The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s Reed Fine Art Gallery will present the exhibit excavation by Catherine Higgins from Jan. 21 through Feb. 21, 2013. The exhibition debuts Higgins’ recent body of work to the Maine art community. The public is invited to view the exhibition throughout the show’s run and attend the opening reception on Feb. 1 from 5-7 p.m., which is being held in conjunction with the Presque Isle First Friday Art Walk.

Catherine Higgins is an emerging artist who lives in Philadelphia, Penn. Although from New York State, she became a Pennsylvanian “transplant” when she studied painting at Lehigh University. She graduated as a Lehigh Presidential Scholar. Since 2009, her work has been exhibited in the greater Philadelphia area, Lehigh Valley, and New York City.

Her exhibition, excavation, is about Higgins’ wonderful play of geometric shape. Her exploration of geometric mark is a means, to quote Higgins, “of understanding individual personality and its relationship to human interaction.” Higgins, a fan of the imperfection of linguistics, stated, “I have always been interested by the ways in which words fail. Words are fleetingly and irritatingly imprecise; however, they are often taken as concrete and final. I bristle at the thought of being defined based on the inadequate words I use to elucidate one particular experience.”

Her imagery results in a highly layered and patterned image. She uses tape, acrylic paint, gel medium, graphite and hardboard. The end result is highly organized and clean, showing enormous restraint, yet Higgins admits that her art “…has given me the ability to work through emotionally heightened experiences that I have not been comfortable working through in any other way. The ambiguity derived from abstract forms has allowed me to protect my emotional reality against the limitations of written language.”

Part of the Reed Gallery’s mission is to expand awareness of the enormous global art scene. Director Heather Sincavage commented, “It is important to support our local talent in shows like the just-concluded Crafted but also to invite talent on the rise to our community. This allows us to get a balanced look at what is going on in the art world today without ever leaving the County!”

In addition, said Sincavage, “Higgins is someone at the beginning of her career and will be someone to follow. As more people become familiar with her work, she will be a force to be reckoned with.”

Her mixed media paintings will be exhibited Jan. 21 through Feb. 21 in the Reed Fine Art Gallery. There will be a First Friday Reception during the Feb. 1 First Friday Art Walk, from 5-7 p.m. There will be a Curator’s Talk at 5:30 p.m. The reception is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.

The Reed Fine Art Gallery is open Monday through Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The gallery is closed Sundays and University holidays. For more information about this event, please contact Sincavage at 768-9442 or heather.sincavage@maine.edu.