This February marks the fourth year of the Gallery at the Park participating in the Empty Bowls movement!
Empty Bowls was organized by artists and craftspeople to raise money for food-related charitable organizations around the world and to promote awareness of hunger in local communities. The Gallery at the Park will donate the money it raises from this project to the Tri-Cities Food Bank.
The Gallery will be displaying and selling about 100 bowls that are handmade by community members and local artists. The bowls are made from clay, glass and turned wood.
Throughout December, the Gallery also provided free clay kits and video tutorials for community members, who then brought bowls back to the Gallery to be fired and glazed. These bowls are now on display as part of the February show, so stop by to find yours or to see bowls created by others!
The suggested donation for each bowl is $20, which goes to the Tri-Cities Food Bank. Those who donate will also receive gift cards and discount coupons from the Gallery’s restaurant partners on a first-come, first-served basis. The restaurants that have partnered with the Gallery for this event are Anthony’s Restaurants, the Emerald of Siam Thai Restaurant, Frost Me Sweet Bakery and Bistro, and Dovetail Joint Restaurant.
Along with Empty Bowls, the Gallery’s February exhibit will also feature two-dimensional artist Randy Berglund and his “Digital Reflections.”
Berglund is a digital artist and graphic designer originally from Chicago, IL, though he has lived in the Tri-Cities for most of his life. He graduated from Whatcom Community College with an associate degree in graphic design and from Western Washington University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in graphic design/new media. He has had his artwork displayed at the WSU Tri-Cities Chancellor’s exhibits in Fall 2012 and Spring 2013.
For Berglund, art is about exploring his imagination and transforming a blank canvas into an undiscovered world. He enjoys creating evocative pieces that allow viewers to examine how it makes them feel and what their relationship is to the art.
Berglund refers to his artwork as “digitally manipulated photography.” For each piece, he takes photos he has personally shot, and he digitally blends them on a computer. The result is art that is alluring, bold and surreal.
