Summer is in full swing and Homer’s galleries and public art spaces are abuzz with local artists showcasing new and ongoing work. Stroll the galleries during First Friday, meet the artists and enjoy the wide variety of mediums on display.
Art Shop Gallery
202 W. Pioneer Ave.
“Finding New Joys,” acrylic paintings by Felicity Rae Jones Bechtel
Opening Reception, 5-7 p.m.
Art Shop Gallery presents “Finding New Joys” with Homer artist Felicity Rae Jones Bechtel. Known around Alaska for her detailed pen and ink work and watercolor paintings, Bechtel is now leaping into the world of acrylic painting. With this exhibit she debuts a body of bright, bold acrylic and this next chapter in her creativity where she strives to embrace freedom, texture, color and creative growth, a deep push forward into a vibrant display of movement, color and breaking down personal walls to express her art at a new level. Visit the gallery online at artshopgallery.com.
Bunnell Street Arts Center
106 W. Bunnell Ave.
Woodworking by Sara Tabbert and ceramics by Steven Godfrey
Opening Reception, 5-7 p.m. Artist talks, 6 p.m.
Bunnell Street Arts Center presents artists Sara Tabbert and Steven Godfrey. Tabbert is a printmaker and mixed media artist from Fairbanks whose love of woodcut prints has led to other explorations in wood, including boxes, carved panels and marquetry. In addition to smaller work, Tabbert’s large-scale public art commissions can be found throughout Alaska. In the summer of 2024, she was a Windgate Fellow at Philadelphia’s Museum for Art in Wood and will be an artist-in-residence at Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh in May 2026. She currently teaches out of and manages The Folk School’s printmaking studio in Fairbanks. The pieces in this exhibit, inspired by time spent in both urban Philadelphia and her home studio outside of Fairbanks, convey cityscape imagery — the shaking of elevated trains, the buzz of insects and heat rising from a weed-infested ditch, endless traffic and the places where nature breaks through human control — as well as rural imagery — water and ice surging down a creek, dogs’ voices splitting the cold, the downtown powerplant and railyard and trees cracking and falling in a windstorm.
Godfrey was born and raised in Massachusetts. He enrolled in his first ceramics class at the Hartford Art School and continued his arts education at the Kansas City Art Institute and Alfred School of Art and Design in New York, eventually moving westward to be a resident artist at the Archie Bray Foundation in Montana. Currently residing in Anchorage, Godfrey works as a potter and a professor of ceramics and serves as Chair of the Department of Art at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Inspired by old New England tobacco barns, glacial ice, Song Dynasty pottery, Native Alaskan ivory bird carvings, children’s book illustrations, Danish furniture, cooking, and more, his interests blend together and emerge within the world of functional objects. Visit Bunnell Street Arts Center at bunnellarts.org.
Fireweed Gallery
475 E. Pioneer Ave.
“Wildlife Art,” pastels by Turea “Midge” Grice
Opening Reception, 5-7 p.m.
Fireweed Gallery hosts “Wildlife Art” by Turea “Midge” Grice. Born and raised in northern Montana, Grice moved to Homer in 1995 and is a self-taught artist working primarily in pastels. Among the subjects she portrays are wildlife, as well as portraits of pets and children. Visit the gallery online at fireweedgallery.com.
Grace Ridge Brewing
870 Smoky Bay Way
“Small Wonders of the Wild,” macro nature photography by Katie Martin
Opening Reception, 5-7 p.m.
Grace Ridge Brewing presents “Small Wonders of the Wild,” macro nature photography by Katie Martin. Originally from the Midwest, Katie has called Homer home for over a decade. A nurse by profession and a nature lover at heart, she is inspired by exploring wild beautiful places, whether trekking through the rainforests of Costa Rica, hiking to glacial lakes in Banff or fly-fishing for arctic grayling in Interior Alaska. For the past 15 years, Martin has been capturing her adventures through the lens of her camera as an amateur photographer, but only recently began sharing her work publicly. Her images reflect a deep adoration for the outdoors and an eye for the quiet, often overlooked moments of beauty in the world around us. She invites viewers to step into the unseen world of the wilderness where bees dance on lupine blooms, dewdrops reflect ancient forests and the tiniest textures tell the largest stories.
Homer Council on the Arts
355 W. Pioneer Ave.
“Fever Dream,” portrait photography by Amaia Nicole Crain
Opening Reception, 5-7 p.m.
