Her next large computer-assisted mural was "Discoverers," produced for the Salt Lake Airport in 1996.

Bliss' most extensive and image-packed mural is "Extended Vision," (2001-03) commissioned by the University of Utah for the Cowles Mathematics Building. This collection of screened aluminum plates is the piece de resistance of her oeuvre. (Half-size printed examples of Bliss' murals are included in the exhibition.)

Yet, after decades of extensively combining her ideas with the computer, Bliss now wants more freedom. "I don't feel completely dependent on the computer," she said. "I want to re-combine the many sources of inspiration for my work. The hand and painting, and whatnot, is just as important as what the computer does."

According to Bliss, there is a momentum that "develops with the computer — partly it's political and partly it's financial — that it's the answer to all problems, to all things. What it loses is never considered."

"I think children growing up with an overexposure to the computer, and to television, is detrimental to their development. The computer should be one part, but they still have to have contact with nature, that direct experience of life. Achieving this balance is important."

Bliss can be taken at her word: After the retrospective, she and her husband plan to visit Italy for an extended period to soak up the art and beauty of the country.

In the exhibition catalog's enlightening essay piece, Katherine M. Nelson recounts a story of a Japanese architect/scientist who visited Bliss' studio. After studying his surroundings, he told the artist her work was "Shin Gyo So."

"Shin" is the formal structure.

"Gyo" is variation within the structure.

"So" is the touch that disturbs both Shin and Gyo.

The studio visitor had it right: You cannot define Bliss, or her intersections, any better.

And so the artist comes full circle, and her journey — "Intersections: The Art of Anna Campbell Bliss" — is to be studied and savored for its notable craftsmanship and its intelligent mingling of art and science.

---

If you go

What: "Intersections: The Art of Anna Campbell Bliss"

Where: Utah Museum of Fine Arts

When: Today through Aug. 3

How much: $4 adults, $2 seniors and youths (6-18)

Phone: 581-7332

Web: www.umfa.utah.edu

Also

What: Lecture by author and art critic Katherine M. Nelson

When: Today, 4 p.m.

---

E-mail: gag@desnews.com