PORT TOWNSEND — “If I Had Wings,” a 2D and 3D exhibit celebrating birds as metaphor, is on display at the Northwind Art Best Gallery.
The exhibit is open through Aug. 29 at the gallery, 701 Water St. Hours are from noon to 5 p.m. Thursday through Monday.
The artwork is by Martha Pfanschmidt, Marie Hassett, Chris Maynard, Robin and John Gumaelius, Margaret Woodcock, Stephen O’Donnell, Margaret Van Patten, Keaney Rathbun and Bethany Rowland. Works in the exhibit range from acrylics to oils, intaglio prints to mixed media sculpture, feather and fiber art.
Online artist talks are set for 7 p.m. July 21 and Aug. 11. Viewers are encouraged to bring questions.
Both online Zoom events are free, but registration is required at NorthwindArt.org.
On July 21, Rathbun will lead the live Zoom conversation among exhibiting artists July 21. On Aug. 11, Pfanschmidt will be joined by some of the other artists from “If I Had Wings” to talk informally about the exhibit and their work.
“Throughout history, we humans have observed and interacted with the birds surrounding us,” an artists’ statement said.
“We have created stories about them to understand and explain the natural world and our place within it. The bird has long been seen as a symbol of strength, joy, frailty, freedom, spirituality and vulnerability. It has also been used by artists to express their understanding of what it means to be human.”
The artists
• Pfanschmidt has worked as a professional artist since joining a printmaking studio in 1982. She currently works with paper and prints, encaustic painting and kiln glass.
She has taught at university and privately for more than 30 years.
Represented by Waterstone Gallery in Portland, Ore., and Davidson Gallery in Seattle, her works are in collections all over the world.
• O’Donnell is entirely self-taught, and his paintings are notable for exploration of gender, explicit historicism, obsessive attention to detail and humor, organizers said.
His work — both literary and visual — has appeared in the literary magazines “Nailed,” “Menacing Hedge” and “Gertrude.” He and his wife, graphic designer Gigi Little, recently published “The Untold Gaze,” a collection of Stephen’s paintings paired with short fiction by 33 authors.
• Hassett explains her mixed media and fiber arts technique: “My work explores our relationship to the natural world — birds are drawn and hand embroidered using thread like miniature brushstrokes.
“Shading and hues are created using long and short stitches, with kimono remnants and various paper and fabrics collaged and stitched for each piece.”
• Maynard has worked with feathers since he was 12. His feather shadowboxes are created with tiny eye surgery scissors, forceps and magnifying glasses passed down through his family.
Maynard combines his strong backgrounds in biology and ecology into this art.
• Sculptors Robin and John Gumaelius agree that together, some secret part of the process carves stories into the birds which can be surprising.
The nuances of welding the feet, for instance is, “all considered — it’s all important to the final outcome.”
• Van Patten is a printmaker who uses intaglio techniques to create her prints. Her complex work is very rich in symbolism, with color and form offering layers of meaning, organizers said.
Van Patten is an alumnus of Pacific Northwest College of Art, where she obtained her BFA in printmaking.
• Rathbun said that her artworks are autobiographical narratives.
“The images are figurative and gestural and are deceptively simple metaphors of human experience,” she said.
Rathbun’s bas reliefs are created by carving and painting linoleum, which adds a sense of sculptural depth to the paintings, providing weight and mass.
• Rowland began a regular practice of drawing and painting over 20 years ago with Phil Sylvester at The Drawing Studio in Portland, Ore.
“I learned that a particular mark or brush stroke made with commitment could lead me to a richer and more complex understanding of my subject,” she said. “By using transparent layers of color and levels of abstraction, painting is my medium for discovery.”
“Walking Meditation” by Martha Pfanschmidt is on view through Aug. 29.
