The Westmoreland Juried Biennial reflects the considerable talent and the diversity of expression of artists who reside within a 100-mile radius of Greensburg.

"Independence" is the title of an oil painting by Pittsburgher Robert Huckestein, and also of a book in the bike basket, just beneath the yellow rubber rooster, by author "R.U. Free." It's one of two large paintings by the artist in the 2006 Westmoreland Juried Biennial at the Westmoreland Museum of American Art, Greensburg. Click photo for larger image. Westmoreland Juried Biennial Where: Westmoreland Museum of American Art, Greensburg When: Through Oct. 15. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday and until 9 p.m. Thursday. Admission: $3 suggested donation; 724-837-1500 or visit www.wmuseumaa.org

One of the more recent exhibitions initiated to showcase regional artists, the Westmoreland Museum of American Art's 2006 Biennial is only the second, yet it attracted more than 300 entries, nearly three times the 2004 number. Juror Virginia Mecklenburg, senior curator at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, D.C., selected 87 works of art by 69 artists.

Her catholic tastes embrace the variety of artistic styles, techniques and media being employed today while maintaining a bottom line of quality.

Mecklenburg chose works, she says in her juror's statement, "for the power of their ideas and the effectiveness of their execution. Each work offers a singular and compelling vision."

The mix includes many admirable works, such as Jennifer Boget's representational watercolor, "Moments Captured," which freezes a memory of walking along a shore but also captures the luminosity of pooled water and the colors of early morning sky; a sprightly colorful abstract painting, "Point Source," by Ron Romano; Amy Lipshie's handsome fiberwork, "Broken Tile"; and a thought-provoking installation by Melissa Vertosick, "imprint/erase," that addresses feminist and identity issues.

It's a credit to museum curator Barbara Jones, who installed it, that the show flows so seamlessly, never an easy accomplishment with this disparate a gathering. One idea that she successfully employed was to group works by subject or style.

At the entry, for example, Richard Stoner's splendid pair of photographs that are observant studies of pattern and reflection, "Florida #1" and "Florida #2," play off one another and complement, rather than detract from, Charles Pitcher's masterful watercolor of an eroded winter bank and gray-green water, "Thoreau's Brook II." By their presence, they widen the conversation about other nearby depictions of tree and forest.

Joyce Werwie Perry, of McKees Rocks, captured the pathos and the pride of "The Coalminer's Family" in this lifesized rendition in oil on canvas. Click photo for larger image.

The only work to suffer against the democratically white walls is one of the best, Kevin O'Toole's "273-05." But to grant the artist special treatment would no doubt raise a hue and cry, so the viewer will have to compensate and simply focus more intensely upon it.

That is actually the least that is due a fine work of art, and O'Toole's -- as well as David Ludwig's -- consistently elegant, minimalist works reveal more as more time is spent with them.

While formally quite different, each artist's three-dimensional wall-hung artworks share grace, polish, near obsessive attention to surface, purity and a refreshing lack of excess and braggadocio. O'Toole's work is so humble that its silver sparkle is almost internal. Ludwig's ruminative "Structure Cluster 9," which at first appears somber due to its palette, is subtle yet complex, the angles of its multiple surfaces and many tonal gradations setting up the quiet motion of ambling thought.

Painting has a strong presence, highlights including Paul Binai's emotionally raw, jarringly colored and compelling "The Sleep Walker"; Robert Huckestein's eccentric "Independence," with its broad, brave perspective; Joyce Werwie Perry's soulful interpretation of "The Coalminer's Family"; and Ivan Fortushniak's cryptic and engaging "Plus Red." Ray Forquer brings his nostalgic subject, "The Kite Flyers," to life through deft handling of brush and a perfect fit of composition and palette, while Ron Donoughe, in "Morning Break," and Post-Gazette illustrator Daniel Marsula, in "Hot Metal," draw inspiration from and find formal vigor in the region's powerful and still relevant industrial heritage.

Jamie Linder's "Westinghouse" and David Lesako's "Farm Yard" illustrate the power of line, the former haunting with its spectral child, the latter's bright pastel strokes suggestive of the movement of its absent animals.

Also notable are Ildiko Voros' gelatin silver prints "Nude" and "Lily," sumptuous works of understated beauty succinct in title and in presentation, and Dave Hammaker's photographs, such as "Whitby Beach," elevated by his harmonious color sense.

This is for the most part a pleasant show, more concerned with exploring formal concerns, our surroundings, how we pass our time and who we share it with than with edgy theory or political controversy.

The works are the kind that one could easily live with, and the majority are for sale, ranging in price from $50 photographs to $12,000 works in bronze and in watercolor. Other pieces by some of the artists are offered in the museum's gift shop, another benefit the museum provides local artists.

In connection with the Biennial, Jones and museum director/CEO Judith O'Toole will present a free informal discussion on "How to Buy Art" at 7 p.m. tomorrow, a precursor to a longer, more formal class now in the planning stages. At 7 p.m. Oct. 12, free Artists' Talks will be given by exhibitors Amy Lipshie (fiber), Dan Mohan (photography), Joyce Werwie Perry (painting) and Ben Schachter (sculpture).

I wish that the museum schedule were such that the Biennial could stay up longer than one month, but, at least at present, its placement is guided by the museum's long-range commitments. Producing a small catalog, along the lines of that of the AAP Annual, would enhance the exhibition's standing.

'Light' symposium

A symposium on "Light" -- its importance, meaning and use in the visual arts -- will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts.

The moderator is Louise Lippincott, Carnegie Museum of Art chief curator and curator of fine arts, who co-curated the exhibition "Light! The Industrial Age, 1750-1900."

Panelists are Jane Haskell and Kim Beck, the center's 2006 Artist and Emerging Artist of the Year; plein-air painter Ron Donoughe; photographer Jill Larson, currently exhibiting at Pittsburgh Filmmakers; and Hilary Harp, currently exhibiting at Pittsburgh Glass Center.

The cost is $10, students $2. For information, call 412-361-0873.