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Art and nature

By LENNIE BENNETT
Published June 9, 2005

The Studioat620 opened a little less than a year ago at 620 First Ave. S in St. Petersburg with an ambitious mission: to bring together different art forms in ways that show their interconnectedness and attract a culturally diverse audience. It's working, with programs such as "Say What?" in March, a spoken word event that included poetry and literature readings, music and visual art that managed to be both cerebral and hip.

Up now is "Neverne Covington: Outside It Was Hot," through June 16. Covington's haunting, mysterious natural images bring dead plant material back to life with lush renderings and dramatic lighting that seems to set them in motion. Also on view is a new series of drawings of children with the formal poses and oversized heads of early American portraits.

What's different is the psychological content, not unlike Covington's inanimate subjects, which hints of subversion beneath a beautiful surface. The series is based on and titled with common phrases every child has heard, usually more than a few times, such as Wipe Off That Grin Before It Sticks Forever, shown above. They should make us think more carefully about what we say, just as her nature-based art makes us see more deeply. Join supporters of 620 at a birthday party on June 20. For other events, go to www.thestudioat620.com or call 727 895-6620.

- LENNIE BENNETT, Times art critic

[Last modified June 8, 2005, 10:19:02]