Art gallery to open in Mission
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
MISSION — One doesn’t have to stray far from home on the Flathead Reservation to find outstanding works of art. Amateur and professional sculptors, painters, carvers, welders and masons from all walks of life call the area home, but sadly, few have an outlet to showcase these incredible works of art.
Donna Morton owns the Napa Auto Parts store in Mission with her husband. Having lived in the area for 32 years, Morton said she felt the need for an art gallery in Mission to help showcase local artists’ work.
Geoff Rohrlach, an Australian-born transplant and Mission resident, recently finished his nursing degree at Salish Kootenai College. While in school, Rohrlach was required to take an art class. He’d been a sculptor and painter in the past, but the art class at SKC inspired him to take up the painter’s brush and sculptor’s chisel once more.
Not long after the two met, the Painted Pony Art Gallery was born.
In a spur-of-the-moment decision two weeks ago, Morton decided to use one of her vacant office spaces next to Napa to house a nonprofit art gallery for local artists.
“Geoff came in and I said, ‘There are so many artists in this area, but they don’t have a way to sell their work and get it out there,’” Morton said. “I’m really anxious to see how this turns out just from the amount of people that seem to be so excited about it.”
The positive response surprised the gallery’s founders. More than 20 artists from Hot Springs to Kalispell to Arlee had already contacted Morton and Rohrlach a full week before the gallery was set to open.
“It’s been a bit overwhelming, but it’s really cool,” Rohrlach said.
One local artist to be featured in the gallery is Kathryn Yelsa, a sculptor, sketch artist and painter. Yelsa called the gallery opening an immense dream come true.
“There’s so many creative people who are drawn here and live in these little pickets, it’s great,” she said. “I think everybody needs some place like this ... it’s a wonderful thing.”
As far as the kind of art to be exhibited, both Morton and Rohrlach said the sky is the limit. The gallery will contain jewelry, paintings, pictures, clothing, Amish furniture, Native crafts and beadwork or “Random stuff welded out of car goods. All kinds of art,” Morton said.
Traditionally, art galleries charge a weekly or monthly fee for artists to display their work. This fee grants the user a set amount of space within the gallery, so each artist has his or her own corner or wall. Morton and Rohrlach both said they don’t want to do it that way; they’d rather everyone’s art be mixed together in a collage representing the community.
“The pieces reflect a lot of our community,” Rohrlach said. “The good, the bad, and the awesome. There’s no rule when it comes to art. We just like to give everyone a place to showcase their stuff.”
In addition, Morton and Rohrlach hope the artists themselves will eventually take the reins. Rather than making decisions on how, when and where to display what artwork, the two hope to develop a board of artists to make decisions about the gallery, thereby utilizing a collective voice in creating the atmosphere. They also hope artists can staff the building, use it as a place to practice their craft and even teach classes.
Rohrlach hopes to showcase art from a different school every month, too.
“We’re still growing; we’re still changing; and nothing is set in stone,” he said. “I think this will be a really good thing for the community; we just need to get the word out.”
The Painted Pony Art Gallery will host a grand opening Friday, Dec. 7, from 5 to 9 p.m. The entire community is invited to take part in the inaugural opening night for Mission’s first-ever nonprofit art gallery.
“I’m hoping this will be a long-term venture for us,” Rohrlach said. “We’re planning to go to Christmas at least, and we hope to go much further.”
