Mary Franchini and Jane Smith are the featured artists in the Blue Whole Gallery’s “May Flowers” upcoming exhibit.

Artwork by Franchini, an acrylic and mixed media painter, and Smith, a 3-D multimedia artist, will be on display at the gallery, 129 W. Washington St., through the month of May.

Visit with the artists at a gathering from 5-8 p.m. Friday, May 5, during the First Friday Art Walk.

Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Saturday, and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on Sundays.

For more about the gallery and its artists, visit bluewholegallery.com.

About the featured artists

“Over my years of painting I have enjoyed abstracting all manner of things and making non-objective pieces,” Franchini said in a press release.

”But sometimes I need to get back to my roots and take a stab at flowers that look real. I cannot help but throw in some abstracted elements or out-of-norm color.”

Most of the time Franchini uses acrylic paint but likes to use other media, along with acrylic.

”I love to try and bring the effect of light on an object — it does not always work but I do try,” she said.

Learn more about Franchini’s work at maryfranchini.com and OPAAgroup.com.

Smith’s mother was an oil painter, and as a child she wanted to be an artist. Growing up in Hawaii, her first art was creating mosaics from found beach glass.

“I would embellish school reports with colorful yarn or pictures in elementary school and would often use different colored pencils or pens to make my work stand out,” Smith said.

Smith said her first adult artistic creativity was when she discovered cake decorating.

“Fifty years later I still find myself creating with frosting and even using cake decorating supplies to add dimension to my art. Her next calling was acrylic painting, and she’s enjoyed that medium for more 30 years. She particularly enjoys painting on “repurposed” items such as furniture and silver teapots.

Living in Arizona, she then branched out into painting on gourds, and a business trip to Djibouti inspired her desire to create African-themed art along with my childhood Hawaiian influences.

“My grandmother awakened my love for gardening and the colors occurring in nature, which are responsible for my color combinations and my floral themes,” Smith said. “My … window at the Blue Whole Gallery will display a variety of my artistic creations.”

“Masks” by Jane Smith, a featured artist at the Blue Whole Gallery’s May 2023, exhibition, “May Flowers.”

Art courtesy of Blue Whole Gallery / “Yellow Flower for May” by Mary Franchini, a featured artist at the Blue Whole Gallery’s May 2023, exhibition, “May Flowers.”

Photo courtesy of Blue Whole Gallery / “Quail” by Jane Smith, a featured artist at the Blue Whole Gallery’s May 2023, exhibition, “May Flowers.”

Art courtesy of Blue Whole Gallery / “Honeysuckle New for May” by Mary Franchini, a featured artist at the Blue Whole Gallery’s May 2023, exhibition, “May Flowers.”

Photo courtesy of Blue Whole Gallery / “Teapots” by Jane Smith, a featured artist at the Blue Whole Gallery’s May 2023, exhibition, “May Flowers.”