New gallery takes shape

A jellyfish-inspired metal sculpture by Brookings, Ore. artist Steve Hill is one of the pieces on display at the soon-to-open gallery in Crescent City. (The Daily Triplicate/Bryant Anderson)

“The opening show is going to be more eclectic than in the future,” said Michele Crail, art director for the Gallery of Arts and Culture located at 175 H street, across H Street from the Post Office. “In the future, we plan on doing themed exhibition shows.”

The gallery hopes to have workshops run by the artists being highlighted in the exhibitions, she said.

“The themed exhibitions will run for two to three months and we already have a couple of artists that will be giving workshops,” Crail said.

“We’re really excited to have the chance to provide a facility for artists to place their work,” Crail said. “Our goal is to be selective enough to keep the quality of art high.”

The gallery itself, with its large windows, white walls and unusual angles, has a cosmopolitan feel.

The building didn’t start out that way. Originally the space was a bank.

“A previous tenant walled the safety deposit boxes up,” Crail said. “It’s too bad because they could almost be an art installation all by themselves. If they hadn’t walled them up we would have tried to incorporate them.”

Crail said that eventually, if things go well, she still might try and integrate them.

 The gallery is the brainchild of Crail and local resident Barbara Burke.

“I was talking to Barbara one day and during the conversation the idea of opening a gallery came up,” Crail said. “She asked me and I jumped at the chance.”

From its polished concrete floor to the exposed beams and ducts overhead, it took months of work to prepare for Friday’s opening, Crail said.

On Tuesday, sculptor Steve Hill of Brookings was delivering his pieces.

Hill spends his days doing fabrication out of metal, but his true passion is metal sculpture.

“This is one of my first shows,” Hill said while showing off one of his untitled works based on a jellyfish. “I decided a few years back that being a starving artist would be an interesting career.”

He works in primarily recycled metal, capture the fluidity of a jellyfish in a medium that is its opposite, steel.

Hill couldn’t hide how pleased he was with the new gallery.

“They’ve done an amazing job turning this into a place where people can feel comfortable hanging their work,” Hill said.

The grand opening is Friday from 5 to 9 p.m. and will have live music, refreshments and cheese donated by Rumiano Cheese.

“We want to encourage everyone that can make it to come,” Crail said. “This is ultimately all about community.”

The gallery’s regular hours will be 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

For more information on Friday’s opening, or to talk to Crail about possibly showing work and upcoming workshops, call (707) 464-4745.