If You Go
* What: Paintings by Morris Mitchell* Where: Michael’s Fine Arts & Framing, 1325 Dug Gap Road, Dalton, Ga.* Hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday; opening reception 6 p.m. March 6.* Information: 706-278-8840.
Years after circus king John Ringling died, his glorious Sarasota palace was abandoned to fast-growing foliage, vines and thickly blooming brambles. Like Sleeping Beauty’s castle, it slumbered untouched by thieves until it was reopened, rehabbed and given a new life as a respected art school and museum.
Looking at artist Morris Mitchell’s dreamlike collage paintings, it seems natural that he would have spent 40 years in that enchanted kingdom surrounded by gold and sapphire ceilings, ruby carpets, snowy marble and jewel-toned crystal windows. Mitchell taught Ringling Art and Design school students how to collage, advanced painting and conceptual drawing. But he also became a talented artist in a wide range of styles from photo realism to abstract expressionism. He has retired to a home in Hixson but, at age 80, he’s still painting.
Among Morris Mitchell’s works “Plan It Red.”His collage paintings use vibrant color and bits of what look like fishing nets, rope, flowers, tapestry and shattered crystal swirled into the painting for a 3-D effect. Sometimes, he rakes through the paint or makes prints in it so the art looks a bit like clues in a crime scene.
“That’s right! They are mysteries for the viewer to solve,” Mitchell says.