Chellis Baird’s exhibit, Tethered, opened at the Franklin G. Burroughs and Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum on September 7 and will continue to run through December 19. This Spartanburg S.C. native’s paintings weave together her interests in color, dance, fashion and textiles, creating intricate works of art. These monochromatic pieces include a number of elements, including fabric, paint and wood to create complex, meditative compositions. Baird’s pieces are an exploration of the way “daily actions impact social fabric. To experience the motion of art, I blur the lines between paint and canvas, color and form,” she says. Baird invites viewers to “immerse themselves in the tactility of the human hand and spirit, with enough space to fill in and release their own emotions.”

Baird is a Rhode Island School of Design BFA graduate and studied studio art at the Art Students League in New York City. Her work was recently featured at the World Trade Center Oculus, as part of their Resurgence art exhibit. These “sculptural paintings” are neither fully sculpture nor painting—instead, straddling the line between the two and creating something wholly unique. Candescent, along with all of Baird’s pieces, are a treat to the senses and promise to delight, intrigue and inspire visitors to the exhibit.