Juried Members Show

The 29th annual Juried Members Exhibition at the Newport Art Museum is surprisingly good, considering its scale. With nearly 100 artists, mostly from Rhode Island, several themes quickly emerge: birds, for instance. There’s Kay Ritter’s poker-playing parrot and Rex Lebeau’s owl, suspended mid-flight. There’s also Whitney Overocker’s clever pencil drawing, featuring a whole lineup of grouchy-looking fowl. Other highlights include Joan Hall’s homemade paper algae bloom (pictured), a prize winner which scored the artist a solo show at the museum next year. I also liked “The Social Register,” Robert Kieronski’s whimsical coin-operated fortune teller. (My fortune: “Duncan Fyffe would like to see you outside. He wants to make you a chair.”)