Veronique Wantz Gallery is pleased to present local artist Laura Rockhold's first solo exhibition with the gallery, (IN)HALATION, opening Saturday, January 17, and featuring new work by the artist.
Laura Rockhold: (IN)HALATION - An opening reception at the gallery (free and open to the public) will be on Saturday, January 17th from 4-7pm. Title poem reading by the artist at 6pm.
On view January 17 - February 28, 2026 | ABOUT (IN)HALATION) - The exhibition explores the harmonic pairings of color and sound—and their potential for emotional, physical, and spiritual healing. The exhibition is a multidisciplinary experience including paintings, sculptures, visual poetry, a title poem, and ancient Solfeggio sound frequencies*. This new body of work reveals imaginative ways of perceiving, feeling, relating, and understanding by associating specific color/light frequencies with specific sound frequencies used by ancient Egyptian and Tibetan musicians to promote healing. *During the exhibition, the sound frequencies are accessible via mobile device; visitors are welcome to bring Bluetooth adaptable earbuds or headphones for an optimal listening experience.
(IN)HALATION - ARTIST STATEMENT
halation (n.): the spreading of light beyond its proper boundaries to form a fog around the edges of a bright image
I call the paintings “tone poems” (a nod to the symphonic compositions that have a semiotic relationship to outside sources of inspiration, such as art, literature, and nature). The circle as a symbol for breath (life), becomes an opening into the highest self—a space to attune the body, mind, and spirit to a frequency that radiates coherence, love, and ultimately, healing.
Before painting, I use my breath to bring my heart into coherence while listening to the sound frequencies. My breath becomes my gesture as I move fluid pigments into raw canvas with my body and hands. Kandinsky said, “Color is the keyboard, the eyes are the harmony, the soul is the piano with many strings. The artist is the hand which plays, touching one key or another, to cause vibrations in the soul."
ABOUT THE ARTIST: Click here to read an article on Laura Rockhold’s creative practice and inspiration featured in the current issue (Jan. 2026) of Lake Minnetonka Magazine.
Laura Rockhold is a visual artist and poet living in Minnesota. Her multidisciplinary work explores: interconnectedness between the personal, ecological, universal, and spiritual; language and place; and the restorative power of art, hope, beauty, and healing.
“My creative practice is energized by inspiration, intention, and intuition. I find inspiration in nature, the landscape and wildlife of Minnesota, poetry, writing, art (especially abstract expressionist painting), philosophy, science, music, and my family and friends. I work across mediums, as the source of inspiration often influences the medium(s) for each piece. My visual art and poems are created alongside each other, informing and inspiring each other."
Laura Rockhold is the inventor of the golden root poetic form and a recipient of Save Our Earth Award by the National Federation of State Poetry Societies, the Bring Back The Prairies Award and Southern MN Poets Society Award by the League of Minnesota Poets, and several International Academy of Visual Arts and Hermes Creative Awards. Her first book of poetry, Thunderroot, was a finalist and semifinalist for several awards, and her poems have been published in places like Open Rivers (University of Minnesota journal) and RockPaperPoem (literary magazine).
Rockhold's multi-disciplinary work is found in private collections, and was recently featured (September 2024 - October 2025) in two ARTS@MSP exhibits at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
Image in header: Laura Rockhold, RENEWAL, acrylic on canvas, 60" x 60"
Gallery Hours: Thursdays + Fridays 11:30-3 and Saturdays 12-4 | For private appointments, email: gallery@veroniquewantz.com