Opening Reception and Artist Talk with Beverly Ress

Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art (Tephra ICA) is pleased to present Light and Longing: Drawings by Beverly Ress, a solo exhibition curated by Mary Welch Higgins, on view at Tephra ICA at Signature October 15, 2026–February 13, 2027.

Maryland-based artist Beverly Ress’ training as a sculptor led her to an exploration of the materiality of space within drawing. Slowly and carefully rendering with colored pencil and pastel, Ress works on Arches drawing paper and vellum, a translucent surface. The use of vellum and the painterly layering of the colored pencil create the distinguishing luminosity and translucency in Ress’ work. The viewer sees light and the reflections of objects in rooms, creating the quality of a half-remembered dream where organic forms, rooms, and windows come into focus only to dissolve as we awaken. The recurring image of a window is a metaphor for our internal and external worlds. It is a portal–a place to look out or in - and also a symbol of longing.

Beverly Ress resides in Silver Spring, MD. She received an BA in Fine Arts from Earlham College in Indiana and an MFA in Sculpture from Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA).

Mary Welch Higgins is an artist, independent curator, and creative technologist. She currently resides in Annandale, VA and received a BFA from Corcoran College of Art and Design and an MA in Visual Information Technology from George Mason University.