Birt’s Bistro on the Benevilla Surprise campus is excited to feature a special showing of artworks of 9 amazing local artists on display and currently for sale in the restaurant. The art ranges from watercolors and pastel landscapes to fun giclées and magnificent mixed media works. For years, Birt’s Bistro has hosted showings from singular artists or studios, but never before have they had the opportunity of bringing together the works of 9 of the best local artists in the area.
Take a journey through a dazzling array of mediums and styles. Come see the new work by Nan Adams, an amazing Arizona watercolorist. She chooses the subject of her paintings rather than observing an entire scene hoping to convey her enthusiasm of detail to the viewers. Jules Gissler originally hailed from Montana, and now resides in Phoenix. Her books, prints, giclees, cards and original paintings are displayed throughout many galleries in the Phoenix area. Lorraine Lukes is a Wisconsin native whose artwork has been entered in many shows throughout the years. She creates magnificent pastel landscapes.
The journey doesn’t end there. There are several paintings by Mary Wolke. When Mary works with watercolors, she feels free and relaxed as she watches the colors flow into each other. She has now added acrylic paints and objects on canvas to her compositions. Jackie Young’s artistic journey began at the age of 10 when she won a blue ribbon at the Minnesota State Fair for her oil painting of a woman sweeping a cat off porch stairs. It was an unusual start to a career including scholarships to the Minneapolis Institute of Art and later the Chicago Art Institute. Throughout the years, Billie Ryan’s work has changed from naturalistic to abstract naturalism with a touch of whimsy. She does layers of glazes and continually changes each painting until it feels “right.”
And there’s Ronda Miller. With paintbrushes, bottles of paint, paper stamps, stencils, images and lots of found objects, Ronda discovered she could control the outcome of her “one of a kind” mixed media art. There are no boundaries to Ronda’s artwork. There are also new creations by clay artist, Gary Beck. Gary is a studio artist and does not do production work. Each piece is unique and individual. He creates simple functional pieces just as easily as sculptural, impressionistic pieces. You can finish your journey with the works of Peggy Juneau, a Blackfoot/San Carlos Apache who specializes in native themed mixed media art. She uses bold colors that challenge her viewers and conveys her traditional native ideas.
This special show will be open to the public until March 4th. Proceeds from the sale of any art piece directly benefits the Benevilla Creative Aging Programs. Birt’s Bistro is a social enterprise where every purchase helps fund Benevilla programs and services. Our motto is “Birt’s Bistro is building community, one plate at a time.” Birt’s also has a private room for meetings and offers the entire facility for private catered events. Birt’s is open Sunday through Thursday from 8am to 3pm and Fridays and Saturdays from 8am-7pm (with Happy Hour from 5pm until 7pm). Call 623-584-0065 for more details.