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Member-based nonprofit arts org. in La Grande, OR. Three art galleries. Arts education featuring 100+ classes per quarter for all ages! Free Admission

"It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s

"It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see."
Henry David Thoreau

Tomorrow, come view the current exhibit, "a point of connection," the 2021 EOU Junior Exhibit for Slow Art Day. Slow down, take in the beautiful works, have a conversation and be a part of the 11th annual global event!

We'll be open 10am - 2pm.

Mama Making Bread Archival inkjet print 2019 $500

Mama Making Bread
Archival inkjet print 2019
$500
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Today is the last day to come see this amazing exhibit!
Documentation: the Photography of Berenice Chavez

Have a wonderful Thursday & we will see you tomorr

Have a wonderful Thursday & we will see you tomorrow!

Happy Spring, ACE followers! We are thrilled to an

Happy Spring, ACE followers! We are thrilled to announce that Art Center East staff is back! As a reminder our business hours are still Wed-Fri 1-5pm and Sat 10am-2pm 🙌

The Big: Winner of People’s Choice Terri L. St

The Big: Winner of People’s Choice

Terri L. Stoltz
An exchange of gifts
Sheetrock mud, paint and epoxy

The Big: Winner of Best in Show Jo Cowling with "B

The Big: Winner of Best in Show
Jo Cowling with "Birds of Union County"

Tell us why you selected the pieces you submitted:
"To encourage the viewer to recognize, relate to, and enjoy the birds on the pages."

What inspired those pieces?
"My curiosity about the characteristics necessary for identifying local birds in the field."

What are you workin gin the near future that you are excited about and want to share with the community?
"Small fabric pieces depicting local landscapes, plants, animals, and biological processes."

What is your favorite part about living in Eastern Oregon and /or your favorite past-time in this region?
"The variety of natural habitats and the abundant opportunities to see birds and insects go about their lives."

Artist Statement:
"While appreciating the landscapes of our natural surroundings, I focus on the details. I see birds, invertebrates, and plants as individuals in their complex environments. My fabric art is a tidy, stripped down version of the complicated forms, & functions of those individuals. The hand-embroidered designs are whittled down to the minimum essential visual clues necessary for field identification of the living birds. They may lead the viewer to slow down and think about his/her experience with or curiosity about the natural world.
Techniques available to the fabric artist are endless. Each of my projects experiments with a new skill to challenge my creativity. I hope you find these birds familiar, calming, and sometimes funny."

"Birds of Union County"
Fabric Book
NFS

***It is with pride that we at ACE recognize Jo, as she donated her award money back to Art Center East! From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you!!***

The Big: Artist Spotlight Rachael Oliver Tell us

The Big: Artist Spotlight
Rachael Oliver

Tell us why you selected the pieces you submitted:
"The pieces I selected give a good idea of the kind of art I am currently working on. I am traditionally an acrylic painter that used collage as inspiration for painting. Recently, I have been combining the two to create small pieces and continue to work on larger acrylic on canvas pieces."

What inspired those pieces?
"The painting is based on a collage I created. I began doing more collaging because I started pressing flowers and using them to create pieces with my 3 year old daughter. The collage piece submitted was inspired by the pieces I am doing with her."

What are you working on in the near future that you are excited about and want to share with the community?
"I am working on some larger paintings and smaller collages which include organic elements (flowers, leaves, grass, etc.). To create these collages I use plants found on hikes with my daughter. I am a teacher and would love to share both nature and art with children and families."

What is your favorite part about living in Eastern Oregon and/or your favorite past-time in this region?
"My favorite part of living in Eastern Oregon is the access to nature. My family and I enjoy going on hikes and exploring trails in the mountains."

Artist Statement
"I am a teacher who just likes to play. Often I hear people say that they can't create art because they have nothing to say, they have no mission. I create art by sitting in a room surrounded by paper, fabric, lace, plants, paint, and I play until I find what I wanted to say all along. To me, art isn't about creating something profound, it's about the profound experience of creating. By putting my art out there, I hope to inspire others to create for the sake of creating, and to teach them that art isn't just work, it's play."

