"Majorie" by Chenango County artist Emily Wangerin. Her paintings use bright, expressive color to represent female identity in all its forms. (Submitted photo)

NORWICH — The Chenango Arts Council, located at 27 West Main Street in Norwich, will be hosting an opening reception for "Mirrors and Muses," a gallery featuring the work of local artist Emily Wangerin at 1 p.m. on Saturday, August 16 in the Mariea Brown and Raymond Loft Gallery.

Included in the gallery will be Wangerin's portraits as well as painted and embellished mirrors, which Wangerin said are "both visual art pieces in themselves and symbolic elements that invite viewers to see their own reflection as part of the story."

"She is a talented local artist. She actually showed with us previously with a great show. She’s very great at portraiture and she likes to use her color choices in a really cohesive way across the exhibit, and it kind of helps to tell the story that she's telling," said Chenango Arts Council Administrative Assistant Mary Beth Miller.

"It’s really very beautiful and cohesive the way she puts it together. The way she incorporates other kinds of media into telling a story is really amazing, like the mirrors in addition to the portraits and things like that," she added.

Wangerin uses bright, expressive color in her paintings to represent all the facets of feminine identity.