Awards announced at Sisters Library

More than 250 art lovers visited the Friends of the Sisters Library 10th Annual Art Exhibit artists' reception on Friday evening. They came to see and vote on their favorites from approximately 130 pieces by 60 artists.

The evening ended with the long-anticipated announcement of three winners of this year's People's Choice Awards. They are: Dennis Schmidling for his photograph "Smith Rock at Dawn," Randall Tillery for his oil painting "Morning Light," and Fred Kimmell for his wooden "Rocking Harley Davidson." All three artists are from Sisters.

Dennis Schmidling shot his winning photograph "Dawn on Smith Rock" on October 9, 2014. He planned for this shot using an app on his iPhone to plot the time and location of the setting "super moon" and rising sun. Arriving at the park in darkness, he picked a spot where he could capture the reflection of the setting moon on the Crooked River, set his Canon D5 on a tripod, and waited for the sunrise to do its magic on the rock's orange tuff surface.

"One moment, it was absolutely dark and soundless, and when the sun came roaring up, it was like someone turned on the spotlights," he recalled.

That was when he captured the image.

"Within minutes, there were crickets, and birds, and before you knew it, the trails were full of people," he said.

He emphasized that other than normal processing, no special effects were applied in Photoshop. His work can be seen at Sisters Gallery & Frame Shop.

Randall Tillery's "Morning Light" also renders that special depiction of light through art. The location of this landscape is the rolling hills of California's Gold Country, near Placerville, where he lived prior to moving to Sisters in May. He first captured the scene in a plein air study, and then replicated it in oil on linen, back in the studio, using a combination of his study and a photograph for reference. The combination of clouds and sunlight, color in the sky and golden hills is set in a classic gold frame.

Last September, Tillery's work was featured in a one-artist show in the community room of the library. Work by this award-winning artist can be seen at Clearwater Gallery and at http://www.artbytillery.com.

Fred Kimmell built his "Rocking Motorcycle" for his two-year-old great-granddaughter, Ella. It's the second one he's built - the first being for his grandson. Made of select pine, alder and fir, the mini-Harley Davidson on rockers features pink and black "Baker Tires" - for little Ella's last name is Baker. Even though he's been doing woodworking for years, certain parts of this one proved tricky.

"I had to make the forks three times," he said.

The mini-Harley has two toggle switches, one for lights, and a second that triggers a sound system that sounds just like a Harley starting up.

This year's event featured a silent auction with 30 donations by local artists. More than $1,500 was raised from the sale of 21 silent auction items and five of the exhibited works.

Although Ella's motorbike isn't for sale, many of the show works still are available, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Friends of the Sisters Library. The exhibit runs through February 26, and can be viewed throughout the library any time it's open (Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.).