Shades of Day

Two very different, yet complementary, artists currently share the Upstairs Gallery of Natalie’s Fine Threads in Ventura. Each with their own devices presents a subtle artistic series, marked by a sense of purpose.

Jane McKinney’s latest pastel works are deceptively small and calm. Yet they are infused with an air of mystery, which is enhanced when viewed in numbers, as they are here. Seen as a series--or variations on a theme--they have a sense of continuity and rhythm.

She depicts ambiguous details of landscapes, often in the fragile light of dawn or dusk. In some works, a glimpse of water in the distance is framed by curious masses of vegetation, lending an elusive sense of order, while canoes--looking like wooden Dutch clogs--add a ghostly human presence. Landscapes or dreamscapes? You decide.

Holly Charlon’s assemblages rely on fragments of fabric, fitting in this apparel emporium. Her quasi-garments make vague allusions to ancestral heirlooms, evoking a search for personal heritage with bits of antique textiles, scraps of photographs and the occasional heart-shaped pin cushion (a loaded metaphor, that). It adds up to brittle, appealing artistic stitchery.

* Holly Charlon and Jane McKinney through Aug. 30 at Natalie’s Fine Threads, Upstairs Gallery, 596 E. Main St. in Ventura. Tuesday-Saturday, 10:30 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, noon-4 p.m.; 643-8854.