Mercy Iowa City is hosting an exhibit of original watercolors by Mechanicsville artist Barbara Weets. These works will remain on display in the Mercy gallery through January 2021 as part of the Art in the Atrium program that features 3-4 artists each year.

Weets said her watercolors are inspirations from the environment and reflect her love for nature and she paints nature in a subjective manner while accentuating the patterns, designs and colors in harmonious repetition.

“My style, which is a non-traditional, intuitive use of watercolor allows me to express my perceptions of nature with bright, vivid colors,” Weets said.

“Lush with vegetation in night scenes at water’s edge, underwater, on the forest floor, or even on a Victorian tablecloth, my paintings are often described as enchanting, mysterious, tranquil and fresh; paintings that make you feel good,” Weets said. “With my watercolors, I share a closer look at the environment, its beauty and fragile qualities, finding those qualities in the simplest things.”

Weets grew up on a farm near Mechanicsville, graduating from Lincoln Community High School in 1972. She earned her BFA from the University of Iowa for Painting and Design in 1981 after attending Kirkwood Community College and the University of Montana.

Her work has been published by the Iowa Journal of Literary Studies V, Pomegranate Publications of California and Iowa Women magazine among others. She has also self-published lithographs, giclee’ prints and note cards of her watercolors.

Weets said much of her work is completed on commission, found in homes and businesses throughout the United States and in foreign countries and has been featured in juried exhibitions in Chicago, Los Angeles and locally in Cedar Rapids’ Fourth of July Festival and the Iowa City Thieves Market.

Due to current visitor restrictions the exhibit is not open to the public, but we have created a video showcasing Weets’ work.