The city of Enumclaw’s Gallery 2012 presents the work of Enumclaw artist Adam Kenney.

His paintings will be on display Sept. 6 through Oct. 2.

“I have spent much of my life among the various locales surrounding Enumclaw, Maple Valley, and Ravensdale,” Kenney wrote in an artist’s statement. After leaving for Seattle Pacific University and being impressed by the big city, Kenney discovered his appreciation for the natural beauty of his home turf.

“On the rare occasions when I would journey home, I began to appreciate the scenery much more than I had before,” he wrote. “I was finally able to really appreciate the beauty of the Plateau and the foothills.”

Having spent time in the city and the university, Kenney also developed an interest in architecture and the relation of geometric shapes to organic shapes.

“I began to appreciate man-made structures in ways that had not occurred to me before,” he wrote. “The contrast that an erected monument had against the flowing and ever-changing wildlife became emphasized in my mind. Artists that I had never really thought too much of before, such as Edward Hopper and Winslow Homer, were appealing to my sensibilities.

“That said, this work is an effort to express that excitement. The towering power lines, the mangled fence, the distant houses, and the cut tree all speak to man’s wrestle with nature. Ideas of age, decay, new life, eventual loss, progression, and many others are brought to mind when we take some moments to view our environment in relation to time and the forces of mankind, nature, and God. My art is an attempt to help us reflect on ancient and lasting truths in a world where we are often too busy to think on such things.”

Gallery 2012 is in the council chambers at Enumclaw City Hall, 1339 Griffin Ave. in Enumclaw. Exhibition hours are 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

For more information, call the Enumclaw Cultural Programs office at 360-802-0239.