“The 5 x 5 Show: Water & Works (Eighth Edition),” through June 4, Nurture Nature Center, Easton, is an exhibition of the work of five artists who have shared their artistic visions in Lehigh Valley galleries for the past eight years.

Richard Begbie, photography; Patricia Delluva, drawing, printmaking; James A. DePietro, painting; Barbara Kozero, mosaic, sculpture, and Jacqueline Meyerson, pastel, discover common ground while utilizing different media.

“The two components of life to us are art and water,” says DePietro about the exhibit’s connecting themes. The exhibit is a good fit for the Nurture Nature Center, a nonprofit focused on water conservation and science.

The third floor hallway exhibit features works related to water. In between the pieces are quotations chosen by the artists that provide thematic support.

Among these are: “No one can see their reflection in running water. It is only in still water that we can see,” a Taoist proverb; “Let the rivers run, let all dreamers awake the nation,” by singer Carly Simon, and “Perhaps the truth depends on a walk around the lake,” by poet Wallace Stevens.

“This is a perfect representation of a Sunday afternoon in France,” says DePietro about “Another Sunday Afternoon” (2013; oil on paper). “The subjects were in different areas of the lake and I combined them into one picture,” DePietro continues. The idyllic scenes revolve around a joyful boy with his model sailboat walking around the shimmering water at Luxembourg Gardens in Paris. DePietro says painter George Seurat was the inspiration for the work.

“Fishline” (2017; archival print on fine art paper) is one of Begbie’s abstract works. The digital photograph blurs the line of what is real and reality’s abstract elements. The murky shadow of a Key West Florida pier from which the image was captured sharply abuts the clear water in the sunlight, with fish swimming below the surface to tie the contrasting elements together.

“Water and air, the two essential fluids on which life depends, have become global garbage cans,” said by oceanographer Jacques Cousteau, illuminates three environmental-themed cartoons drawn by Delluva. “Fish Tales I” (2023; ink and graphite) by Delluva depicts two fish trying to get picture and sound on a discarded television and radio while other objects dumped into the polluted water float around them. “Hey, this junk ain’t workin’,” complains one.

Kozero’s “Water”-themed works include “Glass of Flowers” (2023; mosaic) stacked over “Tall Tree by the Water” (2023; mosaic). The still life and landscape are created with glass and clay tiles.

The award-winning “On the Hudson” (2019; pastel, 15 in. x 11 in.) by Master Pastelist Meyerson is a highly-detailed study of the folds of a sails bunched together at the end of a sailboat’s rigging. Meyerson created the piece from a reference photo taken during a Father’s Day sailing trip around the Lower Manhattan coastline.

“I saw there was a little peep hole in between the sails that showed Jersey City,” says the award-winning artist. Finding the view of a decrepit building “a rather uncomfortable sight,” Meyerson drew in a more attractive view of New York. For the Brooklyn girl who was born and raised in New York City, “The skyline of New York is the just the most beautiful thing,” she says.

The “Works” component of the 5 x 5 show on display in the third floor Delaware Room includes a variety of subjects and mediums.

The Allan Meyerson Trio provided music for the April 14 opening reception.

The Nurture Nature Center, which has three galleries and an interactive museum, has two other exhibits.

“Up Down, All Around,” photographic scrolls by Easton photographer Jamie Cabreza, continues through June 25.

“Risky Beauty: Aesthetics and Climate Change,” featuring Philadelphia area artists Diane Burko, Maureen Drdak, Stacy Levy, Deidre Murphy, Amie Potsic, Hiro Sakaguchi and Chantal Westby, continues through June 26.

“The 5 x 5 Show: Water & Works (Eighth Edition),” through June 4, Nurture Nature Center, 518 Northampton St., Easton. Hours: Noon - 4 p.m. Wednesday, Saturday, and by appointment. Closed Sunday through Tuesday, Thursday through Friday. 610-253-4432; https://nurturenaturecenter.org/

“Gallery View” is a column about artists, exhibitions and galleries. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com