This year's Small Works Gift Show opened at 1+1=1 Gallery to a big crowd of enthusiastic shoppers and art lovers. Friday night and Saturday saw dozens of small and affordable artworks gift wrapped and heading out the gallery door. We are so happy to feel supported by the Helena community -- and to in turn, give our artists the motivation to keep working in their studios! Read on for photos of selected pieces from the show, and an answer to the question, why buy art for a gift?
Our second annual Wood & Wax exhibit opens Friday evening, October 19th and runs through November 24. Seven artists come together in this exquisite group show that features art made from wood and art made from beeswax, pigments and resins.
Who: anyone who likes art, particularly really cool art
What: opening reception to celebrate Wood & Wax exhibit AND our 5th Anniversary
Where: 1+1=1 Gallery at 434 N. Last Chance Gulch, Helena, Montana
When: Friday Oct 19 from 5 to 8pm
Why: cuz you like art, good food, and we like you!
Since our beginnings five years ago, we have proudly represented some of the best Montana woodworkers, at 1+1=1 Gallery. Helena artists, Dan McArdle, Tim Carney and John Andrew, are back at the gallery with all new finely crafted carvings, furniture and turned wood vessels. This year we welcome another wood turner, Boyd Carson of Bozeman. This year, we are also introducing encaustic artist, Erika James, from Portland Oregon.
All seven of the artists in Wood & Wax 2018 are talented, mature artists and we are delighted to show their work! Although we show their work year-round at the gallery, seeing it in exhibit and meeting the artists is an experience not to miss!
Come to our opening to find out more about encaustic. What it is. How to care for it, how these three artists have explored the wax medium in their unique ways.
Darla Myers of Bozeman Montana, returns to Wood & Wax with a series of sumptuous yet whimsical forest paintings. Myers’ emotive abstracts are distillations of nature’s colors, light and shadows. She spends many hours outdoors, hiking, sketching, camping and walking her dogs. When you see her encaustic images of forest trails, filtered light and seasonal color, you’ll be reminded of some of your favorite Montana places.
Joyce Watts Coolidge, a former fiber artist from Anchorage, Alaska, joins us for a second year with contemporary encaustic and sculptural mixed media pieces. Coolidge uses hundreds of layers of fused wax and pigment with horsehair, handmade paper and wood to evoke stories any of us might imagine. Joyce will be at the opening all the way from Alaska. Please give her a hearty Helena welcome!
Erika James’ dramatic encaustic landscapes are inspired by the fog, rain, gorges, coasts and crusty mountains of her native Oregon. She seems to have an emotional, even profound connection to gigantic earth forms that dwarf humans, yet the wax and pigment medium she uses give an intimate experience when viewed up close in person. Don’t miss seeing Erika’s work in Helena! We are betting you will love it.
Woodworkers have a saying that they “make sawdust.” Well, I think our woodworkers make “elegance.” Consider the wood objects you live with: wouldn’t your life be more lovely if some of those useful objects were elegantly made by an artist? If your answer is yes, don’t miss this exhibit!
John Andrew, a long-time Helena resident who has been turning gorgeous bowls from local trees for many years and there are hundreds of folks in our town who are proud to own one of his masterpieces. Many of John’s wood bowls are truly functional though they must be given care. Every bowl John turns is a work of art!
Tim J Carney, one of Helena’s masters of fine furniture design and woodworking is displaying a stunning Cherry and Ebony dining table with chairs; a live–edge walnut bistro table with stools; and other fabulous pieces of live edge exotic and local woods. Tim has the reputation of making the most comfortable chairs in Helena. Come try one – you’ll agree!
Boyd Carson’s sensual turned wood vessels drew me in from my very first sighting. Our newest gallery artist, Boyd is a retired furniture maker and building contractor now living in Bozeman. His sculptural vessels are remarkable art pieces — and each one has a fascinating story. Come hear his stories!
Dan McArdle, an incredibly talented artist, makes gorgeous relief carvings on wood and stains them with dyes. His inspiration comes from the many hours Dan spends outdoors, fishing, mountain biking and back country skiing. Our customers have loved Dan’s ravens, wolves, trout streams and prairie scenes since we began showing them three years ago. You have to see what Dan made this time!
