An exhibit well worth the wait

“Young at Art” is Sally Pierone’s first art exhibit in more than 50 years. “My last show was when I returned from Europe after living and painting there for three years,” says Pierone, 84. “That was in 1953.” Her current exhibit is up in the Unitarian Universalist Church of Spokane through September.

While it’s been a long time between solo shows, Pierone hasn’t been idle. She worked as a commercial artist, married and raised three sons, and became a spiritual counselor and gentle force in the New Thought movement.

“She is the cosmic mother of Spokane,” says glass artist Steve Adams.

Always open to new ideas and insights, five years ago Pierone attended an art workshop at Esalen, a retreat center devoted to the exploration of human potential, in Big Sur, Calif.

The technique she learned at Esalen brings out sometimes startling, sometimes humorous images hidden in the psyche. Exploring these images on paper became liberating, she says, because they reveal subconscious notions that tend to run people.

“Lots of things that had been worrying me,” says Pierone, “went away when a painting was finished.”

Her subject matter includes her balky inner child, addictive family patterns and concern over global pollution. The show features 40 paintings from the several hundred she’s created since 2000.

Pierone will give a free slide presentation about her work on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the church, 4340 W. Fort Wright Drive.

“This is not simple an art show of Sally’s paintings,” says longtime friend and artist Lila Girvin, “it is a celebration of her life.”

Spectrum Gallery’s fall show

“Bountiful Harvest,” opening Friday at the Spectrum Gallery, spotlights the paintings of Scott Melville and mixed media pieces of Kathleen Parrish Peterson.

Melville, returning for his third show at the gallery, is bringing a wide selection of his egg tempera landscapes and animal portraits.

“The care and detail he puts into each painting is evident by the feeling of aliveness they possess,” says gallery director Jim Tatman in a news release.

Peterson, a longtime interior designer, is showing a variety of artwork including finely detailed botanicals, art deco-inspired motifs, realistic watercolors of cottage-style homes, sculptural paper collages and intriguing landscapes.

The Spectrum Studio, a small cottage gallery, is at 33 W. 34th Ave. The studio show is Friday from 4 to 8 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m.

Besse’s latest wildlife art

Wildlife artist Linda Besse of Mead is showing her latest oil paintings and limited-run giclee print reproductions in the Paulsen House Parlor Gallery through Oct. 13.

Besse has traveled the world in search of subjects in their natural habitat.

One powerful oil painting, “Night Patrol,” is a 3- by 4-foot canvas of a solitary bull elephant.

“While in Africa,” said Besse, “I saw a lot of elephants – sand bathing, crossing streams and in the open savanna. One I did not see may have been one of the biggest.

“I got up at just before sunrise one morning and right behind my tent where huge elephant foot prints. He must have come by on night patrol,” she said.

Meet Besse during at a reception on Friday from 6 to 9 p.m. Then take a look at 20 images on exhibit at the gallery, at 245 E. 13th Ave. For more information on Besse’s work go online to www.besseart.com.

‘Light’ in Gold Mountains

Landscape painter Judy Jeffrey strives to capture the light – whether it’s the sun’s golden touch on pine trees or the shimmering tips of dew on grass in a field.

Jeffrey’s new show, “Painting the Light,” runs through Oct. 9 at the Gold Mountains Gallery in Republic, Wash.

While the Republic artist loves the “juiciness” of oil paints, the bulk of her work is in oil pastels.

“It gives me the feeling of painting light,” Jeffrey said in an e-mail. “I love pastels for their vibrancy of color and their immediacy. You mix your colors on the paper itself.”

An artist’s reception is Friday from 5 to 9 p.m. in the gallery, 852 S. Clark Ave., next to the Northern Inn hotel in Republic.

The free Ferry County artists’ cooperative gallery is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Call (509) 775-8010 for directions and additional information.

Freuen at Tinman

Gina Freuen, known for her highly decorative functional ceramic vessels, is showing a series of two-dimensional pieces in “Passages on Paper,” currently on view at the Tinman Gallery.

Freuen’s mixes computer-generated images, laser prints, gold leaf, collage and original graphite to come up with the finished pieces. Some of the images are large, detailed, graphite drawings that show how she relates the human figure to her pottery shapes.

An artist’s reception is tonight from 5 to 8 p.m. at the gallery, 811 W. Garland Ave. The works can be seen through Oct. 1, Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Friday until 9 p.m.). Call 325-1500 with questions or go to www.tinmanartworks.com.

Grant Gallery’s new group show

Fused-glass artists Marty and Kathy Kaylor and painters Paul Van Roy and Ann Handler are the featured artists at the William Grant Gallery show opening Saturday.

The Kaylors, of Wildfire Glass Fusion, are displaying a variety of jewelry, sculptural and architectural pieces.

Realistic portrait painter Van Roy is venturing into still lifes, landscapes and figurative subjects, “painting from life whenever possible,” he says.

“It is my goal to make an emotional connection with people to enable them to see what I see and feel what I feel,” says the Spokane artist.

Painter Handler says in her artist’s statement that she portrays horses with affection and appreciation for their unique beauty.

“It is a laborious process of love as I render in oil pastels and colored inks what I have seen about a horse’s look and character,” says the Spokane School District 81 art teacher.

Meet the artists during a reception Saturday between noon and 4 p.m. at the gallery, 820 W. Francis Ave. View the work through Oct. 8. Regular hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

‘Kaleidoscope’ at Pacific Flyway

“Kaleidoscope of Color,” an exciting collection of colorful paintings by Ethelynn Coleman and Bev Blumel of Spokane, is showing at Pacific Flyway Gallery, 313 E. Sprague Ave. Included are pastel, watercolor, oil and mixed media works.

An artists’ reception is Saturday from 1 to 3 p.m. View the work through September during regular gallery hours Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

‘Touching Perfection’ at WSU

“Touching Perfection,” Anna-Maria Shannon’s master’s thesis exhibit, is on display at Washington State University’s Compton Union Gallery through Sept. 30.

“Beads through the ages have provided a lasting testament to material culture,” said gallery coordinator Gail Siegel in an e-mail. “They touch us and are touched by us. This thesis exhibit examines the spiritual nature of prayer and meditation strands from Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam and Christianity.”

Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is free.