Alan Kim | The Roanoke Times

Radford artist Kendall Kessler produced 12 oil paintings over a four-month period, all based on her dreams. At right is the 12th and largest piece, “Dream River,” which she completed in April.

About Art Tour 10

• Art Tour 10 is a coalition of eight New River Valley artists who specialize in different styles. Membership is by invitation only. The coalition held its first tour in November. Following this weekend’s tour, Art Tour 10 artists will participate in a group exhibit at June 23-24 the Cranwell International Center in Blacksburg. For more information, see arttourten.com.

The artists

• Anne Fournier-Anderson: Pottery
• Sue Brozovsky: Sculpture
• Jennifer Collins: Oil paintings
• Aileen Fletcher: Photography
• Carter Holliday: Furniture accessories and ceramics
• Emily Keown: Fiber art
• Kendall Kessler: Oil paintings
• Jean Sumner: Wooden art

The weekend’s tour

• See art from the eight Art Tour 10 artists from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday in Radford.
• The Gallery, 1019 E. Main St., features Jennifer Collins, Carter Holliday, Aileen Fletcher and Emily Keown.
• 104 P.T. Travis Ave., features Kendall Kessler and Sue Brozovsky.
• 7488 River Bluff Road, features Anne Fournier-Anderson and Jean Sumner. Maps are available at The Gallery in Radford.

"There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy." Spoken by Hamlet in Act 1 of the Shakespearean play, this quote is one of Kendall Kessler's favorites.

The Radford artist said she has always believed that science cannot completely explain the human experience. It surely can't explain her dreams for the past decade.

In them, Kessler sees paintings, which is not surprising given her status as a well-known artist and Radford University art professor.

In her dreams, the paintings are Kessler's. But in reality, she's never seen them before.

"I'm usually in a gallery where I sell it or at a gallery showing it. I'm just wondering around looking at paintings, and in the dream, they're mine, and I know they're mine," Kessler said.

"When I wake up, I'm thinking about all of these paintings that I saw that I've never seen before. It's a very strange experience," she said.

Kessler started painting what she saw in her dreams in January. She usually remembers at least one of the images throughout the day until she can settle down at her easel, which is in a small room connected to her bedroom.

The picture that she transfers through her brush is light and swirling with an odd tint of icy blue that is not typically present in her landscapes, which use darker tones. They depict tree and creek landscapes and sometimes include human figures.

So far, she has produced 12 of the paintings, which she calls "dreamscapes." The pieces are on display through mid-July at the Red Cross Donor Center in Blacksburg. But this weekend, they will be exhibited in Kessler's home studio as part of the Art Tour 10 route.

Artists may stop by three different locations in Radford between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday to view the work of eight New River Valley artists.

Kessler said that those familiar with her work will see resemblances in the dreamscapes but will also detect a slight twist. The movement is different.

"Movement is something a lot of artists like to get into their artwork, but I don't put that much and these things [the dreamscapes] are really swirling around. I think that's because it's a dream," she said.

Also different is the number of layers of paint. Kessler normally paints in multiple layers, but the dreamscapes use only two or three, allowing for a smoother texture.

Kessler said it's possible that the landscapes are childhood memories she had long forgotten. She's a restless sleeper, and often dreams about relatives who appear younger in her dreams -- the way they looked when she was a child.

"I guess that's because I saw them that way more than I see them now. I just go home once a year," said Kessler, who hails from Northern Virginia.

She said the creek landscapes she sees in her dreams may be reminiscent of the areas where she used to play growing up.