Studio Art Classes and One-on-Ones Start November 2018
My art classes are kinda un-normal:
I am offering some really fun art seshes this year. I am planning to teach teen one-on-ones; women's workshops and kids' studio seshes along with a couple of guest-artist one and two day workshops. These are not your typical "art classes" to learn a technique such as watercolor painting or drawing, although in the process of making, you will learn some great techniques!
I refer to my teaching as "studio creative seshes" and "expressive arts classes" because I go beyond technique. I encourage students of all ages to dive into a subject, explore unusual ways to express themselves and experience the delight of success no matter what you think you are capable of. I believe creativity exists in everyone and it needs to be awakened then nourished by building confidence, making stuff, playing around, contemplating the results with a critical eye, and actually getting down to it and doing. Stop thinking about making art and get doing!
Thank you so very much to everyone who came to the opening of Press Here: a Printmakers Showcase. It was a resounding success; a great crowd; enthusiasm for the gallery talks; delish food and wine … and of course, the art on the walls: fabulous.
We are truly looking forward to our first exhibit of the fall, PRESS HERE. Opening night will be September 7th, when you can be the first to see the prints coming out of the studios of artists who work at Pratt Institute of Arts, and the local studios of Carol Montgomery and Maureen Shaughnessy. We are excited to introduce our art buyers and art lovers to something different — the printmakers who live and work in Seattle bring a fresh perspective to what we are all used to out here in Montana. Most of the Seattle printmakers work in the print studio at Pratt Fine Arts, and show in one or more Seattle galleries. We are honored to have them at 1+1=1 in Helena! As well, Carol and Maureen have been hard at work creating new linocuts, monoprints and collagraphs for the show. Expect to be surprised, delighted and moved by this collection of printmakers’ artworks.
What: new exhibit, “PRESS HERE”
When: Friday Sep. 7 from 5 to 8pm
Who: Our opening events are for everyone, kids too — and it’s free
Where: 1+1=1 Gallery is located at 434 North Last Chance Gulch in Helena, Montana.
More Info: Call the gallery 406.431.9931 or email us
All artworks featured in PRESS HERE will be available through our online exhibit catalog beginning the day after the show opens. Watch for a link at the top of our home page here, or to make sure you don’t miss it, subscribe to our love notes and we will send you a link in an email that morning. The catalog goes live on September 8th.
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Our next show opens August 3 and runs through September 1, 2018. Please join us on opening night for a reception, to meet the artists and get the best choice of functional pieces for your home, office or gifts.
What: Opening Reception of “Ritual: functional clay in everyday life”
When: Friday Aug. 3 from 5 to 8pm
Who: Our opening events are for everyone, kids too — and it’s free
Where: 1+1=1 Gallery is located at 434 North Last Chance Gulch in Helena, Montana.
More Info: Call the gallery 406.431.9931 or email us
Ritual. Isn’t that something we should save for special days? Why not create more meaning in everyday activities? Rituals slow us down, connect us with the origins of things and the underlying beauty of all life. From cooking and eating … to lighting a candle; placing flowers in a vase; drinking coffee, tea, ale or wine; bathing and brushing teeth; meditation and prayer; telling stories and tucking children or ourselves in bed … these are things we may do everyday and — if done with intention — can become wonderful meaningful moments for us.
Nine local and regional ceramic artists submitted a large selection of functional clay objects that can be used in our everyday life. Bowls, plates, cups, cookie jars, mugs, trays, vases and tumblers are just a few. Everything in the exhibit is beautiful enough to be displayed as a work of art … and useful enough to become part of your everyday life.
Just in time for Montana visitors looking for something special to take home, and for Helena residents who want to treat themselves or someone to a one-of-a-kind useful gift. We will have the entire exhibit in our online catalog for anyone who can’t make it to the gallery in person. The catalog goes live on August 4th.
Subscribe to our email love notes so you don’t miss knowing about it!
Here’s where you can subscribe to our “love notes” to get updates on events and invitations to our opening receptions for new exhibits. (We promise not to spam you or share your private info with anyone — ever.)
Please join us for Downtown Helena's June First Friday, at 1+1=1 Gallery. We're hosting a sidewalk cafe´with chalk games, kid-friendly refreshments and some adult-friendly art inside the gallery. Currently we are showing our annual art jewelry and figurative art invitational exhibit. Gorgeous art -- and lots of choice of one-of-a-kind jewelry in a wide range of prices. Hope to see you!
