The Mercury Lounge, 117 E. Mifflin, is showing off some swanky new art, featuring work by Colm McCarthy and several other artists from Firecracker Studios.

McCarthy's work takes prints from Catholic primers depicting the seven deadly sins -- lust, gluttony and sloth, for example -- and re-imagines them in combinations of watercolor, ink, pencil and pastels.

"They're a throwback to a more 'innocent' time," McCarthy said, "when we were supposedly better to each other.

"I feel people have become very disconnected from each other. We've become more selfish and self-involved as people. So I look at these innocent old pictures -- and they are innocent -- with a rather cynical eye and try to inject that sense of disconnect into them," he said.

The show that opened July 12 features four artists, including McCarthy, Donald Topp, an artist identified only as "Highflyer #13," and Sam Johnson, owner of Firecracker Studios.

Johnson used to run a full-time gallery on Williamson Street but has since moved to placing art in other venues.

"Every two months, we'll have a show here," Johnson said.

McCarthy's seven images hang next to Highflyer #13's bright, angular work mounted on wood. His or her repeating patterns swirl outward, calling to mind M.C. Escher, changing and thickening as they near the edge of the canvas.

Highflyer describes the medium as "crap on wood."

Across the room hangs some of Topp's iconography, the faces of James Brown and Marilyn Monroe emerging out of many-layered, dark mosaics. Johnson displays posters that help advertise the 13-artist collective.

"We've been going for about five years," Johnson said. "We've shown up to 30 artists at a time. This way [at the Mercury Lounge], we can plan ahead."

See this show until mid-September, when the art will change again. Firecracker Studios also provides the art at the Espresso Royale Cafe closest to the UW-Madison campus.

Firecracker posters and other items are available for sale at Madcity Music Exchange, 600 Williamson St.

For more information, visit fcs5000.com.