 Well the Crossing Arts Alliance in Brainerd wanted to add a pop of color to this drab winter so they created a new exhibit that does just that. Lakeland News Reporter Cheryl Moore has a preview for this week's In Focus. When the thrill of the holidays is over and we're waiting for the snow to melt on the ground, it feels like everyone could use a little bit of sunshine to get them through the day. That's the bright idea that led the Crossing Art Alliance to display their new exhibit, a riot of color. So we asked our artists to provide work that was colorful. We were open to any medium as long as they gave us color. You can find the brightest of reds and the coolest of blues throughout the exhibit and it's not limited to paint on canvas. We have fiber work. We have some more sculptural pieces, paintings, pastels, mixed media, so it's a pretty wide variety of types of art with that connecting theme of they're really bright and cheerful. Diane Rumberg is one of the featured artists in the Riot of Color exhibit. She used acrylics on a plastic paper called Yupo paper to create what she's named a floral explosion 3. This was a very fun piece to make because it's a rather large piece and it's just freedom. It's just the freedom of working with color and paint. Takes a while to dry because it's plastic so the paint is sitting there but you can wipe out and you can add on and you can make marks as I've done so it's very fun to work with. Now when we finally hit March and we've been a winner for a little while it's safe to say it starts to feel a little gray outside. And that's the whole idea behind the Riot of Color to bring a little life into the season. I think when people walk in and you know they're coming from a snow filled landscape into some place that truly is bright and cheerful color there is an effect on your mood. You have to smile at some of these pieces and I think having these bright colors in front of us before we head back out into the snow kind of helps us leave with a better sense of happiness. A Riot of Color will make its official debut tomorrow and to go with the rainbow theme attendees can expect a few vibrant goodies. We have our opening reception on Saturday from 12 until 2 and we have asked our volunteers to help us make some treats that were just as colorful as the artwork so we'll have an opening reception some of the artists will be here and we will enjoy colorful treats too. Reporting in Brainerd with This Week's in Focus, Cheryl Moore, Lakeland News. The Riot of Color exhibit will run through the end of March and mission to the gallery is always free. If you enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax deductible contribution to Lakeland PBS.