Although at first Leslie Shows’ work might read as abstract compositions, a close inspection reveals her expanded approach to painting and the deeper connections she has forged between her practice and the realms of geology, the passing of time and the imaginary. Her works are usually large in scale and materially rich, deftly combining a lush and diverse arsenal including sand, paint, metal, fabrics, plexiglass, ink, and collage among others. Whether hung sideways in diamond-like shapes, or laden with folds, fragments and textures that stretch and drip, her work is rarely confined within the limits of a frame. A key aspect of Shows’ practice is an interest in the various ways in which we relate to the natural world. She has taken inspiration from the mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, also known as fool's gold; from water formations from the faces of rocks; and even from calcified mining ruins that the artist remembers from her childhood spent in Juneau, Alaska. Whether suggesting forms from nature like beehives, or emulating the textures of crystals and marble or the shapes of minerals, each piece connects us to a place, a landscape, real or imagined.