Gallery creates welcoming space

Jim Cornelius, News Editor | Last updated Nov 25, 2014 12:0pm0

Jim Cornelius count

A group of artists have partnered up to create Hood Avenue Art.

Hood Avenue has become an arts center in Sisters, boasting a row of varied and successful art galleries. The newest addition to the thriving scene is named, aptly enough, Hood Avenue Art.

It's located in the large building at the corner of Hood Avenue and Pine Street, right next to the gallery of renowned Western and Wildlife artist Gary Cooley.

"Gary Cooley and Dana Bratton actually had a vision of making an art community in this building, and I was lucky to walk into that," said Tina Brockway, one of several partners in the collaborative art gallery.

Hood Avenue Art features the work of Central Oregon mid-career artists excited to share their work with the community. Brockway; Winnie Givot; Steven & Elyse Douglas; Pottery by Mitch (Mitch & Michelle Deaderick); Katheleen Keliher; Patricia Freeman-Martin; and Katherine Taylor are the founding partners.

"We also have some blacksmiths and woodworkers and glass blowers," Givot said. "They're members, not partners."

Hood Avenue Art specializes in original art, jewelry and custom-designed and fabricated home accessories. The artists are local and available to meet collectors, create commissioned art pieces and provide custom home-fabrication and installation.

The attraction of the gallery for Winnie Givot was "to be in a high-quality gallery in Sisters with like-minded artists."

The gallery boasts a particularly welcoming atmosphere - a place to linger.

Patricia Freeman-Martin noted that "one of the things that's important to us is that we're friendly. We're interested in telling our story and (describing) our processes."

"People walk in and they're comfortable here," Givot confirmed. "They love all the work."

The work is as varied as the artists, and it rotates monthly, so the gallery always feels fresh.

Deaderick notes that the artists are all familiar with each others' work, so whoever is on hand can talk with patrons about all of the work in the gallery.

The artists are committed to helping build an arts and culture destination in Sisters, (see related story at right) and they enjoy presenting the gallery's artists and local musicians to the public. On Friday, November 28, from 4 to 7 p.m. gallery artists will present small-format, affordable art to promote giving art as holiday gifts. There will be an artists' reception and live music by Jim Boraas.

For more information visit www.katherine-taylor.com/hoodavenueart. Or, better yet, stop in and visit at 357 W. Hood Ave.

Author Bio

Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.

Email: editor@nuggetnews.com
Phone: 5415499941

Hood Avenue could get ‘cultural destination’ status

Tina Brockway and her artist colleagues at Hood Avenue Art hope to secure "cultural destination" status with the State of Oregon for a six-block stretch of Sisters that has become home to several premier galleries and other culturally valuable businesses.

"What we're trying to do is bring all the businesses on Hood Avenue together," Brockway said. "We can qualify for a cultural designation from the state."

The idea is to raise the profile of Sisters for its excellence in arts and culture, providing economic stimulus - and a winter market.

Brockway cites Santa Fe Canyon Road and Jackson, Wyoming, as examples of places that have leveraged art to create a visitor experience that encourages people to linger and to come back again.

"Art's just the vehicle," she said.

There's no significant cash outlay required to seek such status, but it does require community buy-in.

"It's not a big dollar thing, but it is a big participation thing," Brockway said.

That shouldn't be a problem, she believes, since everybody benefits.

"There isn't a downside," she said.

She's willing to help rally letters of support for the proposal. She's also seeking support from the city to help make the presence of the arts felt on Hood Avenue.

"What they need to do is give us some leeway to be creative with this project," she said.

For more information on this project, call 541-948-5771.