There are paintings large-scale and small; there are pastels and gouache, collages and tapestries blazing with crimson, indigo, orange, and teal. There are figurative terra-cotta sculptures, cheerful celadon frogs and works in iron that whip across the gallery floor like a cat-o-nine tails. “A String of Pearls” celebrates the 30^th anniversary of the Cecil County Arts Council this year, and with 150 works in a multitude of media crammed into the Elkton Arts Center at 135 East Main Street, it showcases the finest works of CCAC artists young and old.

Some have taken the pearl theme literally: Donna Steck’s sensuous woven alpaca work  “Pearl Essence”, Anne Stubb’s “ Wreath of Pearls” and Pamela Skwish’s “Pearlaceous” incorporate the watery gem, while Ian Wright’s mixed media work “The Philosopher Contemplates a String of Pearls” well, says it all! Others have used the pearl as a visual metaphor as Mimi Irwin did in “Secluded Pearl”, a sensitive depiction of an earthly haven in a painterly manner. Tim Jackson’s wry work “Rest in Pieces, Rowlandsville” laments the loss of yet another of Cecil County’s architectural treasures, as if each one were like a discarded pearl falling from a weakened strand. The milieu of water is delineated and a rainbow of colors echoed in works by Shirley Taylor’s “Blue Crab”, Patricia Price’s in “Koi Pond” and Kristeena Crabb’s in her witty “Sushi” Series, and water itself implied by the lush floral works offered by Annie Schappert, Dan Trout and Conor Twohy.

So grab your calendars, sharpen that pencil and mark these down:

Friday September 28, Gallery Reception  The Art of Persuasion from 6-8 pm
Graphic design student work from Visual Communications incorporating image and text.
Theatre Gallery, North East Campus off Rte 272.