Mark Messersmith: Maximalist and Naturalist June 13, 2012

When Mark Messersmith first moved to Tallahassee, Florida, he was immediately struck by the wildness of the surrounding landscape, a wildness gone from much of America. In 'Maximalist and Naturalist,' Messersmith continues his exploration of the tension between this wild, living place and ever-increasing human expansion. Drawing on inspirations ranging from the Pre-Raphaelites, Martin Johnson Heade, Southern folk art and medieval manuscripts, the paintings of Messersmith are dense, radiant, and sculptural depictions of the flora and fauna of northern Florida struggling to survive.