Toledo hosts First Weekend
As summer beckons, the town of Toledo is showing its colors at First Weekend, with galleries and studios throwing open their doors on Saturday and Sunday, June 6 and 7.
The Yaquina River Museum of Art is launching a brand-new selection of giclée prints featuring the works of museum Founder Michael Gibbons. Works now available include "Old Railroad Trestle Off South Bay Road," a summer pastoral scene in the Yaquina region, showing the glittering water of a tributary through the marshes as the abandoned tracks of a forgotten railroad slowly give way to nature.
The museum will also be showcasing original work by John Solie, an artist who previously lived in Seal Rock and now resides in Arizona. Born in 1937, Solie is known for his commissioned paintings, including more than 200 movie posters and commissioned projects for the Saturday Evening Post, TV Guide and NASA.
Visitors can see two of Solie's original acrylic paintings, including an untitled work the artist described as an "evolutionary droodle," featuring a sparkling collage of models he had worked with throughout the years. Solie is currently a member of NASA's art team with his works on display in the Kennedy Space Center and Johnson Space Center.
The museum is located at 140 NE Alder Street, open from noon to 4 pm during First Weekend. For more information, go to yaquinarivermuseumofart.com.
Nearby, Ivan Kelly Studio-Gallery will be showing new oil paintings of coastal landscape, wildlife and floral vignettes and offering the opportunity to chat with the artist.
Located at 207 East Graham Street, Ivan Kelly Studio-Gallery is open from noon to 4 pm on Saturday and Sunday. For more information, go to www.IvanKelly.com or call 541-336-1124.
On the corner of Alder Street and Hwy. 20, Posh and Polished will be featuring the watercolors of guest artist Deborah Marsh, who began her journey as an artist at the age of 66 after becoming a widow. Starting with watercolor classes at a local community college in 2021, she discovered her joy and skill in a medium new to her. After Marsh moved to Newport 2022, her work was accepted into the Yaquina Art Association and she continues to hone her skills at YAA's Monday watercolor classes. See her work, as well as the candlemaking of Holli McRae with Shining Light Candle Co. and the soapmaking of Jamaica Tull during First Weekend at Posh & Polished, located at 207 E Highway 20.
On Main Street, Bruster's Whimsy Game Cafe will be displaying dioramas for visitors to enjoy. Located at 139 S Main Street, the cafe is open from 1 to 5 pm on Saturday, and 1 to 7 pm on Sunday.