A new exhibit of local artists, Julia Nichols and Brooke Pacy, opens March 22 as part of The Art at The Damariscotta River Grill series. An opening to meet the artists will be held on Wednesday, March 23, from 4-5:30 p.m. All artwork is for sale.

Julia Nichols loves to paint outdoors. Being outside “always ifts her spirits.” She is drawn to contrasts in nature, the patterns of light and dark, the colors.

“I generally start with a small black and white sketch, but I don’t always stick to it. Nature has a way of butting in and changing things in the landscape,” Nichols said. “Tides go in and out, shadows lengthen, clouds move in, and if I like the way things look later in the day, I may change the scene a great deal.”

Her favorite medium is oil and often starts her work with warm, complementary colors as under painting which shine through a finished piece.

“There's something about the way oil paints feel on my brush pleases me; each stroke adds actual substance to the painting and that feeling is a big part of the whole experience,” said Nichols.

For more on the artist, visit www.julianicholsart.com.

Brooke Pacy studied classical drawing and painting with Elizabeth Byrd Mitchell in Baltimore before moving to Waldoboro 12 years ago.

Concentrating on catching the beauty of local ephemera in oils, Pacy says: “There are moments when light picks out the shape of an ordinary thing: a flower, a headland, a table silhouetted in a window; and invests it with character and a history. Those moments suggest an ongoing story and make me happy to be part of it. I try to catch them in paint.”

Her paintings have been in juried shows at River Arts, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens and the Boothbay Region Art Foundation. Solo exhibits have been at the Waldoboro and Damariscotta libraries, The Bakery in Damariscotta, and the Miles Hospital Memorial Hospital Gallery.

For more of Brooke Pacy's works, visit http://brookepacyart.tumblr.com.

Damariscotta River Grill is located at 155 Main Street in Damariscotta. For more on the show, contact Kim Traina at jumpstartcreative@gmail.com.