August - Dixie Wajdic - The Purple Pomegranate

The Purple Pomegranate, a fine craft specialty store, is featuring work by Lakeside artist Dixie Wajdic during the month of July. Dixie uses the beauty of the Flathead Valley's lakes and mountains to help inspire her to create products which preserve the history of the Old West and Montana's Heritage. These items make great gifts for those who have a home with rustic decor, for those who love the outdoors and for the people who have everything.

The Boundry Line, Dixie’s company, specializes in creating one-of-a-kind wood items using the natural beauty of old juniper and cedar fence posts that have since been replaced. She creates vases, oil lamps, votive candle holders and lamps. Each piece is unique and some even still have moss growing on them. Dixie’s use of old fence posts is certainly a “green” way to create a beautiful work of art that is functional and eye catching.

Dixie’s work will be featured for the full month of July and on Gallery Nights which is August 7, 2008 from 6:00 to 9:00 pm.

Samarah Fine Art

Samarah Fine Art is proud to introduce new and original artwork by Harry Koyama, Charles Davis and Trent Gudmundsen for their August show. Their pieces will be on display at Samarah throughout the month of August and a celebratory opening reception will take place on Thursday, August 7^th from 6:00PM – 9:00PM, as part of the 2008 Whitefish Gallery Nights. All are welcome to stop by and enjoy a memorable evening of wine and hors d’oeuvres by Ali Caters.

This will mark an especially exciting occasion for Samarah, as it will feature pieces from both new artists to the gallery, and from those who have been cornerstones of Samarah's repertoire of western artists for many years.

“Harry Koyama and Charles Davis have been part of the Samarah Fine Art family since 2004,” stated gallery owner Rob Stern. “I have seen Harry’s paintings, with their bold color palette and impressionistic style, continually grow in acclaim and popularity, and the subtle elegance of Charles’ pottery become renowned throughout the state. To witness that kind of momentum and success in two of our artists is a truly exciting thing to see.”

For expressionist oil painter Trent Gudmundsen, this will be his first show with the gallery. Trent’s signature pieces are compelling interior landscapes and romantic portraiture that marry what he feels with the realism in what his sees. The show will highlight some of his latest pieces and will introduce Trent as a new and welcome addition to Samarah’s portfolio of artists.

July - The Purple Pomegranate - Elaine Gutierrez

The Purple Pomegranate, a fine craft specialty store, is featuring work by Whitefish artist Elaine Gutierrez during the month of July. Elaine started sewing 18 years ago when her husband bought her a sewing machine to repair a pair of his jeans. She has since developed many techniques in her exploration of fabric, textiles and fiber art.
As a self taught artist, Elaine uses a mix of appliqué, collage and free motion machine embroidery to create one-of-a-kind wall hangings. Inspired by the natural surroundings of her small ranch north of Whitefish, she often uses her own photographs for themes in her work. Elaine designs outdoor scenes; cutting small pieces of colorful fabric and appliquéing them to develop an intricate landscape. She dyes many of her background fabrics by hand and her palette ranges from earthy to vivid. She is currently moving into a new studio and is looking forward to having her own space to create her fabric collages.

Meet Elaine during Whitefish Gallery Night, Thursday, July 3, 2008 from 6-9 PM. Elaine’s work will be displayed during the opening and throughout the month of July.