Ashland Gallery Association November 2018 Art Exhibits
First Friday Art Walk, November 2nd from 5 to 8 pm
Stroll the galleries and take in the visual delights in downtown Ashland and the Historic Railroad District. Enjoy this free year-round community event, filled with a diverse array of artwork, live music, artist demonstrations, refreshments and lively conversation!
AGA November Spotlight Exhibits
Masterpiece Christian Fine Arts
Paintings by Mera Oliveria
Ashland Pony Espresso
Mera Oliveria grew up in Southern Oregon and began oil painting in the past 6 years, learning from local artists, which revealed her inherent natural abilities. Mera has always loved art but it wasn’t until she encountered the living God that she feels her art and skill level blossomed in new ways. Like in the story of Exodus, where God gave skill to craftsmen and artists to build the sacred place where He would meet again with His people, she believes artists are gifted with abilities to create art that allows one to encounter the living God, a meeting place, so to speak.
Along with working in painting, Mera engages in chalk festivals where artists spend days on the asphalt creating large chalk murals in the streets. Ashland residents may remember Mera transforming the sidewalk in the summer of 2017 in front of the Black Swan Theater with a 12 x 12 chalk art rendition of Henry IV, the Prodigal Son along with artist Cathy Gallatin. She feels that involving the public in the process of creating art is special for many reasons, emphasizing the importance of the arts within community and how beauty is a form of unity, a universal language that speaks of the human experience we all live, and the spiritual and emotional journey that no one can escape.
To see more of Mera’s art and works in progress, visit her on Instagram: @MeraOlive

Mera Oliveria, “Chalk Art”, Grants Pass, Oregon
Hanson Howard Gallery
Animal Crackers: Gallery Artists Pay Tribute to Our Furry and Feathered Friends
If you spend any time in the gallery you will have noticed that many of our artists have a thing for animals in their work. Why? Well, we don’t want to overthink it….but, we can celebrate it! From the fun to the reverent, small pieces and large, 2D and 3D, we will be including all the ways our artists honor animals in their work. Artists include Wayne Armstrong, Don Ajello, Laurel Bustamante, Steven Dewey, Penelope Dews, Baba Wagué Diakité, Claire Duncan, Marly Eidsness, John & Robin Gumaelius, Carol Ingram, Pamela Kroll, Betty LaDuke, Jhenna Quinn Lewis, Gabriel Mark Lipper, Robert Schlegel, Karen Staal, Wataru Sugiyama, Millie Whipplesmith Plank, and Aggie Zed. For this occasion, we’ve invited Portland sculptor, Stan Peterson whose carved wooden figures have all the charm of early folk art.
This is our final show of the year and will all be up throughout the holidays.
Join us for a reception for the artists during the Ashland First Friday Art Walk, November 2nd, 5-8 pm. The show runs November 2nd through the end of the year.

Stan Peterson, “Going Home”, carved wood
Photographers’ Gallery
Tiger Lily: Featuring Heinz Danzberger
Heinz Danzberger’s new show “Tiger Lily” opens Friday, November 2nd at The Photographers’ Gallery at the Ashland Art Center. The show is part of an ongoing project covering the landscapes of the “State of Jefferson” and, in particular, the greater Mount Shasta region. It is a photographic journey and discovery of sweeping vistas and landscape details, capturing the unique land at the heart of the West Coast and one of the larger natural areas remaining in the US. It is very diverse with active volcanic roots from which spring wetlands, high deserts and forested mountains, creating a land unlike any other on the West Coast.
Heinz uses modern techniques and classic lenses to capture high-resolution photographs intended for large size pigment print. The massive scale of the landscape around Mount Shasta invites large prints to capture the grandeur of the scene.
Heinz began working in medium format and then migrated to digital once high-resolution cameras became available. The decisive factor in his work style is not as much the camera but the applied lens qualities – in this image he used the classic Pentax 77mm FA lens resulting in beautiful and very classic image.
The Tiger Lily aka Ditch Lily is a welcome sight around Mount Shasta. This particular flower grew like a bridge over Cold Creek under the forest foliage. The arch of the stalk and the fruits of the bulbs float effortlessly over the small creek. Perhaps a deer displaced it in the spring or the weight of the flowers bent the stalk down towards the water. The horizontal arrangement shows the power of this plant to survive in difficult places.
Heinz’s photography invites us into a visual poetry of the world around us. It is a medium to see the unseen; the fleeting moments of light; the rush of time hiding magnificent moments. One does not have to go too far to find these moments. This Tiger Lily was a short bike trip to the outskirts of town, where it hides in plain sight.

Heinz Danzberger, “Tiger Lily” 2017, photograph
Ashland Art Center
Dia de los Muertos Celebration on First Friday
Music by Frankie Hernandez, Pumpkin painting in the classroom. Meet our Artists!
Show: Through Our Eyes: Reflections on Nature
Featuring Janette Brown & Katherine Dron
Watermedia artists sharing their interpretations of nature.
Featured Main Gallery Artist
Bridget Reynolds
Trained in a very left brained world of business, I came to the creative process quite late in life. I feel like a whole other world opened upfront me. I said a resounding “YES” and have not looked back. It is like playing in huge sandbox exploring images and color. I LOVE it!!!
Guitar Series:
On my fort canvas, all I know was that I wanted a guitar represented. From that, this series emerged.
What fun I have had in creating them.
Intuitive Pieces:
I love to stand before a blank canvas/paper and just make some strokes and then follow my instincts with a piece.
It is always a surprise to see what emerges.
First Friday Musical Guest: Frankie Hernandez
Frankie Hernandez has played every venue conceivable between Seattle and Los Angeles. Half jokester, half home-brewed Tito and Tarantula, and always love-struck, Hernandez has carved quite a name for himself. The only thing bigger than Hernandez’s voice, which could fill a closet or Yankee Stadium with equal aplomb, is his exuberant personality.
For more information about all of our exhibits and to download the November Gallery Tour map, please visit: www.ashlandgalleries.com
Thank you for your support of the Visual Arts in our communities!
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