Last Chance

Catch it or Regret It

by Holly Otterbein

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Thirteen artists from New York and Philadelphia respond to Kenneth E. Parris III, a painter who pokes fun at the government, religion and authority figures. In Parris' "Weapons of Mass Destruction" series, he highlights objects that the Transportation Security Administration banned on airplanes. While not as controversial, the other artists' pieces share Parris' whimsical qualities: In Gigi Chen's cartoonish At Least We Don't Have Roaches, panda bear heads and stuffed animals overtake two women, and Centa Petersen's Egg Hat (pictured) depicts an elflike creature frowning in a bathing suit.

Using staging techniques from theater and silent film, Hans Gindlesberger's photographs explore the effects of small towns attempting modernization but ultimately failing. His prints are surreal and largely symbolic: They feature a young man dropping eggs, glancing sadly at a fallen paper airplane and crushing a newspaper.

Helene Witman and the Mid-Atlantic Porcelain Artists engage in two ancient arts: painting landscapes and decorating clay pieces. Witman's watercolors are vibrant and natural; the huge mango-colored tree standing adjacent to a lake in Glorious Red leaves you aching for warmer months. Hand-painted plates and vases, decorated with lilies, roses and other flowers, have the same nostalgia-inducing effect.