South Shore Arts presents
Stillness & Spirit: Paintings by Jane Cowley
May 22nd – June 28th
Atrium Gallery, Center for the Visual & Performing Arts
Artist Reception: Thursday, June 18, 6-8pm
Stillness & Spirit: Paintings by Jane Cowley gathers more than twenty oil paintings that resist the contemporary appetite for spectacle. In portraits, landscapes, and still lifes alike, Cowley’s attention settles not on drama but on duration: a face held in thought, a forest vista at twilight, a bowl of pears absorbing the last pale light of afternoon. Based in Michigan City, Cowley paints with a restrained sensibility that recalls the pleasure of simply looking long enough for ordinary things to become quietly luminous. Her subjects are not arranged into grandeur; rather, they are granted the dignity of unhurried observation.
What emerges across the exhibition is a belief that stillness is not emptiness but presence. The portraits carry an almost devotional calm, while the landscapes seem suspended between weather and memory. Even the still lifes, those time honored exercises in painterly patience, feel less composed than encountered, as though the artist had paused beside them and waited for their character to reveal itself. Running from May 22 through June 28, 2026, the exhibition offers a rare invitation: to slow one’s gaze until spirit, almost imperceptibly, comes into view. A free and open to the public artist’s reception with Jane Cowley will be held on June 18 from 6–8 PM alongside the preview reception for the 83rd Annual Salon Show – My America.
“Dave, 40 in.x16in., oil on canvas
About South Shore Arts Atrium gallery
South Shore Arts Atrium gallery is a contemporary art gallery dedicated to showcasing innovative works created by both emerging and established artists in Northwest Indiana and the greater Chicagoland area. The gallery’s mission is to help transform and represent the South Shore through the arts. The gallery has a focus on inclusivity and diversity, South Shore Arts stives to connect with audiences of all backgrounds and interests through its exhibitions and arts programming.
Exhibition Dates: May 22 – June 28, 2026
Artist Reception: Thursday, June 18, 2026 from 6-8pm
Gallery Hours:
- Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesday, Friday from 10am – 5pm
- Thursdays from 12 – 7pm
- Saturday from 10am – 4pm
- Sunday from 12 – 4pm
Location: South Shore Arts Atrium gallery, 1040 Ridge Road, Munster, IN