(Above: A Winter’s Dream, mixed media by Sandra Neary)
Celebrate art this February in Downtown Bend and the Old Mill District on First Friday. View our complete listing of galleries, exhibits and more.
Alleda Real Estate
25 NW Minnesota Ave., Ste. 1, alledarealestate.com
Featuring artist/photographer Veronica Busch First Friday from 5:30-8:30pm.
“As a professional photographer based in Central Oregon, I have always seen the beauty of horses and nature as art that needs to be photographed and shared, be it the strong shapes, lines and spirit of the horse or the simple, abstract ripple on a pond. For more than eight years, my passion for photography has taken me deep into the American west, as well as 15 countries around the globe — capturing and preserving the physical and spiritual beauty of equines and Mother Nature.”
veronicabuschphotogrpahy.com
Art in the Atrium, Franklin Crossing
550 NW Franklin St.
Featuring paintings by Marjorie Wood Hamlin thru February 26. The artist will attend the February 2 First Friday opening.
Marjorie Wood Hamlin, recognized as an international artist, studied art from a very young age, receiving formal training and earning a bachelor of arts in applied art and art history. The artist’s distinguished exhibitions beyond the U.S. include the Florence Italy Contemporary Biennale and in Grenada and Almeria, Spain.
The Women’s Caucus for Art, a non-governmental organization of the UN, also featured her video of environmental paintings in a presentation of just 35 women’s art during the United Nations Women’s Month 2015. The Ward Nasse Gallery in New York also presented Wood Hamlin’s art.
The artist works to develop a unique style both in technique and in image. Using copper and gold foil enhanced with 23K gold leaf on non-adhesive surfaces, her art derives from the earth, both in subject matter and color. The technique, one of her invention, is in the process of being patented.
Arising purely from her imagination, Wood Hamlin’s fictitious landscapes’ colors burst forth to the delight of viewers. Popular for its uniqueness, rich colors and adaptability in multiple settings, the artist’s work enhances both homes and corporate offices across the U.S. Locally her work appears in collections in Portland and in Central Oregon including Black Butte Ranch, Sisters, Eagle Crest and Bend.
Noi Thai serves wine and appetizers and The Tommy Leroy Jazz Quartet entertains during First Friday opening. Billye Turner, art consultant, curates the Franklin Crossing displays with info at billyeturner@bendnet.com, 503-780-2828
BEND ART CENTER
550 SW Industrial Way, Ste. 180
541-330-8759, bendartcenter.org
Gallery Hours: Mon-Fri 10am-7pm, Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 12-5pm. Exhibit admission is free.
Two exhibits, Ann Kresge’s Sacred Spaces and Jeanette Small’s Convergence on display thru February 25.
Constructed onsite at Bend Art Center, Sacred Spaces combines artist book and installation by Salem, Oregon book artist Ann Kresge. Kresge’s wall installation, Gathering Spaces #4, is part of a larger series of site-specific pieces that are about building safe and contemplative gathering spaces. Printing directly on the wall from relief printing plates, Kresge explores the “sacred geometries” of the square, cross, spiral, circle and triangle in her works. Many of the same shapes and plates are also used in her accompanying artist book, Sacred Spaces, a collaboration with poet Dawn Diez Willis.
A6 Artist Member Jeanette Small uses images of bees, honeycomb and cathedrals to reference the collaborative power of the hive in her exhibit, Convergence. Her mixed-media works on paper combine etching, linocut, chine collé, painting and stenciling, and infuse elements of architecture, biology and technology. In this layered visual environment, Small presents contemplative female figures as a primary creative force.
Kresge and Small will both be present for the opening reception on Friday, February 2, and will give a joint Art Talk on Saturday, February 3 at 5pm ($5 admission).
Also on display in February, Featured A6 Member Ana Aguirre uses collagraph and saturated color to explore the female figure in her new series of prints. Aguirre will be printing in the studio on First Friday from 5-7pm.
Cascade Sotheby’s International Realty
821 NW Wall St. 541-383-7600, cascadesothebysrealty.com
February’s featured artist is Mary Medrano. Mary is a contemporary artist who is inspired by the nature and animals. She paints colorful and vibrant abstract pieces as well as birds, dogs and other animals. She captures the beauty of the natural world in her pieces.
