Public Opening: February 11, 2023
Exhibition: February 11 - April 15, 2023
Gallery Syre is proud to announce the opening of the exhibition of its first Artist Open Call titled “All You Need Is Love”. The public opening will take place on Saturday February 11, from 6 to 8 pm. The artists will be present and light refreshments will be served.
The theme of this Open Call borrowed its name from the iconic Beatles song from 1967 inviting artists who use art as a messenger of love and universal understanding. The Gallery created this Open Call to give local and national artists an opportunity to gain more exposure and to exhibit in a professional gallery environment.
Gallery Syre selected 45 finalists from more than 200 applications that have been submitted from all over Washington State and even as far as New York and Vancouver, Canada. The exhibition will be installed across all rooms of the Gallery and will share detailed insight about each artist and how their work(s) reflect the theme. Artists from all backgrounds and all kind of media and styles will be represented. The exhibition will run through April 15, 2023. All Artworks are for sale.
Selected artists: Francie Allen, Deborah Bakos, Sophia Bakos, Aaron Brick (AK-Ultra), Stephen Cheng, Amy Chookiatsirichai, Candice Christie, Susan Cohen Raphael, Kevin Coleman, Justine Coordt, Christina Davis, Devon Dille, Elijah Strongheart Evenson, Tom Ferry, Agustina Forest, Trish Harding, Amy Healy, Jesselyn Helms,Izosceles, Ron King, Melisse Laing, Alex Lanau, Maren Larson, Kimberly Leo, Motoko Lewis, Sophia Lindstrom, Clinton Lively, Mane Manderson, Helen Merry, Patricia Missler, Karin Mueller, Joy Olney, Lana Price, Mary Quinn, Hannah L. Rivers, Carol Ross, Kate Rusek, Barbara Ryan, Rachel Simpson, Alicja Swiatlon, David Syre, Lori VanEtta, Rochelle Walden, Susan Walker, Grace Wark.
All You Need Is Love, an exhibition featuring 45 finalists of Gallery Syre's first Artist Open Call.
In image: Deborah Bakos, Ice Fire, 2022
Deborah Bakos, Ice Fire, 2022 "My uninhabited landscapes depict my love for our natural world. These spaces, both familiar and bizarre, also reflect our global concern and collective conscience aimed at a more mindful existence."
Melisse Laing, Singin' the Blues, 2021
Melisse Laing, Singin' the Blues, 2021: "I approach the design and construction of my quilts much as an artist approaches a canvas. I strive to create works that break the established mold, always asking "What if?"
Left: Carol Ross, Tenuous Lines 2020: "I paint to express emotions, moods, and feelings. The painting selected for this show, was chosen because of three words: Enveloping, Devotion and Tenuous. Words that I feel define love." I Right: Karin Mueller, Grandmother's Pet Cow 2022: "I am a mixed media artist who participates in collage, assemblage & textile construction."
Carol Ross, Tenuous Lines 2020: "I paint to express emotions, moods, and feelings. The painting selected for this show, was chosen because of three words: Enveloping, Devotion and Tenuous. Words that I feel define love."
Karin Mueller, Grandmother's Pet Cow 2022: "I am a mixed media artist who participates in collage, assemblage & textile construction."
"Full Heart is a collage of layered paper discs painted in acrylic and gouache paint. The layering adds depth, warmth, and interest to this mixed media piece", Amy Healy, Full Heart, 2022
Left: Patricia Missler, #LoveWins, no. 3 2017
Right: Alicja Swiatlon, Rainbow Series 5, 8, and 9 2021: "Inspired by rainbows these paintings relate to the rainbow flag and my Polish background. Poland has the worst
LGBTQ+ rights in Europe. I created these in support of LGBTQ+ community."
Patricia Missler, #LoveWins, no. 3 2017: "My work is best described as Nature inspired, heart-driven within an eclectic mind. I tend to paint whatever brings me joy."
Kate Rusek, Cross Cut, How Much More Can We Pull out of the Hill , 2019: "Abundance is care and care is a profound love. I am exploring a care ethic for materials and materiality in my work. Expansive, otherworldly empathy, making kin with Earthbound discards."
Elijah Strongheart Evenson, Slice of Touch, 2022
This work is a collaboration between artists Elijah
Strongheart Evenson and Agustina Forest.
