"Capturing the Glory of Nature in Watercolor and Oil Paintings" is the theme of the new art exhibit opening Sunday, May 6, at the Artists League of the Sandhills Exchange Street Gallery, in Aberdeen.

Floral and landscape paintings by local artists Margo Matarese and Martha Tournas will be exhibited during the monthlong show. A wine-and-cheese reception, hosted by the artists and open to the general public, is scheduled from 2 to 5 p.m. at the exhibit's opening.

Matarese's award-winning watercolors depict bright floral still-lifes with a loose spontaneity and painterly style that captures the essence of flowers and the beauty of nature.

Lilies, tulips and roses are just a few of the many flowers portrayed in vases, fields, windows and gardens. She paints with clear, bright colors that are fresh and lively, making her artwork pleasing and exciting to the viewer.

Her oil paintings are vivid depictions of landscapes that offer an interpretation that is a unique vision of color and design, a style she describes as contemporary impressionism.

By using arbitrary colors, flat forms and a minimum of detail to paint her subject, she communicates a sense of time and place that offers the viewer a sense of poetry in her works.

Tournas' watercolors present her vision of nature's glory in compositions of flowers, leaves, fruits and vegetables in a representational style.

Her subjects are delicately painted with the beauty of detail in color and line, offering the viewer paintings that enrich and stimulate the imagination and emotions. Petunias, lilies, poppies, pineapples and pears are just a few of the many subjects depicted in her watercolors.

Tournas is a member of and has exhibited with the Newport Art Museum, the Wickford and Conanicut Island Art Associations in Rhode Island, and the Westport Art Group in Massachusetts.

The exhibit will remain open through May 25. Regular gallery hours are Monday through Saturday from noon to 3 p.m.

Contact the League at (910) 944-3979 or artistleague@windstream.org for information on membership, painting classes, workshops and monthly gallery exhibits, or visit www.artistleague.org.