Campers (detail)
Acrylic paint on canvas
$100

Pick
Acrylic paint, paper, dried clovers on paper.
$40

The Big: Artist Spotlight Candis Smith Tell us wh

The Big: Artist Spotlight
Candis Smith

Tell us why you selected the pieces you submitted:
"This series was completed during April 5-April 11, 2020 at the beginning of our Covid 19 quarantine as I was processing faith and spirituality in the time of global pandemic. I find it to be a visual snapshot journey through a week of processing grief, trial, and hope. It was helpful for me to work through the changes we all were experiencing through my artwork and the spoken word. My hope is that others will find this series compelling and a visual representation of what we all have experienced."

What inspired those pieces?
"As an artist, I find my spiritual journey is my muse. I like to explore the intangible spiritual experience with everyday tangible images. The momentous changes we all have experienced drove me closer to my spiritual life as I grappled with all that Covid 19 brought to our world and how it was challenging me and my system of belief. These paintings are physical representations of the result of this inward processing with God."

What are you working on in the near future that you are excited about and want to share with the community?
"My hope is to begin a journey through the 4 days of Advent through my lens as an artist to bring beauty, focus, and joy in difficult times. I plan to film my process in the same way the Holy Week paintings were presented to go along with the paintings themselves."

What is your favorite part about living in Eastern Oregon and/or your favorite past-time in this region?
"I have lived in Eastern Oregon for most of my life and I find the relationships that are built in this region to be so special. Where we may lack in the big city experience, we are blessed with community connection. I have seen this region of people rise up in times of crisis and need with generosity and goodness. My favorite past-time in Eastern Oregon is gathering with family and both new friends and old around the table for great food and drink and conversation."

Holy Week in the Time of Pandemic
Acrylic and gold leaf on paper and canvas
$1,800

The Big: Artist Spotlight Amanda Welch Tell us wh

The Big: Artist Spotlight
Amanda Welch

Tell us why you selected the pieces you are submitting.
"I wanted to submit this piece because I have been working to combine my love of painting with watercolors with cyanotypes and while I am still experimenting, I am excited with the results and can't wait to see my work progress from here."

What inspired those pieces?
"This spring I sent little watercolor birds to dozens of friends and family as a way to send some cheer during the first shutdown. I started playing with using cyanotype pigment just as I use watercolors and combining flowers and the sun to merge them."

What are you working on in the near future that you are excited about and want to share with the community?
"I am continuing to try more than birds and see what comes next."

What is your favorite part about living in Eastern Oregon and/or your favorite past-time in this region?
"I love being in the heart of such an amazing ecosystem with so many different natural elements to see, visit and gain inspiration from."

Artist Statement:
"Nature is the biggest inspiration for my work, and the process of experimentation. I am the biggest fan of Anna Atkins, who's life is more interesting than I have space to mention here. I also have a love for sewing, and creating sketches with my machine rather than a pencil."

Winter Owl
Cyanotype and thread
$60 (SOLD)

The Big: Winner of Commercially Printed Photograph

The Big: Winner of Commercially Printed Photography
Susan Baird for "I’ve Been for a Walk on a Winter’s Day"

Tell us why you selected the pieces you submitted:
"This is one of my favorite landscape images. I love this old church and it's so beautiful adorned in snow and framed in by the lovely snow covered trees."

What inspired those pieces?
There are a few places I like to capture in each season and this is one of my favorites.

What are you working on in the near future that you are excited about and want to share with the community?
"I continue to take photography classes. It's so much fun to learn. I have made a calendar from local images for the last two years and will be making greeting cards for a local flower shop in the spring."

What is your favorite part about living in Eastern Oregon and/or your favorite past-time in this region?
"I absolutely love driving around our valley and looking at the beautiful landscape and looking for old buildings and barns. It's truly beautiful here in Eastern Oregon!"

