Flathead Festival of Art brings fine art to Polson
Carole Carberry painting
Carole Carberry watercolors currently hanging on the walls at the Sandpiper Art Gallery in Polson will be displayed at the festival.
Carole Carberry painting
Carole Carberry watercolors currently hanging on the walls at the Sandpiper Art Gallery in Polson will be displayed at the festival.
Carole Carberry painting
Carole Carberry watercolors currently hanging on the walls at the Sandpiper Art Gallery in Polson will be displayed at the festival.
Carole Carberry painting
Carole Carberry watercolors currently hanging on the walls at the Sandpiper Art Gallery in Polson will be displayed at the festival.
Carole Carberry painting
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POLSON – The shore of the lake will showcase beauty and talent at the Flathead Festival of Art. This year will be the fifth annual festival. The event, which is open to the public, will be held July 27 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and July 28 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Sacajawea Park.
The Sandpiper Art Gallery facilitates the event. The gallery is a non-profit cooperative that promotes and supports the arts locally. Member artists share their art in the gallery and work to promote art in the area. Proceeds from the gallery’s festivals go toward scholarships for local students who pursue studies in the arts.
Carole Carberry is a member of the Sandpiper Art Gallery. Her watercolor paintings hang in the gallery and will be displayed at the festival.
Carberry said the event is intimate with about 35 exhibitors showcasing their work. The show is more selective than the Sandpiper Gallery’s other big event of the year, held at the courthouse. “The intent is to provide a venue for more established artists and fine crafts,” Carberry said. The show isn’t exclusive to Sandpiper Art Gallery members. It is open to any artist in the country. This year will feature pieces made by artists from across western Montana and even Arizona.
The festival will feature diverse art and lively entertainment. Attendees can peruse jewelry, woodwork and even hear performances from handmade flutes. There will be a food vendor and live music throughout the festival.
Carberry has been making watercolor paintings for more than 50 years, and she started making art when she was just a child. She said creativity ran in her family and her siblings, cousins and grandparents are all good at drawing and painting. She made art throughout her childhood. In her mid-20s, she took some watercolor classes after her husband read about them in the paper. Carberry said the teacher of her class shared a lot of important techniques and inspired her to continue. Carberry said watercolor quickly became her favorite medium, though she still makes acrylic paintings, prints and drawings.
Carberry draws her inspiration from nature, particularly long-necked birds. She spends half the year in South Carolina, where she observes swans and other birds in a city park. “There’s something about those long necks and the way they pose that I find really appealing as a subject,” she said.
Carberry has been a summer resident of the Mission Valley since 2006. She said the beauty of the region inspires her, but she doesn’t paint many landscapes. “When you come around the bend on 93 and you first see the lake and the narrows that to me is one of the most beautiful views anywhere,” she said. “I have never painted it because I don’t think I could improve on it.”
Being a member of the Sandpiper Art Gallery has broadened her experience as an artist and a community member, Carberry said. The diversity of personal experience and artistic style that the gallery gathers is what Carberry likes most about the space. She said the gallery has provided her with strong friendships and an avenue to share her work. “It’s a big part of my life as an artist, and it’s part of my life period,” Carberry said. The festival will provide an opportunity for members of the community to immerse themselves in art too.
