Step into Rachelle Krieger’s latest exhibition and you might find yourself wandering through a dreamscape where fireflies, stars, and flowers blur together in glowing swirls of color.
The Port Washington artist’s “Day Dreams and Night Visions,” on view at the Adler Gallery in the Port Washington Public Library through Jan. 4, invites visitors to explore both the natural world and the landscapes of imagination.
“I found one particular spot at Cedarmere Preserve that I was completely captivated by,” Krieger said. “It was kind of a neglected corner, overgrown, with hints of what had been formally planted there. The unplanned nature of things takes over, and that’s really what I’m after.”
The exhibition features 15 paintings, ranging from intimate works to large-scale canvases, many painted en plein air before being transformed in Krieger’s studio into luminous night visions.
“My days would just be filled with these visions of, like, working from observation,” Krieger said. “And so at night, you know, I don’t know if you’ve ever worked on a puzzle and then you go to bed at night and your brain is still working on the puzzle.”
“I was working, observing nature all day long. And then at night, I would go to sleep, and in my dream, like a dream state, I was just still working on these new paintings. And they became like night paintings,” she said.
Some paintings include phosphorescent pigments, which glow in dim light.
“Art is fun. That’s what I wanted, elements of play and a childlike sense of wonder.”
Recurring spirals in her paintings evoke fireflies, stars, or flowers.
“The spirals add motion,” she explained. “Sometimes they’re stars in the distance, sometimes fireflies or flowers. There’s something happening there, and it’s OK to be confused about what it is.”
Krieger’s work has long been inspired by her surroundings, from the forested paths of Sands Point Preserve to the waterside views of Cedarmere.
Her artistic journey began at an early age, influenced by a grandmother who was an artist and a grandfather who worked at the Museum of Modern Art. After studying at Pratt Institute, she balanced a career in commercial art with her passion for painting, exhibiting nationally and internationally.
Returning to the Adler Gallery is especially meaningful.
“Exhibiting here feels like coming full circle,” she said. “It’s deeply meaningful to share this work with the community that has supported me for so many years.”
A public reception will be held Sat., Dec. 6, from 2–4 p.m., with an artist presentation at 2:30 p.m.
The Adler Gallery is located inside the Port Washington Public Library at 1 Library Drive and is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