Artist Statement:
"I love working one-on-one, whether portraiture, landscape, or macro photography, to capture the beauty I see in people, flowers, and the Eastern Oregon countryside. Photography has helped me to grow as a person. I'm introverted by nature, and photographing people and nature has helped me to express myself in a way that I feel comfortable sharing with others. I'm a braver person with a camera in my hand."

I've Been for a Walk on a Winter's Day
Photography
$249

The Big: Artist Spotlight Heidi Jackson Tell us w

The Big: Artist Spotlight
Heidi Jackson

Tell us why you selected the pieces you submitted:
"I selected these two pieces because they are both bigger pieces than what I normally make. I started making stained glass after taking a course through the art center and fell in love with it. During the Covid shut down in March I was able to use my time off from work to focus on stained glass work, these two pieces helped me develop my skills in designing patterns and I found them to be more challenging than my normal suncatcher designs."

What inspired those pieces?
"I was inspired by the Grande Ronde Valley for my mountain piece. I tried to design the mountain to look closely like Mt. Emily and then used different shades of greens, yellows and browns to represent the agricultural aspect of the valley.
My circles piece was a pattern I found online and I made it because it looked like fun. I was happy how it turned out using the colors of the rainbow with the bubbled clear glass, this piece makes me smile when I look at it."

What are you working on in the near future that you are excited about and want to share with the community?
"I am currently working on a Christmas tree for my front window. This pattern will have a string of different colored balls on a chain and also a battery powered strand of lights. The idea of this project came to me after I adopted a puppy and realized a real tree is a no go in my house this year. I'm very excited about this project and am hoping to market it towards people who are also unable to have a tree set up for the Holidays."

What is your favorite part about living in Eastern Oregon and/or your favorite past-time in this region?
"I love everything about living in Eastern Oregon, I grew up here and I love spending my time in the mountains. I love the fact that every outdoor activity is minutes away from my front door and it's not crowded."

The Mountain
Stained glass with Hemlock frame
$275

Circles
Stained glass with Hemlock frame
$150

The Big: Artist Spotlight Annetta Evans Tell us w

The Big: Artist Spotlight
Annetta Evans

Tell us why you selected the pieces you submitted:
"I recently returned to watercolors and these pieces are ones that I feel capture the spirit of the subject."

What inspired those pieces?
"I have had a lifelong love affair with horses. The relationship between horses and that between the horse and its partner are both special."

What are you working on in the near future that you are excited about and want to share with the community?
"I am currently getting ready to start a few more commission pieces (watercolors) and am working on a collection of hand-painted silk wild rags for a guest ranch in Wyoming."

What is your favorite part about living in Eastern Oregon and/or your favorite past-time in this region?
"I love the changes in the season and the wild wide open spaces. Of course, painting, riding my horses and playing polo are my favorite past-times. That and a chance to read a good book."

Artist Statement:
"I am a teacher with a Masters degree in “Integration of Arts in Education” from City University in Seattle. I have spent the past several years painting on silk. I first saw silk painting at a quilt show in the early 90’s and at that point, I did some experimenting with the technique. However, children and a career put that on hold for nearly 20 years. In the past five years, I have returned to this medium as my retreat and outlet. This past year I found myself wanting to expand my art into watercolors. Painting on silk and watercolors has similar techniques and I love the fluidity of both. I am self-taught through experimentation. I pretty much have a degree from the school of trial and error. I continue to play with different applications and subjects. The interplay of color, salt, and water continues to surprise and motivate me to explore this medium."

The Next Generation
Watercolor
$350

In the Bridle
Watercolor
$350

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Observer Columns

Read more + January 15, 2018 By artseastadmin in The Observer
The Big Read
Read more + September 19, 2017 By artseastadmin in The Observer
The Evolution of Art Center East
Read more + July 18, 2017 By artseastadmin in The Observer
Who is an Artist?

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