Join us for First Friday and enjoy wine and light snacks while you view these lovely and unique pieces of contemporary art.
marymedrano.com
desperado a boutique
Old Mill District, 330 SW Powerhouse Dr., 541-749-9980
Presenting a new installation of paintings by Central Oregon artist Barbara Slater. Don’t miss Slater’s collection of oil paintings including Raven Bros, a wildlife painting using vivid color to capture this iconic symbol of good luck.
barbaraslater.com
Jeffrey Murray Photography
118 NW Minnesota Ave., 541-325-6225, jeffreymurrayphotography.com
Features American landscape and fine art images captured by Bend nature photographer, Jeffrey Murray. Visit and enjoy a visual adventure of illuminating light and captivating panoramas from scenes in Central Oregon and across North America.
John Paul Designs Custom Jewelry + Signature Series
1006 NW Bond St.,johnpauldesigns.com
Specializing in unique, one of a kind wedding and engagement rings in a variety of metals.
Junque in Bloom
50 SE Scott St.
Junque in Bloom presents a February exhibit by SageBrushers artists Pam Fortier, Sue McLaughlin and Jennifer Ware-Kempcke. Pam has always been fascinated with how watercolors create such transparency and depth in painting. When she retired, she decided to pursue her love of watercolors and joined SageBrushers Art Society. Flowers are her favorite, but she is starting to paint other subjects as her understanding of watercolor evolves. Sue enjoys painting in both oils and watercolor. The beauty of this area and nature inspire her work. Jennifer chooses to portray the beauty of Central Oregon in watercolor, pastel or acrylic. A combination of realist and imaginary infuse her work with the reverence she has for the high desert. She blends color and form to create glowing landscape that make you want to walk into them.
Karen Bandy Design Jeweler
25 NW Minnesota Ave., Ste. 5, 541-388-0155, karenbandy.com
Tucked between Thump coffee and Alleda Real Estate, Karen Bandy a Central Oregon national/international award-winning jewelry designer and abstract painter, specializing in custom design in downtown Bend since 1987. Her designs are bold, fun and very wearable.
Open Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 11:30am-5pm, First Fridays and by appointment.
Layor Art + Supply
1000 NW Wall St., Ste. 110, 541-322-0421, layorart.com
Layor Art + Supply will be featuring the art of Erik Hoogen. Hoogen, who has been an active, working artist in Bend for over a decade, will be showing his large scale vibrant mountain scenes, his impressive animal paintings and work that reckons back to his days as a graffiti artist and graphic designer for companies such as K2 Snowboards. Erik will be painting live, and be on site throughout the night. Don’t miss the opportunity to meet this colorful artist and his amazing body of work.
Lubbesmeyer Studio & Gallery
Old Mill District, second story loft, 541-330-0840, lubbesmeyer.com
The Lubbesmeyer twins offer a range of work created in fiber and paint. Through the twins’ collaborative process, they distill literal imagery into vivid blocks of color and texture, creating an abstracted view of their surroundings. Working studio/gallery open Tuesday thru Saturday.
Mockingbird Gallery
869 NW Wall St., 541-388-2107, mockingbird-gallery.com
Presenting an Exhibition of New Works by Bart Walker, Craig Zuger and Ned Mueller for First Friday Art Walk. Come meet the artists, sip some wine and listen to Rich Hurdle and Friends. Show runs thru February.
Bart Walker’s luminous plein air paintings are reminiscent of early California impressionist landscapes, alive with deft brushwork and soft nuances of light.
Craig Zuger’s love of wildlife and his deep respect for the environment has motivated him to paint all of those subjects in carefully rendered oils.
Ned Mueller was raised in Montana, and has been drawing and painting most of his life. He paints a wide range of subjects in several mediums. “I love the challenge of painting outdoors and trying to capture a feeling, the changing light, the activity around me, and orchestrating it all into an interesting and beautiful arrangement of shapes and colors.”
Oxford Hotel
10 NW Minnesota Ave., 541-382-8436
The Oxford Hotel continues the exhibition of Dorothy Holmes’ acrylic paintings of fanciful women, colorful abstracts and trees thru February 23. Holmes will attend the First Friday champagne reception on February 2, 5:30-7:30pm.
Holmes moved to Bend and began Tall Girl Studio in April 2014. Her considerable and varied skill is evident in the series Girls with Birds in Their Hair as well as her abstract landscape series suggesting sky and land meeting at horizon.
Her new environment, however, inspired an emerging interest, trees. She indicates, “This year I’m focusing on trees. I love their different shapes …the beauty of just the outline of the trees, their skeletons and form.”
The artist’s work at the Oxford reflects this fascination as she exhibits her largest, current tree painting. The image represents dusk, “at the very end of sunset, as if one was lying on their back, looking up at the first stars of the night.” All works are created with acrylic, India ink and pastel painted on wood panel.
Billye Turner, art consultant, coordinates the Oxford Hotel exhibition schedule. For additional information please contact her at 503-780-2828 or billyeturner@bendnet.com.