Sophia Bakos, Lock and Key Doll 2022: "Hand sewn dolls created from recycled girl’s clothes- each one a representation of my childhood self as I unlearn shame brought on by sexual harm, and reclaim love for my body."
"I have painted the resilience of love, of stability in the face of turbulence." Barbara Ryan, Resilliance, 2022
"I have painted the resilience of love, of stability in the face of turbulence." Barbara Ryan, Resilience, 2022
Candice Christie, At the Edge of the Sea, 2020
Candice Christie, At the Edge of the Sea, 2020: "I grew up in a community in Southeast Alaska surrounded by the sea. This painting expresses my feelings on what is happening to the beautiful ocean that I love."
Jesselyn Helms, Little Ribs, 2022. Helms is an abstract artist, offering interpretations of her experience with chronic pain. She honors this challenge in her life through paintings: love letters to difficult pieces of herself."
Jesselyn Helms, Little Ribs, 2022. Helms is an abstract artist, offering interpretations of her experience with chronic pain. She honors this challenge in her life through paintings: love letters to difficult pieces of herself."
Joy Olney, Love , 2022
Joy Olney, Love , 2022: "My paintings are contemporary impressionist in style. I combine strong composition and value with spontaneous application of colorful pigments using the effects of natural light."
Justine Coordt, A Heart's Ache, 2021: "A Heart's Ache expresses my frustration with people's lack of empathy during the pandemic."
Tom Ferry, I am... , 2022. / Kate Rusek Blind Totem , 2022
Tom Ferry, I am... , 2022. Tom Ferry presents his unique perception of the world using bold colors and images with a touch of magic. It is a reality filled with energy and emotion.
Helen Merry, Kate Rusek
Helen Merry "Love Grows", 2023: "Each piece is unique and speaks to each individual differently, just like LOVE. Each heart/piece tells a story. Made with LOVE, always."
Kate Rusek (front), Blind Totem , 2022: "Abundance is care and care is a profound love. I am exploring a care ethic for materials and materiality in my work. Expansive, otherworldly empathy, making kin with Earthbound discards."
From left to right: Trish Harding, Stephen Cheng, Rochelle Walden, Maren Larson
Trish Harding, No Apple , 2021: "Take away the stereotypes of the Adam & Eve story...no apple, no snake, no temptation, no original sin. All you need is Love in any of its forms and myths."
Stephen Cheng, We Were Small and Christmas Trees Were Tall , 2022: "I paint popular songs and I sculpt lyrics. Sing the title songs; let the music guide your interpretation. There is a QR code next to the painting. If you scan it, YouTube will play the song for you."
Trish Harding, Stephen Cheng, Rochelle Walden, Maren Larson
Rochelle Walden, The Fifth Date, 2022. "I am an expressive figurative artist with a love of diversity and people. My aim is to make my subjects captivating yet relatable and familiar."
Maren Larson, Mt. Ash Coat "Veiled meanings and elusive marks are unified with personal memorabilia and mixed media. My goal is balanced compositions. Often, they are abstract and cryptic."
From left to right: Rachel Simpson, Francie Allen, Lori VanEtta, Izosceles, Devon Dille, Christina Davis
Rachel Simpson, Love through the Ashes (Pride), 2023 "Family, love, nature & outer-space are a part of inspiration for my art. Experimentation, textures, Steampunk-antiquing, vivid-colors, found objects, and study the wonder of life."
From left to right: Francie Allen, Lori VanEtta, Izosceles, Devon Dille, Christina Davis
Francie Allen, Corona Duet, 2021. "Dynamically sculpted figures in wire netting - dancers, acrobats, musicians, lovers - are lightened to create mysterious environments of shadows. Allen's installations incorporate sound, video, and improvisational dance."
Lori VanEtta, Colorful Rain, 2022 My work is happy, free, and spontaneous. I love experimenting to discover new techniques. Children's art and famous artists inspire me to create.
Izosceles, Loverboy, 2022: "My work is colorful and fun on the surface, with real deep tones beneath."
Devon Dille, Samhain Reflection, 2022: "Two paintings of the same couple, once coming together in union/marriage, once separated by death, but connected forever. Based in folktales and the pagan Wheel of the Year."
Christina Davis, My Heart, Your Heart, 2023: "My take on how love is often perceived by many in our society and era, and how we find solace in broken love."
