Ed Gray, Vertin galleries to host First Friday art openings Apr. 1

CALUMET -- First Friday in Calumet, Apr. 1, will offer new art exhibits and opening receptions at the Ed Gray Gallery and the Vertin Gallery.

Be sure to stop in to see the "Found Objects Show" at the Ed Gray Gallery. The show will open with a reception Friday, Apr. 1, and run through May 4, 2011.

"Found Objects" entry by Mike Ramos. (Photo courtesy Ed Gray Gallery)

This show is interesting in that the artists involved have stretched themselves to create pieces from found objects while their work is typically in other media. While it is a relatively small show, it has some very nice pieces.

The opening reception will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, Apr. 1. Refreshments will be served. The Ed Gray Gallery is at 109 Fifth Street in Calumet.

The Vertin Gallery will host art by Christine Alfery from April 1 - 27, 2011. An opening reception will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday, April 1. Refreshments will be served.

Alfery hails from Lac Flambeau, Wis., and is an active artist across the nation, participating in exhibitions from Texas to New York. She is a member of a wealth of watercolor and visual art societies, including the Wisconsin Visual Arts Society and the American Watercolor Society.

She works in a variety of paint mediums, including watercolor and acrylic, and creates abstract floral images. Her images seem to grow organically across the canvas in a palette that can only be described as the happiest of colors. Alfery’s exhibit promises to be a patch of spring as we in the U.P. eagerly await the end of winter.

Coming Home by Christine Alfery. (Photo courtesy Vertin Gallery)

In her artist statement, Alfery explains the inspiration behind her work: "I paint abstract subject matter. It changes from my own unique, imaginative marvels to common, ordered, statements or to motley complex wonderings every time people interact with it. I cherish these motley complex wonderings. They keep things in motion, perpetual motion. Common unimaginative statements do not."

The Vertin Gallery has new hours: Open Tuesday, Noon to 5; closed Wednesday; open Thursday - Saturday, Noon to 5; closed Sunday and Monday. The Vertin Gallery is located in the heart of downtown Calumet, at 220 Sixth Street.

For more information on the gallery and upcoming events, please visit www.vertingallery.com or call (906) 337-2200.