Plein Air Magazine, Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine, Splash, Watercolor Artist, and the pandemic event Great American Paint Out.

“Natural Forces” is open to all ages free of charge from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM daily through August 29th, 2025.