Humboldt Artist Gallery
in the Morris Graves Museum of Art
Want to support local artists? Need a unique gift or unforgettable souvenir? Make sure to stop by the Humboldt Artist Gallery located inside the MGMA and open 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm Wednesday through Sunday.
Vicki Barry
Creativity has been churning inside of me since I was a small child and I have always found ways to let it out. Last spring, I happened upon alcohol inks through an art project that I was having my daughter do for a school assignment. I was so intrigued by the way they behaved and inspired by the vibrant, transparent color. I then discovered other artists were painting with them using Yupo watercolor paper as a support. Over the past year, I have been enjoying the medium so much and I sense that there is much more to discover. The alcohol inks inspired me to begin seriously painting and showing my work.
Julia Bednar
Creating art has been a part of Julia’s life since she was a child. Nature is her inspiration; from the beauty of a flower or a landscape, to the power and majesty of a rock formation or the charm and mystery of a cat. She works in watercolor or oil, painting in an impressionistic or realistic style, depending on the subject and her emotional response to it. Painting is her way of experiencing the beauty and wonder of nature and sharing that experience.
Julia serves on the Board of Directors of the Redwood Art Association and the Humboldt Arts Council and is active in several art groups, including the Representational Art League and the Fortuna Arts Council.
Julia maintains an art studio at home where she lives with several cats, starys who came from the gully to live with her and who often become subjects of her paintings. Her studio is open by appointment during the year.
According to Chinese philosophy, to make art good enough to enter people’s hearts is called “making stone into gold.” That has become Julia’s mission and her mantra.
Jim Lowry
Jim Lowry received a bachelor’s degree in Art History from the University of Long Beach in 1968 and went on to do extensive post graduate studies in drawing, painting and sculpture at the University of Long Beach and Humboldt State University. His work has been shown and collected internationally. He is currently on the Board of Directors at the Morris Graves Museum of Art where he chairs the Exhibition Committee.
“To say that working in the digital medium is a stimulating experience would be an understatement. With digital art the potential for exploration is vast. The computer and digital camera combination gives me the feeling of freedom to do whatever comes to mind. There is a sense of newness to this medium and I enjoy being near the edge of new directions in art.”
Most of Lowry’s images were acquired with digital cameras and uploaded into a computer. Some images were captured on film and scanned into a computer. Extensive software manipulation produced the resulting images. The prints have been produced on an Epson Photo 2200 using archival inks and paper.
Paul Rickard
A lover of California and the Great Northwest, Paul Rickard is an artist and songwriter from Humboldt County, California. His songs, original watercolor paintings, and sculptures draw from the natural beauty of the windswept, marine landscape. Rickard studied art briefly in New Zealand and wood sculpture in Indonesia, graduated from UC Berkeley, and served in the Peace Corps with his wife Nancy. Rickard is a career educator and currently serves on the faculty of Humboldt State University. He lives with his family on a hand-built homestead top of Fickle Hill in Arcata, California with wife Nancy and his yellow lab, Daisy. Paul and Nancy’s children are Heather, Hazel, and Oliver.
Sara Starr
Sara’s tiles draw from her background as a painter. She hand cuts all her tiles and surfaces each one with porcelain slip. After drying and bisque-firing, she paints lines to define areas on her tiles using a wax-resist technique, cuerda seca, which originated in 15th-century Spain. She then pours glazes to create distinct shapes. Her finished works often reflect the natural environment of Humboldt County- redwood trees, shore birds, and wildflowers are recurrent themes.
Love of color is reflected in the vibrant glazes she achieves with selected glazes for high-fire tiles. All work is fired to Cone 10 and is suitable for outdoor installation or for kitchens and baths.
Sara has been an artist member at Arcata’s Fire Arts Center since 2006. She has created commissioned works, such as kitchen murals for homes, and art in public spaces, such as Eureka’s Sequoia Park Zoo.
Patricia Sundgren Smith
My etchings, mezzotints, linocuts and other printmaking art are printed on my etching press by me in my studio. Each
hand pulled print is considered an original work of art and is part of an edition.
My drawings are drawn with some or all of the following: graphite, colored pencils, ink and sometimes acrylic paint. I like to combine collaged papers with my linocuts and occasionally my drawings. Check out the back of the work to see what I’ve done to produce it.
I use many different techniques in various media. Most of what I sell are originals but I do sell a limited amount of reproductions, too. Please turn the artwork over to read the back. It will tell you whether it is an original or reproduction and will describe the process and materials that I use for each piece.
I also enjoy photography, watercolor and acrylics. I’m always exploring new materials and techniques.
Kim Reid
Kim’s lifetime interest in art began in childhood, then on to university studying fine art, art history and design. Many years were invested in a large aircraft company as technical illustrator and graphic designer.
Her ever-expanding repertoire of watercolor paintings and limited edition prints are displayed in many local galleries and venues in Humboldt, the most popular collection being the redwood forests of the Pacific Northwest and Lost Coast. She is working on a series of portraits of the most iconic ancient redwoods, for example: Luna, The Corkscrew Tree, Giant Tree, Big Tree and Big Red. She wants to extend her gallery reach into Mendocino County. Other works by Kim include euro castle history, ancestral villages and California Missions. Capturing nature in landscapes and history has inspired all her painting collections.
Claudia Lima
"Painting is a very messy business....and I'm a pretty messy girl.
My main focus is on the men that work in the woods, (messy work). My husband, John is a logging contractor and I grew up in the lumber business. I love everything about the lumber and timber industry. The country, the smells, the lifestyle, the deals, but most of all, I love the people. I hope that my paintings convey the hearts and souls of these good men. Most of the paintings, of the loggers, are of the men that we work with and for.
I also paint the agriculture of Humboldlt County and the men and women who are a part of this great industry."
Allison Busch-Lovejoy
I love art and I’m passionate about color. Beads come in an almost endless color palette, and I’ve been an avid collector since the 1980 when I was a working artist. I sold wholesale to a hundred boutiques for about 10 years. I left my professional art behind for a 20 year career at Caltrans but still dabbled creating in my spare time.
I especially love creating beadwork of all the genres of art I have explored. For me it is soothing and meditative and an essential part of my spiritual practice. I love working on collaborations with other artists and have several pieces here to showcase that work.
I take commissions, teach classes, and coach one-on-one.
My Instagram is @Lovejoy707
Jody Bryan
Jody Bryan attended Otis Art Institute, Chouinard Art Institute, UCLA and CSULB, always studying drawing and painting. She taught in the Long Beach Unified School District and established a graphic design and screen print business in the 1970's. That business is still very much on going, but leaves ample time for painting.
Growing up in Southern California, Jody came to Catalina Island on the family boat, 'Vaquerito'. After completing college and getting a secondary credential in 1965 she moved with her own family to the island and put her art skills to work. Scenes of the island coves filled with boats, historical sites in the interior and lovely places around the town of Avalon became the focus in watercolor and line and wash drawings. Ceramics were another interest, but watercolors were her passion. She worked part time at Avalon Schools, teaching art. In the 1970's, screenprinting became an interest and a good way to use design and drawing skills. From then and still ongoing, Bryan Graphics, a family business, creates embroidered and screenprinted garments for businesses and programs based on Catalina Island. Clients include the CIMI science education programs, the Wrigley Institute of Environmental Science, Catalina Island Camps, Astrocamp and Catalina Sea Camp.
"I have loved painting with watercolor since that first introduction at Otis with Noel Quinn. To render objects realistically is a skill that many seek to master, but for me that is not what making art is all about. I want to translate each subject into a unique vision that allows viewers to see in new ways, too. I want to interpret the world, not mirror it".