Bear Gallery Gift Certificates!

Support Fairbanks Arts by treating your loved ones to a Bear Gallery gift certificate! These great gifts are redeemable in the gallery and gift shop, for our artist workshops and for entry fees to one of our exhibitions.

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Gift Shop Artist of the Month: Teresa Shannon

For Sale in the Gift Shop: November 1 – November 30, 2019

 

“My functional pottery is hand-built with soft slabs of clay or thrown on the potter’s wheel and gently altered. The finished pots suggest the look of the wet, fresh clay; they show the way it can stretch and nestle into your hands. Matte glazes with muted colors on the exterior of the forms emphasize this softness. Interiors are glazed with glossier glazes, suggesting a wet, fruit-like, core.  I am intrigued by the subtle atmospheric effect created where two or more glazes meet and melt together, furthering the gentle, welcoming quality of the work

Drawn to the small creatures living in the woods around my house in Fairbanks, my pots recall the simple joy of watching birds at the feeder- or catching a fox running across the road. I began to consider other less expected animals that bring joy and wonder and dinosaurs played that role in my childhood. My older brother at the age of four announced he was going to be a paleontologist. This was the early 1970s and dinosaur toys were hard to come by, so along with clothes and dolls my mother designed and sewed many stuffed dinosaurs. They helped to establish a shared language and family story as they were passed down to each younger sibling and then to nieces and nephews. Dinosaurs were “cool” in our family before dinosaurs were “cool” anywhere else. 

I am excited by the way the dinosaurs and other animals become characters accompanying the user through morning coffee or family dinner, bringing light-hearted delight and companionship.” – Teresa Shannon

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Watercolor Corner Artist of the Month: Cheryl Berrong

For Sale in the Gift Shop: November 1 – November 30, 2019

Cheryl is a lifelong Alaskan, born in Ft. Yukon, Territory of Alaska, and raised in mining camps at Boundary, Chicken, in the 40-mile mining district. School was started in Tok Junction and she began drawing and painting with the help and encouragement of her mother, also an artist.

She is a multi-media artist who works primarily in watercolor. This is the challenging medium that allows light and color to express the beauty of Alaska.  She has displayed her work in galleries in Fairbanks and Anchorage. Her award-winning art has graced the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival poster and catalog cover.  She is a Signature Member of the Alaska Watercolor Society and past President of the Fairbanks Watercolor Society. Her paintings are in private and public collections across North America.

A resident of Fairbanks since 1969, she lives 20 miles north of Fairbanks overlooking the Tanana Valley and the Alaska Range.

 

Fairbanks Arts programs are made possible by individual and corporate contributions, the City of Fairbanks Hotel/Motel Bed Tax, Fairbanks North Star Borough and Alaska State Council on the Arts.