Caroline Kwas’ realistic oil paintings examine the delicate structure of tiny natural objects. Her homeland, the windswept, wave sculpted shores of New England, provided her early inspiration. In her paintings, tumbled stones, crisp shells, and fallen leaves achieve new recognition when you stop to marvel at the details so often overlooked.

Caroline Kwas' visits to the American Southwest, particularly the Sonoran and Mojave deserts, have inspired her newer, more expressive painting. The abrupt departure from tight realistic painting to flowing abstraction is a creative watershed for her. This latest work is radically different from the photorealistic "intimate landscapes" series inspired by her life in New England. Although realistically depicting her chosen subjects was fulfilling from a technical point of view in the past, she recently felt a need to convey her strong emotional connection to nature by adding a more personal voice to her art. The brilliant sunsets and vast desert vistas invite abstraction of natural forms; her organic shapes flow across the canvas and colors sing. The end result is a collection of paintings which deliver the viewer a joyful romp in imagination.