JV Fine arts show brings glitter and glamour to Frontier Days

A desire to bring the local artists together and furnish a place where they could work and paint their visions, led to the creation of the "Painters In The Potting Shed." (PIPS) Janet Chapman approached Patsy Jensen about using her potting shed and the idea soon became a reality. This local art group meets once a week in the fall and winter and shares their creative ideas. Kerry Kraha joined forces with Michele Franich and Patsy Jensen and the first Jefferson Valley Fine Art Show became a reality. The first art show, Michele and Kerry laughingly say, was an art expo – there were no panels and they used tilted tables to create another dimension in hanging the works. The idea continues to grow and what money is earned goes into that growth. This fourth Annual Show is the first year for photography exhibits.

Wandering through the exhibits the variety of subjects which are captured in oil, watercolors, ink, acrylic, and pastels continue to amaze and inspire the viewer. From unique reddish ink drawings of trees by Dana Brunet, owner of Pepper Tree, to the charming "Yellow House," acrylics, painted by Karen Ranta to the ink drawing of three horses by Carol Christensen "Three Of A Kind" to intriguing acrylic/watercolors collage on canvas by Kerry Kraha, this show creates many moods for the viewer to observe.

The photography exhibit of young artist Mack Williams (12 years of age) draws one in because of its maturity. From "Tree Heart" to "Whiteout Days" to "Fire and Ice" his photographs keep one's attention. An amusing photograph of a cat in a can "Temperamental in a Can" by Aimee Heimberg is a pleasure to behold and captures the cat's personality exquisitely.

This show is not just for members of the PIPS group but for Jefferson Valley artists of all ages and degree of development. New artist, Linda Buhhila, brought her first paintings; the technique was learned on U-Tube. These artists not only do canvas work, but Patsy Jensen is also noted for her hand puppets – especially "Holly the Happy Day Hippo." They also have painted Art Mascots such as a rocking horse and the members also did some of the recent fire hydrant paintings.

They currently show during Frontier Days and during the Christmas Stroll. If there are artists or wanna-be artists out there, they should call 406-490-8614 to obtain further information.