Photographer Julie Masterson and glass artist Dianne Van de Carr blend their creative energies in the March Dolphin Gallery exhibit entitled "Fire and Ice." To honor these unique talents, an opening reception will be held on Saturday, March 6 from 5-7 p.m. Stop by the gallery for some inspiration, conversation and complimentary wine and munchies. Admission is free of charge.

Julie Mastersonâs mission statement is "to inspire appreciation for endangered landscapes and cultures around the globe." Her work is scripted by the eye under which she sees the world, affected by the hand of man and other influences, on film.

With twenty years experience as a fine art photographer, Masterson has obtained unforgettable images through her sojourns. Traveling to Africa, Tibet, India and other exotic locales, Masterson continues to capture the spirit of these cultures and the earth in which they inhabit. Her message moves the observer: "The images in her photographs represent elements of our world threatened by negative change."

Having studied under the eye of Ansel Adams, Eliot Porter, and other iconic photographers, Masterson has been featured in forty plus exhibits in the Southwest and California. She has been awarded for her work in the Hillcrest Festival of Fine Arts and the Art Alliance of Idyllwild, and had exhibited at the McGroarty Arts Center in Tujunga and the Larchmont Gallery in Los Angeles.

Self-taught glass artist Dianne Van de Carr attended her first stained glass class in 1977; less than ten years later, fused glass became an outlet for her creative energies. Today, her exhibits are featured solely at California galleries.

By experimenting with dichroic glass, Van de Carr is able to mold each piece into a one of a kind. Dichroic glass is "created by vaporizing minerals onto sheets of glass in a vacuum chamber, the microscopic layers interrupt wave lengths of light." The colors that result depend upon the number of coatings. The pieces are then cut and fired. Adding brass or copper takes the design to a new level.

The finished product is a transfusion of color and light, each creation casting an ever-changing spectrum of hues.