Our next show opens June 29th and runs through July 28th. It’s a short exhibit but long on diversity and depth. We asked five Helena artists, as well as an artist from Wyoming and a California artist, to contribute a body of sculptural works to this show. These seven artists explore volume, space and ideas using clay, bronze, wood and mixed-media. And whoah – are we excited to see what’s been coming in!
Our 2018 Sculpture show promises to astound and delight you with pieces for your walls, floors, ceilings, shelves or tables. Whether you have a small wall space, a coffee table, hearth, mantle, side tables or shelves in need of a statement piece or a tender, quieter piece, we will have something for everyone. Paul Guillemette’s pieces are free-standing, wall-mounted or hanging from the ceiling. Nancy Goughnour again delights us with all-new wall figures of strong bold women. Trudy Skari’s latest free-standing and wall pieces take her bemusing foxes, bears and rabbits to another level of accomplishment. Mary Jane Edwards’s body of 12 “Caged Memories” provoke thought and curiosity. New polymorphic fabulism figures by Betsey Hurd join her masterful bronze equine sculptures.
Here’s where you can subscribe to our “love notes” to get updates on events and invitations to our opening receptions for new exhibits. (We promise not to spam you or share your private info with anyone — ever.)
Running from May 25 through June 23 this year, BODY will focus on one-of-a-kind art jewelry and unique contemporary figurative artworks (woodcuts, embroidery, oil paintings and ceramic vessels.) Please join us Friday evening, May 25th for an opening reception and to meet the artists.
Figurative art can often affirm us, push our buttons, inspire or disturb us. Figurative artists challenge us with their reflections on gender and human bodies to think about ourselves with awareness, tenderness, acceptance and even forgiveness. Ouida Touchon of New Mexico, Laurie Shaman of Illinois, Kate Fisher of New York, and Elizabeth Hughes Bass of Butte Montana, are the featured figurative artists this year.
Art jewelry sometimes pushes the boundaries of what we may think of as ornament for our bodies. We have invited jewelry artists whose studio jewelry is unique, contemporary or traditional, to be part of the show. Montana and national jewelry artists will be featured. We have art jewelers who work with fabric, felt, ribbon, paper and found objects, botanicals, silver, gold and other precious metals, stones, semi-precious stones, fossils, clay and natural objects, along with vintage and antique buttons and beads. You never know, we might even end up with some jewelry featuring tiny vintage toys. Come see the incredible variety and fabulousness!
Featured Artists in 2018 Annual Art Jewelry & Figurative Art invitational:
Contemporary one-of-a-kind body ornament . Bodies on ceramic vessels . Contemporary embroidered figurative pieces . Accomplished brushwork in oil on panels . Fascinating artists . Scrumptious food . Wine . Lovely company . Elegance all around
Check back often or subscribe to our email updates (love notes) to find out more details about this exhibit in the near future.
Please join us at 1+1=1 Gallery for the opening reception of our newest exhibit, Flight, on Friday, April 20th from 5 to 8pm.
This fabulous exhibit features all new works by 14 artists who’ve approached the theme of flight in their own distinct way, using many mediums including printmaking, clay, acrylic and oils, encaustic, wood, and charcoal. We invite our Montana friends and neighbors to experience these unique and thoughtfully created works, listen to a panel-style artist talk and enjoy refreshments from 5-8pm on Friday, April 20th.
Artists invited to participate in this show include Andrea Cross Guns, Linda McCray, Ouida Touchon, Darla Myers, Cristina Marian, Dan McArdle, Tina Albro, Becky Street, Larry Calkins, Laurie Shaman, Peter Shaughnessy, Trudy Skari, Brenda Wolf and April Coppini.
Maureen Shaughnessy remarks, “It took me 10 minutes of free association to come up with a list of 120 words or phrases associated with the word ‘flight.’ Words like wingding, arrow, acrobat, flight of fancy, stairway, invention, sky charts, flock, nest, dragonfly, vertigo, voyage, fly-fishing, sailboat, birds of a feather, you get the idea. I didn’t even scratch the surface of the almost infinite ideas about flight. I’m so excited to see how these fourteen artists explore this theme!”
Flight runs from April 20 through May 19. 1+1=1 Gallery is located at 434 N. Last Chance Gulch. Spring is here and we have new extended hours: Tues-Fri 10am-6pm and Sat 10am-5pm
Just for fun:
