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The stories artists tell using style and their mission is what creates an effective painting, said Maine artist Laura Vickery. An exhibit of Vickery’s work that tells the story of homelessness will be hung in the Campus Center from April 26 to May 30. An artist reception will be held at the center from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, May 3.

“I pondered what was important to me and it has always been the human condition and my empathy for it. It is painful — therefore, I chose a painful subject,” the artist said in a statement.

Vickery, a graduate of the Maine College of Art (MECA), has worked in various mediums using welding, blown glass, sculpture, 3D printing, drawing, photography, and stained glass, among many other forms of artistic expression.

Most of Vickery’s paintings have extreme light and dark and a speck of red, if not an abundance of it, the artist explained in a statement. Years spent experimenting with paint taught her to limit her palette to primary colors, “plus white.” In playing with colors, she pursues “a science of mixing hues for harmony, contrast, schemes, and symbolism.”

Vickery said she uses her painting to capture the “struggles and persistence” of the human condition. Vickery’s recent exhibit on 91��Ƭ��’s Biddeford campus focuses on the contrasting elements of the human condition: the poor and the privileged, the generous and the greedy, the kind and the cruel, the wise and the apathetic.

“Homelessness in our country and around the world is everyone’s crisis, whether you choose to look away or not,” the artist explained. “While I share my bread and bills, I want to do more. This show is to respectfully recognize people who are living on the streets of Portland, Maine.”

The Campus Center is located at 11 Hills Beach Road, Biddeford. Hours for the summer are Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sundays from noon to 6 p.m.