(Above: Watercolor by Joanna Carrabbio, “McKenzie River Lavender Field,” on display at the Out on a Limb Gallery)
Edited by Randi Bjornstad
Downtown Eugene’s First Friday ArtWalk for March 3
Guided Tour
The official guided tour during this week’s First Friday ArtWalk in downtown Eugene will be hosted by Bob Hart, executive director of the Lane County Historical Museum and Eugene Opera board member Tony Meyer, who will greet their troupe at 5:30 p.m. at The New Zone Gallery at 220 W. Eighth Ave.
That’s the new location of the gallery, formerly located a couple of blocks away on West Broadway, and the new digs will be decorated with hundreds of pieces of original art on exhibit as part of the New Zone’s annual “Zone-4-All,” a non-juried show of two- and three-dimensional artwork by members and other artists throughout the community.
“Spilt Milk” is one of Nyssa Perrin Clark’s abstract expressionist paintings
The stop will include pizza from Sizzle Pie, beverages from Ninkasi and entertainment by guitarist Adam Scramstad.
At 6 p.m., the guided tour will move on to gilt+gossamer at 873 Willamette St., where Nyssa Perrin Clark has her first public exhibit of abstract paintings. She is a native Eugenean and a third-generation University of Oregon graduate whose artwork can be described as “expressionism through active stream of consciousness and a release of the powerful yet transient emotions of life.”
Pottery in warm Tuscan colors is one of Mary Briggs’ specialties
From there, it’s a short walk to Passionflower Design at 128 E. Broadway and the 6:30 p.m. tour stop for a look at the sculpture and pottery of local artist Mary Briggs, whose work is inspired by European folk pottery, augmented by her own paintings of nature and animals. She traditionally uses Tuscan-inspired colors from the warm side of the color spectrum, but lately she’s been switching it up to include cooler blues and pinks. She’ll be on hand to talk about her ideas and methods.
“Starfish and Sea Anemones” is one of Joanna Carrabbio’s paintings at the Out on a Limb Gallery
Next, at 7 p.m., Hart and Meyer will shepherd their flock to Out on a Limb Gallery at 191 E. Broadway, where Joanna Carrabbio has just opened a show of her vivid and boldly constructed views of the natural world, whether that’s in her own back yard or the vastness of other places. Carrabbio renders her pieces in watercolor and oils.
The last stop on the official guided tour is at 7:30 p.m. at Oregon Art Supply, 1020 Pearl St., where Heather Halpern has a show devoted to monotypes that depict her
Heather Halpern’s “Incomprehensible” is one of a monotype series examining mental illness
daughter’s struggle with mental illness. Her powerful renderings explore the the younger woman’s confusion, despair and frustration as she works through the hallucinations and paranoia of her condition. Halpern uses tattered bristle brushes and black ink to convey the ambiguities and distortions of the illness, hoping to further understanding and acceptance by the larger population toward those experiencing the condition.
Halpern will be on hand, doing a monotype demonstration on a small etching press from Whiteaker Printmakers. From 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., acoustic guitarist Taylor Irving will perform.
More Arts and Culture
As usual, many other galleries and businesses are open in downtown Eugene from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. during March’s First Friday ArtWalk:
• Cowfish (62 W Broadway) — Paintings by Flynn Ryan.
• ECO Sleep Solutions and Gallery (25 E. Eighth Ave.) — Felted wool home décor and apparel by Tylar Merrill; clay tile collages by Annie Heron; wall art by Mari Livie; whimsical hand painted wood and linen pieces and hand painted silk apparel by Lybi Thomas; stone carvings, wood sculptures and imaginative, fanciful masks by Cedar Caredio; and Luminessence light sculptures by Stephen White.
• Eugene Yoga (245 E. Broadway) — Work by Chyanne Ganzel, with “repurposed” objects made of things that normally would go to waste, such as scattered pieces of old magazines, wallpaper, and thread.
