OCEAN CITY — The First Friday art opening on Sept. 4 at the Ocean City Center for the Arts goes from total abstraction to beautiful realism with concurrent shows filling the galleries on 94^th Street.

The public is invited to the free event from 5 to 7 p.m. to meet the artists and enjoy hors d’oeuvres.

Family members Kirk McBride, Lynne Lockhart and Paul Lockhart are the featured artists in the main gallery in a show entitled “Next of Kin.”

The relationship between light and shadow is the unifying theme running throughout McBride’s work, and he is constantly looking for those moments to inspire his oil paintings. He paints a variety of subjects from seascapes to mountains, from foreign cafes to interiors of his own Eastern Shore home and studio that he shares with his wife, Lynne Lockhart.

Lynne Lockhart paints a verity of subjects but specializes in dogs and other animals and is a signature member of the Society of Animal Artists. She quietly observes the natural world, both wild and tame, to provide her with endless painting possibilities.

Lynne’s brother, Paul, is a metal sculptor who specializes in capturing the simple elegance of nature’s design using steel, copper, and stainless steel. His shapes are modern and interpretive, and expressed as wall hangings, indoor furnishings and garden sculpture.

Also on First Friday, members of the Art League of Ocean City will fill the galleria at the Arts Center with abstract work in both two and three dimensions.

Also at the Arts Center in September, Teri Edgeworth will display her paintings in Studio E; bird portrait photographer Carl Forsberg is the Spotlight Artist; and glass jewelry designer Fay Kempton is the artisan in residence.

All shows continue at the Arts Center until Sept. 26.

More information is available at www.artleagueofoceancity.org or by calling 410-524-9433.

The Art League of Ocean City is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing the visual arts to the community through education, exhibits, scholarship, programs and community art projects. Financial support comes primarily through membership dues from individuals and corporate sponsors.