"Buffalo River at Ponca" by Russ Guirl. Used by permission.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Artist Russ Guirl finds beauty in trees-in their arching trunks, their knobby cypress knees and in the gleeful delight of their springtime foliage. His exhibit "Streams, Shores, and Artifacts," currently being displayed in Mullins Library, contains Guirl's renderings of trees lining central and south Arkansas riverbanks. Poised in graceful, ageless dances, Guirl's water-bound trees invite peaceful contemplation.

Guirl says, "Landscape-based themes have always been the subjects holding me enthralled. I'm constantly pulled back to the wonderful streams and shores and their cast-aside artifacts all about us here in Arkansas."

"Flood Stage, Jenkins Ferry" by Russ Guirl. Used by permission.

One series of five oil pastel paintings from Jenkins Ferry on the Saline River revisits the same stand of trees during different seasons of the year-a roaring spring flood, a languid winter pool and summertime high and dry. Another painting, "Primavera, Saline River," invites the viewer to imagine sitting on the bank, listening to the background hum of cicadas, and perhaps even itching to drop a cane pole line baited with worm into the reflective water.

A series of collages highlights Guirl's technical skill in rendering delicate, small images. The collages, composed of mere snips of paper, tinted with color and sparsely arranged in snapshot size images, are a marvel in their deceptive simplicity. The Asian austerity of these collages offers a charming alternative view to the same riverbank scenes rendered in the larger oil pastels.

"Jenkins Ferry, Saline River" by Russ Guirl. Used by permission.

Russ Guirl was born in Illinois and received his MFA from the University of Iowa in 1959. After teaching at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Guirl came to the University of Arkansas as associate professor of art. But for the past 30 years, Guirl has heeded a different call-the organization, implementation and management of substance abuse treatment programs serving Arkansans. His artwork is represented in various public and private collections throughout the region.

"Streams, Shores, and Artifacts" will be on display in the main lobby area in Mullins Library through the end of July. For more information, contact (479) 575-6702 or http://libinfo.uark.edu/info/artexhibit.asp