Five stars

Light’s fleeting reflections and projections are harnessed and contained in Sarah Sanford’s abstract screenprints, drawings and collages — the most ethereal imagery I’ve seen this year. Sanford’s compositions, aided by digital photography and printmaking techniques, record illuminations using fluid layers of glimmering inks or controlled, hand-drawn marks. The results are dramatic light and dark impressions evocative of X-rays and blurred natural or human landscapes — both internal and external environments — from the minute to the mammoth. Screenprint “Primitive Streak” depicts a vertical, elliptical sac spanning a sheet of black paper from top to bottom. Layers of copper ink overlay a fuzzy, creamy glow of maybe lilies or bones or a long-stemmed growth inside the sac. Ink is rolled over the sphere’s upper edges in just the right places, adding texture and perception of depth. Sanford’s screenprints are all on black paper and most utilize coffee colored mattes and dark brown wood frames. Her attention to compositional details and presentation are thoughtful and formal, yet these works are not uptight. They show mastery of techniques, an awareness of processes and the artist’s willingness to distort imagery to add complexity to interpretations. A beautiful show! Through July; 317-634-9700, www.myspace.com/alchemygallery, www.sarahsanfordart.com.