Artist-in-the-House Opening Reception for Ronni Jolles, "Rough Around the Edges"

When Ronni Jolles, the child of an artist, began searching for her own unique style, she explored drawing, painting, ceramics, collage, printmaking, and sculpture—but in the end, paper art called to her, giving her a long-sought outlet for expression. “Here was a sculptural medium to satisfy my tactile nature,” she recalls, “offering limitless possibilities for color and a story of its own to add depth to the meaning.”

In “Rough Around the Edges,” the latest Riverworks Art Center exhibition, Jolles shows that the possibilities of paper art are unlimited, whether in terms of composition, subject matter, or emotional content. Using collage techniques, she cuts, tears, and layers paper to create uniquely textured scenes. She then adds acrylic paints and sealants to add color variation, bring out textures, and protect the pieces of paper, which have fascinating stories of their own. Jolles finds rare papers from around the world, including some made only in small villages in Thailand, Tibet, Japan, Mexico, Nepal, or Egypt. Whether depicting nature, winter landscapes, seaside towns, or gentle moments of human activity, her work startles the viewer and makes it impossible not to move in for a closer look.

“Rough Around the Edges” will be on display from Wednesday, December 17, 2025, through Sunday, February 15, 2026, at Locals Farm Market, 19929 Fisher Avenue, Poolesville, Md. This show is the 23rd Riverworks “Artist in the House” exhibition to be featured at the historic Veirs-Stevens House at Locals.

An artist’s reception will be held at Locals on Sunday, January 18, 2026, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. The reception is free and the public is invited to attend. Jolles will be speaking about her work at 5 p.m. and providing further insight into her artistic process.

To accompany “Rough Around the Edges,” Jolles will also offer a paper-layering workshop at Riverworks on Sunday, February 8, 2026, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The location and further details will be posted soon on the Riverworks website.

Riverworks co-founder Sandy Wright is eager to watch visitors’ reactions to Jolles’ work, especially the curiosity and sense of possibility she expects this show to inspire.

“Riverworks is all about expanding people’s awareness of what we can accomplish through art,” Wright says. “The public is going to be amazed by the subtlety and care that go into Ronni’s work and moved by just how beautiful it is. What many artists strive to do with painting, she achieves with paper.”

Understanding and even anticipating viewers’ reactions, Jolles still fondly recalls the moment she realized the potential of paper art.

“When I discovered paper as my medium, a whole new textural world opened up,” she says, adding that the specific paper-layering process she uses is her own creation. When she teaches her process at schools and art centers across the Washington, D.C., area, she finds that students are just as delighted to discover it as she was. “I had no idea it would be so accessible to people of all ages and artistic backgrounds,” she says. “I love teaching this, especially to total beginners.”

Jolles says that no matter how long she works with paper, she herself still finds the medium endlessly surprising.

“Whether it's the cyclical journey of trees or the simple beauty of a clothesline hanging outside a window, using paper delivers a painterly quality with textures that can't be achieved through paint,” she says. “I found the best of all worlds in paper.”