Space lets artists blossom
POLSON — A single modeling light glowed from the front of the room as charcoal pencils marked drawing paper, sketching every curve and shape of the posing model.
Susan Evans held poses for up to 25 minutes Saturday morning as part of the second clothed-model figure drawing class held at the newly opened Sandpiper Gallery workroom.
Five artists sketched Evans in various poses as part of the figure-drawing workshop. The workshop meets every two weeks, on Saturdays and starts at 10 a.m. and goes to noon. It is open to the public and offers community members time to practice their drawing.
Sandpiper Gallery member Mary Kelley said the class isn’t intended for lessons, but if anyone in attendance were in desperate need of drawing instructions, they would be willing to help out.
Kelley said the addition of the new space makes it easier for the gallery to hold workshops.
“Last year we struggled to hold various workshops because we didn’t have any space to do it,” Kelley said.
Artist Dick Bratton, of Alpine Tipi Designs, rented some of his studio space to the Sandpiper Gallery so that the gallery could hold various art classes. The Sandpiper Gallery also received a $1,000 grant from the Greater Polson Community Foundation that assisted it in attaining their new workroom.
“We hinted pretty hard that we’d like to have it and he [Bratton] said it would be okay,” Kelley said. “It provides a much better situation for us here.”
The Sandpiper Gallery also held a reception Friday evening.
“Black, White and shades of Gray,” was open to all artists in the community and featured works by dozens of artists in various mediums.
The artists were free to interpret the theme of “Black, White and Gray,” and could use just about any medium they could think of. One work of art featured an image crafted using various colors of dryer lent. The reception was from 5-7 p.m. and gave the community a chance to meet local artists.
The next reception will be held on April 9, for the showing of “Creative Visions,” an exhibit showcasing regional Native American Artist.