Homer Council on the Arts presents “Fever Dream,” photography by Amaia Nicole Crain, a portrait photographer whose creative journey began at the age of 14 when her father gifted her a 35mm Minolta camera. Having a love for the unusual, Crain uses her photographic concepts to capture the viewers’ attention and arouse inquisition and emotion. Drawn to the human form, particularly women, she seeks to push the boundary of what is considered normal or decent, while still creating longing and beauty within her images. Visit HCOA at homerart.org.
Kindred Spirits Weaving Studio
Wildberry Homestead Cabin, Pioneer Ave.
Open Studio, 5-7 p.m. Artist talk, 6 p.m.
Kindred Spirits Weaving Studio is the working studio of Homer weavers Lisa Talbott and Bonita Banks. They invite community members to stop by and to see their individual works in progress, including Talbott’s table runners that were inspired by the Shorebird Festival’s signature bird, the surfbird, and Bank’s colorful shawls that may remind visitors of the delicate and delicious flavor of sherbet on a hot day. They will also introduce Kindred Spirits Handwovens, their new retail space on Pioneer Avenue. Visit the weavers online at ravenfeddesigns.company.site and sbwhandwovens.com.
Pratt Museum
3779 Bartlett St.
Ongoing exhibit, “Connected: A New Installation” by Sharlene Cline
Museum hours, 4:30-6:30 p.m. with free admission to all galleries
The Pratt Museum continues its current exhibit, “Connected: A New Installation,” by Sharlene Cline. In this immersive exploration of our shared humanity, the artist asks, “Do we carry more than genes? Do we carry memory, resilience, and hope too?” New this month is the opportunity for visitors to watch a live recording of the dance performances from June’s First Friday event, with an audio overlay of the women in the installations sharing their stories. All three galleries of the museum will be open, as well as the museum store. Visit the museum online at prattmuseum.org.
Ptarmigan Arts
471 E. Pioneer Ave.
Member work
Gallery hours 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday to Sunday. Open until 7 p.m. on First Friday
Ptarmigan Arts showcases new work, old favorites and work by their newest co-op members. Visit the gallery online at ptarmiganarts.com.
South Peninsula Hospital
4300 Bartlett St.
“Color-Texture-Shape-Lines,” paintings by Michelle Michaud
On display at South Peninsula Hospital’s gallery is “Color-Texture-Shape-Lines,” paintings by Homer artist Michelle Michaud. Michaud’s art journey started for a brief period during her early years and then took a long hiatus until after she retired and moved back to Alaska eight years ago. At that time, she started painting with acrylics, then moved on to watercolors and, most recently, to oil and cold wax, focusing primarily on abstracts. Inspired by spontaneity and the natural environment, she is an intuitive abstract painter, although some of her paintings are loose representations of landscapes or flowers. Michaud enjoys playing with colors, textures, shapes and lines. Her use of color ranges across the spectrum, although she is partial to blues, finding them soothing. Her shapes tend to be more organic and oftentimes very subtle, and at other times incorporate geometric shapes. She is fascinated by the textures in nature that add depth to a painting. Michaud also utilizes lines in her paintings, actual or implied. Find the gallery wall through the hospital’s main entrance and on display in the hallway by the lab.
The Dean Gallery
40374 Waterman Road
New work and Open Studio
Open 5-7 p.m.
The Dean Gallery is family-owned and features contemporary art by M’fanwy, Ranja and Jeff Dean. In the gallery are also intricately carved wood panels, bronze sculptures, metal and wood wall art, seed bead jewelry and specialty prints on metal, wood, and paper. On First Friday, the gallery will host an open studio where visitors can see new wood prints by M’fanwy, as well as the ongoing progress on one of Jeff’s current commissions, “Four Worlds,” an exterior 48-foot-long cutout and painted aluminum wall piece. Visit them online at deangallery.com.
“Musical Chair” is a photograph by Amaia Nicole Crain, with model Alisa Sonne, on display through August in her solo photography exhibit at Homer Council on the Arts. Photo provided by Homer Council on the Arts
“The Lupine Visitor” is a photograph by Katie Martin on display in her macro photography exhibit, “Small Wonders of the Wild,” at Grace Ridge Brewing. Photo provided by Grace Ridge Brewing
“Bear” is an acrylic painting by Felicity Rae Jones/Bechtel, on display through August in her exhibit, “Finding New Joys,” at the Art Shop Gallery. Photo provided by the Art Shop Gallery
“Flying Western King Bird Container” is a ceramic piece by Steven Godfrey, in display through August at Bunnell Street Arts Center. Photo provided by Bunnell Street Arts Center
”Coastal Influence” is an oil and cold wax painting by Michelle Michaud on display through September in her exhibit at the South Peninsula Hospital gallery. Photo provided by Homer Council on the Arts
