(Above: Pat O’Shea’s colored drawing, Carlisle High Street, is one of 231 pieces of art in the Maude Kerns Art Center’s 2019 Art for All Seasons annual exhibit; photo by Randi Bjornstad)

By Randi Bjornstad

As it has for the past 26 years, the Maude Kerns Art Center is ready to launch its annual Art for All Seasons show, featuring work for show and sale by the wide variety of artists in its membership, including the Club Mud Ceramics cooperative.

Linda Christiansen’s Undersea Garden is created from fabric and embroidery; photo by Randi Bjornstad

The opening reception for the holiday exhibit will be 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 15, with refreshments and wines from Territorial Vineyard as well as chat-time with many of the artists who have work on display.

The show, which runs through Dec. 20, includes hundreds of paintings, drawings, art prints, photography, art sculpture and both usable and decorative ceramics.

Sarah Ciampa, art center’s exhibits coordinator, said the show includes 231 pieces by 134 artists, all of them members at Maude Kerns.

“It’s so crazy with this show, because you never know in advance how many people there will be, how many pieces there will be, or what sizes there will be,” Ciampa said. “Every member is eligible to bring up to two pieces, with a size of 36×36 inches maximum for each, but if someone has something larger than that, the limit is one.”

Susan Macomson’s cloth book remembering African-American victims of police violence is meant to be touched and considered; photo by Randi Bjornstad

Unlike most art exhibits, where everyone is reminded not to touch anything, this year’s show has three “touchable” pieces. Perhaps most poignant is a cloth book made by Susan Macomson, whose pages include painted portraits and short hand-written narratives about African-American people who lost their lives during encounters with law enforcement officers in the United States.

 

 

Art for All Seasons

When: Nov. 15 through Dec. 20; opening reception 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 15

Where: Maude Kerns Art Center, 1910 E. 15th Ave., Eugene (corner of 15th and Villard streets)

Hours: 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday during exhibits

Information: 541-345-1571 or mkartcenter.org

Symphony Vessel by Shelly Fredenberg is one of many ceramic art pieces created by Maude Kerns Art Center members for the 2019 Art for All Seasons show; photo courtesy of Maude Kerns Art Center)