Gendron paintings lean heavily on the blues

‘Blues is the raw bones music of the people,” says painter Ric Gendron. “I relate to it.”

In his new show opening Friday at the Tinman Gallery, he salutes blues greats John Lee Hooker, T-Bone Walker and B. B. King, “The King of the Blues.”

“Music and my visual work go hand-in-hand,” says Gendron, himself an accomplished guitarist, “and this is a way of paying homage to these influences to my work.”

In “Lucille,” Gendron uses his vibrant color pallet to portray King holding his Gibson guitar, called Lucille. The acrylic painting also features a small, stylized bird staring out at the viewer from the lower right corner of the image.

“Birds pop up in a lot of my work because they are messengers,” says Gendron. “Blues, unlike the mainstream junk on the radio nowadays, always has a message to it.”

Gendron says his narrative paintings deal with life’s hardships, including lost love, poverty, and social and political injustices.

“Blues seems to fall right into that very thing,” he says.

The show at the Tinman Gallery, 811 W. Garland Ave., is one of more than three dozen free exhibits that are part of this month’s First Friday Art Walk in Spokane.

First Friday venues

Many of the venues in this self-guided art walk feature live music and light refreshments. All receptions are on Friday from 5 to 8 p.m. (unless otherwise indicated):

“Arbor Crest Tasting Room, River Park Square, Third Level, 808 W. Main Ave. – Colored pencil ink wash, airbrush, and watercolor works by Corey Keevey.

“Artisans’ Wares, 1009 W. First Ave. – “The Art of the Doll,” featuring the doll artistry of Kent Epler, Barbara Morrison and Wendy Zupan Bailey.

“Artist’s Tree Gallery, 828 W. Sprague Ave. (5 to 9 p.m.) – “Salon Tea Chairs and Jazz Delights” by Denae; Meredith Dement’s acrylic paintings in “Still Places”; and Gretchen Wilson Paukert’s metal and acrylic on canvas and lampshades in “Luminosity.” Also life-size wood carvings by Frank Schultz, caricatures by Bill Edge and music by harpist Nancy Davis.

“Avenue West Gallery, 1021 W. First Ave. (5 to 9 p.m.) – “Bella Italia,” paintings, photography and tile murals by Italian-born Angelica Chiara-Hardin and travel photographer Linda Lowry. Live guitar music by Tracy Carr.

“Barrister Winery, 1213 W. Railroad Ave.– “A Series of Still Lifes,” watercolors by artist Bart DeGraaf from Sandy, Ore.; acoustic blues by Lyle Morse, 7 p.m.

“Brews Brothers, 734 W. Sprague Ave. – Work in various media by local and regional artists.

“Brooklyn Nights, 122 S. Monroe St. – Realism, fantasy and portraiture by Broderick Carson and glass art by William Hagey.

“CenterStage, 1017 W. First Ave. – Photography by Brandon Rossa in the Theatre Hallway Gallery on the second floor.

“Chase Gallery, Spokane City Hall, 808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd. – “Abstraction,” featuring the artwork of Caryl Campbell, Ruth Hargreaves, Tobe Lee Harvey, Andrew Morgan, Gina Casolaro Murray and Sharon Strauss.

“Dean Davis Gallery, 216 W. Pacific Ave. (5 to 10 p.m.) – Oil pastels by Peter Presnail.

“Empyrean Coffee House, 154 S. Madison St. – Colorful acrylic paintings by Mercia Sheets, mixed-media paintings by Jillian Foster, drawings by Ben Grubin, and travel photography by Daniel Harrington.

“Far West Billiards, 1001 W. First Ave. – Works by local emerging artists.

“Gallery of Thum,’ 106 S. Madison St. (5 to 9 p.m.) – Kim Saenz, “Natural Inclinations;” Dian Allison, “Postcards from Germany;” A Red Hat Show; Jerry Stack, precious metal designer; and Lydia Quinones’ hand-painted block-print summer T’s.

“Global Credit Union, 726 W. Riverside Ave. – Various works on display through the windows.

“GoodWorks Gallery, 1019 W. First Ave. (5 to 9 p.m.) – Sculpture by Steve Gevurtz in “From Clay to Bronze,” an exhibition of finished pieces and works in progress.

“Grand Ronde Wine Cellars, 906 W. Second Ave. – Acrylic paintings by Heather Howard in “Abstract in Red.”

