Fall art scene is vibrant and alive

Though the hustle and bustle of summer has ended and Homer eases into fall, the art scene remains vibrant and alive. The local Homer Plein Air group comes inside after a summer of painting excursions to show their work at Ptarmigan Arts.

The cooler days also mean a time for fiber artists to sew, knit and craft.

For October, Bunnell Street Arts Center features Homer Fiber Arts Collective artist-in-residence Keren Lowell. Lowell will show and speakd about her work for First Friday, and conducts weekend workshops to help fiber and textile artists hone their skills, and perhaps even create works for November’s Wearable Arts show.

Like 1960s television, Artist Ed Hutchinson embraces color in his “shadow painting” technique, the application and sculpting of paint on canvas to give his work dimension.

Along with the Plein Air group’s show at Ptarmigan, other galleries feature shows by a variety of artists. Grace Ridge brewery donates its space for a South Peninsula Haven House art fundraiser. Fireweed Gallery features work by Kachemak Bay Watercolor Society artists for its fall Trunk Show and Sale. And at the Homer Council on the Artist, more than 20 artists are featured in in a celebration of ceramic arts.

Art Shop Gallery

202 W. Pioneer Ave.

The Shadow Painter in Color, paintings by Ed Hutchinson

5-9 p.m., First Friday

Homer artist Ed Hutchinson’s show expands his exploration and work into color with what he calls “shadow painting,” a technique where acrylic paint is applied and sculpted on canvas.

“The raised, sculpted images allow the lighting wherever the painting is hung to influence shadow patterns in the painting,” he writes. “Content of the paintings is my passion and my concern — Arctic wildlife sea, air, and land. I write a poem or statement about each of the featured wildlife to touch people’s hearts about their magnificence.”

Bunnell Street Arts Center

106 W. Bunnell Ave.

Fiber art by Keren Lowell

5-7 p.m., First Friday Opening Reception; 6 p.m., artist talk

Anchorage artist Keren Lowell exhibits and visits as Homer Fiber Arts Collective Artist-in-Residence at Bunnell, exploring fiber arts construction techniques in a series of workshops for local artists. She uses discarded items and reinvents them into 3-dimensional textile art.

“I think and visualize things in three dimensions, but traditional sculpture mediums (wood, metal, stone, clay) are too rigid and absolute for me,” she writes. “Textiles operate the way that most organic and fluid things operate. I also appreciate the way that textiles evoke our own skin. I think of textiles as visual metaphors for the human (especially the feminist/queer/curious) condition.”

Lowell moved to Alaska in 1994 after earning a master of fine arts from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She has taught courses in sculpture, humanities and art history at the University of Alask and in 2008 became the coordinator of the Fiber Department at UAA. Her most recent show was “Groundwork” at the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center.

Through October she offers sewing workshops from noon-4 p.m. Oct. 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, 28. Classes are $25 each, $40 a weekend or $150 for all five weekends. For details call 235-2662 or visit https://www.bunnellarts.org/keren-lowell-october-2018.

Fireweed Gallery

475 E. Pioneer Ave.

Fall Trunk Show and Sale, works by Kachemak Watercolor Society artists

5-7 p.m., First Friday Reception

Jan Peyton, Lynda Reed, Jan Thurston, Renee Patten, Michael Murray, Bruce Sink and other members of the Kachemak Watercolor Society show and sell some of their best art work. Also in the mix are matted original and printed works. This is a great opportunity to acquire art and add to your collection. New works will be added over the month.

Grace Ridge Brewery

3388 B. Street off Ocean Drive

Haven House fundraiser with works by various artists

5-7:30 p.m., First Friday

Grace Ridge sponsors an art fundraiser for South Peninsula Haven House. A silent auction is held for First Friday, with other art on sale through October. Work for sale includes Alaska art, jewelry and pottery by local artists.

Homer Council on the Arts

344 W. Pioneer Ave.

Ceramic art by varioius artists

5-7 p.m., First Friday Reception

Homer Council on the Arts highlights the diverse work of Homer’s ceramic arts community. This show is intended to be widely inclusive, presenting work from as many different perspectives as possible. From seasoned professionals to emerging artists, from old timers to new arrivals, from an unassuming tea bowl to a challenging sculptural work, the gallery will be full of all shapes, forms and sizes. The show features more than 20 different ceramic artists.

Ptarmigan Arts Back Room Gallery

471 E. Pioneer Ave.

En Plein Air, paintings by various artists

5-7 p.m., First Friday Reception

Ptarmigan Arts showcases works by the Homer Plein Air group, which began a few years ago with two friends and has grown to an open group encompassing all media. Plein Air painting embraces the challenge of being outdoors and capturing the constantly shifting light. Artists experience wind or sun, the sound of the tide and the birds, and the smell of local scents, and their challenge is to capture it all in a painting that relays more than just a visual message. For the artists, environment changes, rain, fog, sun, clouds, andshadows change position and hue, and what captured the imagination at first might not exist two hours later. Speed becomes imperative, adding to the challenge.

Artists showing include Cindy Nelson, Karen Jackman, Diane Spence, Kathi Drew and Donna Martin. The group meets in the summer once a week at different locations and welcomes new members.