• Euphoria Chocolate Company (946 Willamette St.) — Paintings by Sean Brennan, reflecting his experiences with the land, wildlife, and people in Kentucky, China, and Oregon, using oil paints and varied techniques to create works that highlight patterns found in nature.
• Goldworks Jewelry Art Studio (169 E. Broadway) — Original jewelry by Goldworks staff.
• InEugene Real Estate (100 E. Broadway) — Original artwork created by local photographer and artist Melanie Manning for the Mama Moves Cards project, including mixed-media illustrations of new mothers, with a variety of body types and skin colors. The illustrations promote postpartum health through stretches, exercise, and mindfulness, and also promote a pro-body feeling for new mothers.
• The Jazz Station (124 W. Broadway) — Art by Gayle Macy, a self-taught artist who works with many mediums, including acrylic, duct tape, digital, fiber, clay, and more. Josh Carao will perform kora music. from 5:15 p.m. to 6:45 p.m.
David McCosh’s “Farmhouse on Millrace” is one of his paintings in a new show at the Karin Clarke Gallery
•Karin Clarke Gallery (760 Willamette St.) — “David McCosh (1903-1981): Learning to Paint is Learning to See” features landscape paintings and drawings by the late Eugene artist and University of Oregon art professor in show curated by Roger Saydack.
• The Lincoln Gallery (309 W. Fourth Ave.) — “Modern Love,” a community art show that conveys the tribulation and celebration of love in the modern age. The OSLP Community Room Gallery displays artwork by artist Ruth Van Order.
• Maven Art Boutique (271 W. Eighth Ave.) — Photographs focusing on abstracts and landscapes by Daniel Moret and Todd Cooper, with music by a local blues trio.
• MECCA (449 Willamette St.) — Works in a variety of media which have either been left, donated, or forgotten.
• Mosaic Fair Trade Collection (28 E. Broadway) — Upcycled oil-drum metal wall art from Haiti that looks fun inside and out, along with fair trade wine tasting.
Pacific Rim Art Guild has silk paintings, including this one by Hannah Dean
• Pacific Rim Art Guild (basement at 160 E. Broadway) — “Paintings on Silk,” work from a silk painting workshop taught by Dan Chen, plus other work by guild members and a demonstration of painting on silk.
• Red Wagon Creamery (55 W. Broadway) — “Retro Cutie,” work by Alex Schlieger.
• Shadowfox (76 W. Broadway) — Shows by two multi-media artists, Indigo Cowherd and Graham Dunn, students in Digital Arts at the University of Oregon who focus on the human condition. Alan Aslan will provide music.
• Townshend’s Teahouse (41 W. Broadway) — Paintings and prints by Jayme Vineyard of Mystic Fables Leather.
• Vistra Framing & Gallery (160 E. Broadway) — Prints and paintings from the Gallery Collection.
Erik Johnson’s “Backyard Dogwood” is part of a show at Watershed Arts at Fertilab
• Watershed Arts at Fertilab (44 W. Seventh Ave.) — “The Unique Eye of Erik Johnson,” featuring his Conte Crayon landscape drawings.
• White Lotus Gallery (767 Willamette St.) — “Art in Daily Life: 19th and 20th Century Japanese Hanging Scrolls,” with paintings by Kono Bairei (1844-1895), Mori Getsujo (1887-1961), Sakakibara Shiko (1895-1969), and Konoshima Okoku (1877-1938), among others.
Special Events
• Eugene Public Library (100 W. 10th Ave.) — Ayana Mathis, author of the New York Times bestselling novel, “The Twelve Tribes of Hattie,” gives the keynote talk of the 2017 CSWS Northwest Women Writers Symposium; starts at 6 p.m.
• Red Wagon Creamery (55 W. Broadway) The winners of Wordcrafters’ 2017 Young Writers short fiction contest read selections from their stories; 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
• No Shame Eugene (99 W. 10th Ave.) —Live music at 7:30 p.m., show at 8 p.m. with 15 original, five-minute-maximum acts such as monologue, sketch comedy, and experimental; performers are first 15 acts to sign up.
First Friday Artwalk sponsored by the Lane Arts Council