“Interplayers Gellhorn Gallery, 174 S. Howard St. – Eastern Washington University’s Art Club presents its “All Media Regional College Student Juried Show.” Juror is sculptor Greg DuMonthier.

“Kitchen Engine, Flour Mill, 621 W. Mallon Ave. – Oil painting by Conrad Bagley.

“Kolva/Sullivan Gallery, 115 S. Adams St. – Ceramics by Ann Christenson in “After Hours.”

“Kress Gallery, River Park Square, Third Level, 808 W. Main Ave. – New paintings by Spokane artist Rick Garcia.

“Lorinda Knight Gallery, 523 W. Sprague Ave. (6 to 8 p.m.) – Social and environmental ideas take the stage in “A Buck Shy.” Also sculpture by Howard Barlow, and drawings and prints by Scott Kolbo.

“Liberty Cafe, 402 W. Main Ave. – Paintings by local artists.

“Lone Canary Winery, 109 S. Scott St., #B2 – Acrylic and mixed-media paintings by Carol Newberry.

“Montvale Hotel, 1005 W. First Ave. – Live painting demonstration by wildlife artist Linda Besse. Works by local artists. Live music.

“Namaska Fusion Cafe, 421 W. First Ave. (5 to 9 p.m.) – Works by Phoenix Spring Water in “The Sacred Elements,” including dye and resist on silk canvas paintings, raku and kiln-fired wall plaques, and photographs of sacred sites in England. Lecture at 7 p.m. by Robert Brown, Spokane astrologer and author of “Writings in the Sky,” on the “Moon and Astrology: How the Moon Can Affect Our Choices.”

“Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture, 2316 W. First Ave. – A T. rex Named Sue; Gaylen Hansen: Three Decades of Paintings; Sudan: The Land and the People; If The Shoe Fits; and Kristen Capp: Highlights from the Americana Series. Free admission, 5 to 8 p.m.

“Paper Garden, 702 W. Main Ave. – Work by Linda Harrison inspired by the art of Southeast Asia. Also a demonstration by Mary and Nathan Eberle of aNeMonE Paper Flowers.

“Pigeon Hole Gallery, 620 S. Washington St. – Peter Whittenberger’s work with found objects.

“Polo’s Cafe, Flour Mill, 621 W. Mallon Ave., #426 – Watercolor paintings on exhibit.

“Pottery Place Plus Gallery, adjacent to Auntie’s in the Liberty Building, 402 W. Main Ave. (5 to 9 p.m.) – Whitworth College ceramic students in “Artists of the Future.”

“Prago … Argentine Cafe, 201 W. Riverside Ave. (6 to 10 p.m.) – Laurentia Colhoff: “Paintings and Drawings of the Spokane Music Scene.” Live music 7 to 10 p.m. by Matthew Winters and Paper Mache.

“Satellite Diner, 425 W. Sprague Ave. – Charcoal and acrylic works by high-school senior Jessica Klier depicting images of Darfur; all proceeds from the sale of paintings go to the Save Darfur Fund. Also pastels by Vicky Cavin.

“Spokane Art School, 920 N. Howard St. (5 to 7 p.m.) – “Indigenous Collection,” paintings, sculpture and ledgers from Inland Northwest Native American artists George Flett, Rick Gendron, George Hill and Michael Holloman.

“Thomas Hammer Coffee Roasters, 210 W. Pacific Ave. (reception 6 to 9 p.m.) – Tiger Tattoo presents the “Illustrated Man,” a group art show demonstrating the art of tattooing.

“Time Bomb, 711 N. Monroe St. – Local artists Cristie Dunavan, Jeff Allison, Chris Spriggs (aka “Rage”), Eric Johnson and Jim Koch.

“Tinman Gallery, 811 W. Garland Ave. (5 to 9 p.m.)– “Ric Gendron: Reading Bukowski in the Dark.” Live music.

“Trackside Studio, 115 S. Adams St. – Contemporary ceramic art by Chris Kelsey and Mark Moore.

McCue talks at EWU

Michigan artist Kaz McCue is speaking today at noon in the Art Building auditorium on Eastern Washington University’s Cheney campus.

“McCue’s work focuses on visual storytelling,” says EWU Gallery of Art director Nancy Hathaway.

She says his “creative process is like that of a modern archaeologist; utilizing rescued elements pulled from garbage piles, vacant lots, junk yards, thrift stores and archives.”

McCue’s exhibit, “Bad Seed,” is up through May 10 in the free gallery.