The Holiday Art Exhibit, an annual event at Everett’s Schack Art Center, kicks off tonight with an opening reception for a display that fills the main and mezzanine galleries.
The work of 83 artists will be on display, featuring juried works by the Northwest Pastel Society. In addition, there will be glass, jewelry, pottery, sculptures and wood-turned artwork. See a complete list on the Schack’s website, www.schack.org/exhibits.
All these items will be for sale. Artists bring in additional items for the art center’s gift shop as well.
“We have such a large quantity we bring in for the holidays, there’s probably hundreds of pieces,” said Maren Oates, Schack Art Center spokeswoman.
The show is timed for the gift-giving season, an opportunity for people looking for a special gift for that hard-to-buy-for person and those who like to sneak in some special gifting for themselves.
Each year, the art center features the work of different artist guilds. Last year it was watercolorists, and this year pastel artists.
Vashon artist Janice Wall has two pieces in the show, “Right Turn (on a Country Road)” and “Valley Homestead.”
Both were based on a trip Wall made to Whidbey Island two years ago with members of the Northwest Pastel Society and Plein Air Washington.
“Valley Homestead” may look familiar to those who travel frequently to Whidbey Island. “There’s this flat place beyond Ebey’s Landing,” Wall said of the scene. She made a sketch and quick color study of the site, and then completed her final 18-by-24-inch composition later in her studio.
The house in the painting in fact exists there. “There was nice morning light on it, which gave me the opportunity to capture shadows on it, which makes the painting more stunning,” she said. Wall said she took artistic liberties with the view behind the house.
Wall has been painting in pastels for 20 years. “It’s a medium that’s so versatile. It’s allowed me to grow and experiment and try new things,” she said. “It’s fascinating to me.”
Everett artist Laurie Povey Crawford will have three pastels in the show, based on the stained glass windows at the First Presbyterian Church of Everett. Povey is the great-granddaughter of George Povey, original founder of Portland’s Povey Brothers Studio, where the windows were created.
The show also includes the fused-glass artwork of Lori and Joel Soderberg of Edmonds. The couple first began work in pottery, and then switched to glass.
Lori Soderberg said their work for the show is constructed with gift-giving in mind, with smaller, affordable pieces.
They’ll have 250 pieces for sale at the show, including one blue plate with a snowflake design that required two days in the kiln to be completed.
Here’s a final shopping tip for those going to the show: Every Thursday in December, there is a 10 percent discount on all art purchases.
All the pieces in the show are handmade by Northwest artists. “You won’t find anything we’re selling in the large, big-box stores,” Oates said.
Sharon Salyer: 425-3390-3486 or salyer@heraldnet.com.
If you go
What: Holiday Art Exhibit featuring the Northwest Pastel Society
When: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 15 to Dec. 29, opening reception is 5 to 8 p.m. Nov. 15
Where: Schack Art Center, 2921 Hoyt Ave., Everett,
More: 425-259-5050 or www.schack.org
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