Martin Lawrence Galleries will present Kerry Hallam: "Nautical Paintings," featuring unique hand-enhanced charts, acrylics on canvas, and watercolors on paper. Hallam's works spirit us away to experience an alluring atmosphere and the simple pleasures of life. Hallam's lifetime of travels has continually called him to the sea, and his paintings are like a stage-setting, there to explore.

Nautical charts have an intrinsic beauty. The older the map, the more fascinating it is. Hallam's interest in the sea and sailing led to his incorporation of painting and mixed media. Street maps, nautical charts, newsprint, in fact, anything that has a quality unto itself has been used and adds to the flavor and authenticity of his work. He continues to explore the realm of collage and its endless possibilities, each a new and challenging departure.

In the pursuit of unrestrained pleasure, few indulgences compare to the rapture of an adventure at sea, exploring secluded coves and thriving ports alike. Nautical Charts and survey maps have long been the only invitation needed to coax adventurous souls to cast off the shroud of the mundane and set off on a voyage of discovery. Representing adventure and days sent with good companions, these important documents have chronicled man's need for exploration since the beginning of time. The charts and maps of Kerry Hallam, mixed-media works created on actual nautical charts and street maps, serve as beautiful reminders of that one magical moment in our lives when we lived without restraint.