While the puzzles, ticket stubs, toy cowboy guns and badminton racquets in the exhibit may look like a strange amalgamation, adjunct art professor Sharon Moody had a greater thematic message in mind for her collection, “Amusements,” now on display in Walsh. In depicting the desire for pleasure in today’s society, Moody, uses a combination of fun and intellect seen by pairing games, historical references and famous paintings to create quirky illusionist works. As she says in her collection statement, “My aim is to first entertain the eye and then intrigue the mind.” Moody, who has been teaching at Georgetown since 1998 and is also a full-time artist, has held exhibitions in both Maryland. and Virginia. but this is her first solo show at Georgetown. “Amusements” runs through Apr.il 10 in Walsh Gallery 101.

What was the basis of this collection and why is the title “Amusements?”

The exhibition is of trompe l’oeil paintings, and that which is a French expression that means “fool the eye.” They are [illusionistic] paintings which create the sense of three dimensions on a flat surface. The subject matter for most of these pieces, many of these pieces are games or puzzles or toys; the subject seemed appropriate for a trompe l’oeil technique because the technique itself is often considered playful in that when people look at them they are fooled for a moment at least into thinking they are looking at something three-dimensional.

Do you always paint in this medium?

I certainly have turned more and more towards the technique. I really do find it rewarding to work in this hyper-realist style. All of these [pieces] are oil paintings on panel, two are on canvas, but the majority are on panel because panel is smoother support than canvas. It lends itself to highly detailed imagery.

What is different about this style? How does it relate to the subjects you chose? Well, in oil painting in general, there are hundreds of different styles, but in trompe l’oeil, the space depicted is very shallow, the light source is strong with strong cast shadows. And of course you can’t see the brush strokes or the hand of the artist because it should not be obvious because obviously that would spoil the illusion that you are looking at something that’s real.

Do you have a favorite piece?

Most artists would say the same thing I do, which is the last piece [laughs], so I would say the badminton.

How long does it take for you to complete a piece?

Maybe a month.

How did you try to connect the pieces through the theme of amusements?

Yes, well, I tried to, in this exhibit, include the pieces that are more about the games and the toys and less art history, but there is some art history in this. I think that these paintings that are included in this are the ones that are pastimes that people do and the pleasure-seeking impulse that is so prevalent in this society. That introduction [to her painting of a hand-written version of Pride and Prejudice] is the most well-known opening line in English literature and that is the title of the painting. The titles of my pieces are really important.

One of your pieces shows some Scrabble letters strewn about. What do the letters spell?

It’s actually [four] words: This is a Game. It’s an anagram of the actual letters on the tiles but it’s also a reference to a famous painting, “This is Not a Pipe,” by René e Magritte. That’s what making [illusionistici] art is -— illusions.

Is this the complete collection of your amusement paintings or are there some that you were unable to include?

I have done a lot, and most of the ones I chose are based on games. Initially, I was doing art history references, like the three beauties [an allusion to a famous painting of the three graces], and in the piece where I did the little puzzle, which is of a Vincent van Gogh puzzle, I was looking at how certain artworks had become part of our pop culture by making them a mug or a game or a puzzle that they sell in museums. When I did the puzzle of van Gogh’s white roses I thought that games would be a really good continuation of the subject — not just art history games but games in general and toys in general. The subjects of the games are so beautiful to paint because the subject has details to paint, like the beauty of the leather [of a toy gun holster] that is a part of the subject itself was ideal to treat in an illusionary way.

How do you feel about the presence of art in daily life on campus?

Well, I think that our gallery director Evan Reed does a really good job getting student art out all around campus. I know he puts art up in spaces in the library and the dean’s office, and we also have those plasma screens in several different locations that students in other departments can see what their peers are doing here.

Where do you do your painting?

I have a studio in McLean, and I have a studio that’s attached to my home. It was built by another artist that originally owned my house. It’s very large, maybe 20 feet by 40 feet, and it’s very spacious, and I’m generally there on weekdays when I’m not here.

Are many of the art teachers artists?

Not the art historians, but all of the studio faculty are practicing working artists. They wouldn’t be teaching here if they weren’t.