Peterson/Roth Gallery
206 NW Oregon Ave., Ste. 1, 541-633-7148, thegallery@petersonroth.com, petersonroth.com
Featuring the work of Oregon artists Robert Schlegel and Ian Factor for First Friday Art Walk. Join us down below Silverado for some wine and light refreshments and meet these talented artists. This show will continue thru end of February.
Robert Schlegel’s work is as challenging and varied as his materials. Often mixing oils, acrylics, collage pieces, and sketches, Robert’s work develops organically as he allows his vision to form and express itself. To add to the infusion of nature in his work, Robert will often finish his pieces in plein air.
Ian Factor’s themes range from wildfires and their parallels of modern society’s narcissistic, voyeuristic obsessions with technology, social media and “selfies” to the intensity and crowded loneliness of a New York City subway during rush hour.
Premiere Property Group
1133 NW Wall Street, Ste. 103, 541-241-6860
MyBendRealEstate.com
Join Premiere Property Group for First Friday Art Walk where we will have Lee August and her beautiful artwork on display as well as libations and snacks, 5-7:30pm.
Since early childhood Lee August has loved to draw. She has been inspired and directed particularly by one instructor in both high school and college, a teacher who has continued to be a life-long friend. August continues to explore and evolve in technique and subject matter, preferring to work with large shapes and the energy of movement. Mixed media, especially using found objects, particularly appeals to her while she works mainly with the flexibility of acrylic paints.
Red Chair Gallery
103 NW Oregon Ave., 541-306-3176, redchairgallerybend.com
Front of the house at the Red Chair Gallery in February will focus on three artists that use rich color and texture to brighten up every day of the year. Eleanor Murphey creates functional pottery which often features a craftsman style although she never places boundaries on her imagination. Larissa Spafford uses the technique of lampwork when creating her individual glass jewelry pieces, each one a bright and joyful expression of her art. Kim McClain works expressively with mixed media to bring emotions of joy, comfort and serenity just to name a few into each painting. All the Red Chair February artists offer something to warm you this winter any beyond.
Sage Custom Framing & Gallery
834 NW Brooks Street, 541-382-5884, sageframing-gallery.com
Abstractions featured thru March 31 with receptions on First Friday, February 2, 5-8pm and March 2.
Abstractions is an exploration of non-representational art. With a variety of Central Oregon artists participating in the show, they explore different interpretations of the term “abstract.” The dictionary defines the term as, “Emotional expression of an idea rather than a picture of a physical object.” Another definition states, “Achieving an effect by grouping shapes and colors in satisfying patters rather than by the recognizable representation of physical reality.” Whatever an individual’s take is on the subject, this show provides a variety of creative artistic interpretations.
Townshend’s Bend Teahouse
835 NW Bond St., Carissa Glenn, 541-312-2001, Carissa@Townshendstea.com
Featuring Places We’ve Been, acrylic painting exhibit by artist Megan Marie Myers thru March 31 with an artist reception on First Friday from 5-8pm.
Megan Marie Myers is a painter, illustrator and native Oregonian. Her painting studio is walking distance from downtown Bend. A love of the outdoors is her constant inspiration; when she is not painting, she is out exploring trails and running in the Oregon outback.
Myers’ work explores themes of companionship, protection, wilderness and the greatest adventure of all, love. She typically uses children and animals as her central figures. Her intention is to represent the limitless sense of wonder, the yearning to explore and the resilience that each of us carry within. The characters in her work roam through Oregon landscapes, inspired by our region’s mountains, forests, deserts, rock formations and rivers.
After spending a decade working in arts administration in Seattle, Myers moved to Portland in 2012. There, she began to focus on her own work and build a business creating original artwork, fine art prints and greeting cards. In early 2016, she relocated again to Bend, bringing her closer to the outdoors where she relishes exploration, the foundation of her artwork. All of Myers’ work is painted by hand.
Tumalo Art Company
Old Mill District, 541-385-9144, tumaloartco.com
Tumalo Art Co. artists are exhibiting a group show, Big Love — art about what we love during the month of love, opening February 2 from 4-8pm during the First Friday Gallery walk.
Featured are several large format landscapes by Marty Stewart, Janice Druian and Sarah B. Hansen, mixed media by Shelli Walters and abstracts capturing the color of love by Langford Barksdale. Judy Hoiness contributes two smaller pieces of her series of mixed media landscapes, along with Helen Brown’s memory in watercolor batik of a favorite family retreat. Bruce Jackson shows fine art photography and Katherine Taylor’s shows a classic oil of roses, along with sculpture, hand-blown glass and more.