Ellington

• Melissa Stern
• Hanging through Feb. 13, Gallery Talk Jan. 23, 12:30 p.m.
• Millsaps Lewis Art Gallery
• Free

I'd like to peek inside Melissa Stern's head at some point. Who knows what little treasures one might find. In "Loose Lips," the artist has created an exhibit of 13 short stories told through mixed-media canvases depicting wacky, and often dark, stories such as the plight of a poor soul named Willie who is attacked by a swarm of wasps. The overall theme of Stern's work seems to be fun, however. The best part of this exhibit is that viewers get to choose how each "story" ends by selecting their favorite of three ending canvases for each story. The 6-year-old crayon-eating Maggie of yesteryear is bubbling to the surface with excitement. Stern will be in the Millsaps Academic Complex Jan. 23 to discuss her work. Maybe I'll have my chance to pick her brain after all.