Chapel Falls explodes with light. Under the playful paintbrush of Scout Cuomo, the quiet Ashfield nature reserve and hiking trail becomes a riot of neon color and soft, dappled shapes. Every hot-pink inch of the glass canvas, layered with acrylic paint and epoxy, is a beautifully detailed source of light, from the cool shadows on the undersides of tree trunks to the frisson of white glare that runs down the center of the diptych.

Facing “Chapel Falls” on the opposite wall of the gallery is another Ashfield nature scene: “Two Fold,” which floats in mid-air without a frame but nonetheless captures that thick, settled energy you feel when walking through a forest. Peach-colored sunlight soaks through the treetops, and the dark woods feel damp with natural life.

Cuomo has hit on a unique and lovely means of capturing the lush world around us. In this series, she applies layers of resin and pigment to glass and lucite, creating scenes that capture and emit light with an almost lantern-like power. A graduate of Smith College’s BFA program, where she focused on charcoal video animation, Cuomo now works as a full-time studio artist in Florence. Her return to painting is welcome — especially when the results are as lush and absorbing as these.

In this small gallery space, light pours in through tall windows and adds life to these pieces, most of which are for sale. Several are nature scenes, but others are more abstract. A vertically-hung artwork called “Cobalt,” 11 inches wide and 45 inches long, drifts pleasingly through a spectrum of deep-blue and cerulean, with a single light stripe creating an aurora effect on the horizon midway up. “Untitled (Hot Pink Glow)” has the same dimensions but is hung horizontally, gathering heat from left to right.

But it’s the lively water scenes that are, to me, most captivating. In “Catch You Catch Me,” two figures float in a bubbly burst of splashed liquid light. “Break the Surface” evokes a similarly playful scene: kids seen from below as they jump headlong in the dreamlike depths of a clear lake. “Body of Light” — featuring a women standing in a pool, her arms raised to the rising sun — makes for a stunning centerpiece. And the female faces shrouded in bubbles in “Abyss Diving” and “Delicate Strength” seem at once personal and quietly timeless.

“Bodies of Light” runs through Mar. 29 at the ECA+ Gallery in Easthampton’s old Town Hall at 43 Main St. in Easthampton. The gallery is open Mon. to Thu. 12 to 6 p.m. Free and open to the public.

On Mar. 23, Scout Cuomo will give a guided tour of the exhibition from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Practicing visual artists are encouraged to attend for a dialogue about creative processes. The event is free but requires registration at easthamptoncityarts.com, as space is limited.•

Hunter Styles, hstyles@valleyadvocate.com