The color is blindingly bright and assertive, with strong reds and yellows fighting for dominance with the twisting, turning flowers and leaves. These, in turn, are grossly exaggerated, monstrous lilies, orchids and seed pods twining throughout the foreground, through which you can only slowly discern the romanticized landscapes behind. The artist describes his work as "using floral forms as stimuli to reveal relationships which recall either mythic events or intimate rituals of unknown origin."

The watercolors are far superior to the large oils, as they're more integrated and consistent in color and handling. The large oils suffer from violent color and from sudden dead spots where the paint no longer participates in the picture but simply lies heavy on the surface of the canvas. Traces of the turpentine wash undercoating show a sensitivity and subtle sense of color that's too often marred by jarring colors laid over them, with the heavy paint more overbearing than sensual.

(Leslie Judd Ahlander has served as Metro-Dade County art coordinator and for 13 years was art critic of the Washington Post — twice winning the Art Critics Award of the College Art Association for critical writing.)

RICHARD LYTLE through Jan. 17, ArtSpace/Virginia Miller Galleries, 169 Madeira Ave., Coral Gables. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Sat.: 444-449

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