Aaron Brick, Susan Cohen Raphael, Grace Wark
Aaron Brick, Raticals , 2022: "The death of beauty, the passing moment when we're attractive and then fade so that the next generation can rise to the occasion. Everything ends and that’s a beautiful thing."
Susan Cohen Raphael, The Wedding Party, 2022: "I’m in love with color and form found in the world around, and the feelings and emotions written on faces."
Grace Wark, Leo, 2020: "My work is centered around my love for women and nonbinary people of all ethnicities, body sizes and sexualities. My goal is to celebrate the beauty and magic of women"
Mary Quinn, Amy Chookiatsirichai, Ron King
"I draw to meditate, traveling through my mind and while my eyes travel the subject. For those works, my thoughts were of Ryokan Taigu and his love and compassion." Motoko Lewis, Stand , 2022
Amy Chookiatsirichai, Sunday Morning, 2021: "These two pieces visualize the push and pull of romantic relationships and feelings of love. These include the feelings of passion, comfort, and distrust, respectfully."
Amy Chookiatsirichai, Lover's Embrace, 2021: "These two pieces visualize the push and pull of romantic relationships and feelings of love. These include the feelings of passion, comfort, and distrust, respectfully."
Ron King, Sneak Peek, 2022: "The image moved me as a beautiful example of love and trust between a mother and daughter. The girl feels safe with nothing but her mother’s finger protecting her from a fall."
Motoko Lewis, Agustina Forest, David Syre, Aaron Brick
Agustina Forest, In Casual Simplicity , 2023.
Augustina Forest's work is inspired in the simplicity of the moment. Her love for
spontaneity and self-expression led her to
choose oil pastels as her main media.
David Syre, Love Birds, 2022: "All of my art is inspired by a search for visually expressing the concept of universal love. Travel, nature, and spiritual practices inform my ideas and creative process. "
Left: Alex Lanau, True Love, 2003 Right: Lana Price,Honoring Betty (4555 Weeks), 2023
Alex Lanau, True Love, 2003: "My love for music and the ocean inspires my art. Using navigational tools, I am one with the stars. Surrendering to the Universe and being a channel for grace, one stroke at a time."
Lana Price,Honoring Betty (4555 Weeks), 2023: "This portrait honors my aunt, who passed in 2020. The underlying grid marks the number of weeks she lived (4555 weeks), and I collaged-in words what my dad used to describe her."
Sophia Lindstrom, Nooksack in August and Salish Sea in August, 2022: "Abstract view of Whatcom County, during August, from sunrise to sunset. To feel intimate with the land and waterways to see for what could be. To love the land."
Sophia Lindstrom, Nooksack in August, 2022
Sophia Lindstrom, Salish Sea in August, 2022:
"Giraffes are symbols of guidance and leadership which was inspired for GiGi. The gold tones represent triumph and compassion. Collectively they inspire love and bring light out of darkness." Kevin Coleman, The Golden Giraffe aka GiGi , 2022
Hannah L. Rivers, Dadaab Refugee Camps, Dadaab Kenya and Carrara Marble Quarry, Tuscany Italy, 2019: "The foundation of my artwork concentrates on an abstraction of landscapes. My subjects are derived from aerial views of locations that have been created or altered by humans."
Hannah L. Rivers, Dadaab Refugee Camps, Dadaab Kenya, 2019
Hannah L. Rivers, Carrara Marble Quarry, Tuscany Italy, 2019: "The
Clinton Lively, XO, 2021 / Kimberly Leo, Amore, 2021
Clinton Lively, XO, 2021: "My take on how love is often perceived by many in our society and era, and how we find solace in broken love."
Kimberly Leo, Amore and Vibrant Heart, 2021 : "My work is centered around my love for women and nonbinary people of all ethnicities, body sizes and sexualities. My goal is to celebrate the beauty and magic of women"
Susan Walker, Busy, Bright, and Beautiful 2022
"My job is to look. I capture moments and create paintings that reflect that snapshot of emotion. Emotion leads our imagination to dream, dread, wish, regret, hope... and on & on." Susan Walker, Busy, Bright, and Beautiful 2022
Mary Quinn, The Kiss, Role Reversal, 2022: "Humans use tragedy and comedy as a means of processing their experiences. I believe the art of comedy is powerful and aspire to make art that is humorous and insightful."