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Michael Griffin: “Fence No. 2,” Glass Print, 22 x 29 inches
One of the goals of Arts & Humanities Bainbridge in presenting the Currents platform is to reach out and look past our island shores now and then. So, I wanted to point out a wonderful new gallery in the old village of Poulsbo down by the waterfront.
The Griffin Gallery opened along Front Street in April 2021. This new gallery is an artist-owned and operated gallery with eight artists at this stage. The driving force is Michael Griffin, who could be described as a photographer. So far, the range of artworks are generally flat: original watercolor, oil, acrylic paintings, printmaking and photography, as well as very good archival prints of some of them. In addition, some of the images are offered as cards and on other items. The space is open and uncluttered, enjoys nice light from the bay side, all making the browsing experience quite nice.
Michael Griffin is indeed a photographer whose father was a photographer for the Chicago Tribune, and his son seemed to take to it. About 10 years ago, a friend introduced Griffin to the world of “Photoshop” and the many ways one can manipulate images. As he grew more comfortable with the program(s), he grew more creative. He has never looked back. He would be considered a digital artist these days, with his roots in photography.
Griffin’s overall scenes are interesting. They can range from a landscape, to a portrait, to close-up details of a fallen leaf. But the colors he brings in are rich, fun, and remind me of the colors of Impressionist painters Monet or Seurat. Perhaps he is painting with a digital brush where the options are endless. Removed from traditional photography and how it was presented, Griffin applies the new, enriched images to canvas, glass and metal, all of which present different qualities, a different feeling.
Other artists in this cooperative gallery are Carolyn Autenrieth (acrylic painting and ceramic art), Joel DeTray (printmaker and jeweler), Patty McPhee (stone sculpture), Babette Mayor (pencil, monoprints, mixed media), Marie Wise (classical realist painting), Peggy Woods (watercolors), Shirley S. Sakatani (acrylic paintings). All are from the Puget Sound region. The Gallery seems to meet its mission “to provide a space where surprise meets the sublime, using color, tone, vibrance and texture to bring the two together.”
Poulsbo (old town by the bay) has a regular Art Walk on the 2nd Saturday of the month. The next one is December 11th from 5 to 8 p.m. There are several other art and craft oriented galleries in Poulsbo that have been around a good while. Add in all the other shops and restaurants along Front Street, and your visit to the Griffin Gallery for 2nd Saturday Art Walk, or anytime, will be an enjoyable experience!
CLICK HERE TO READ OTHER FIRST FRIDAY FOCUS & EBB and FLOW ARTICLES BY BILL
ABOUT BILL BARAN-MICKLE: 2020 Island Treasure Awardee. Recently, Bill has enjoyed exhibiting in several international art biennial exhibitions. Of the three in which he has participated, he won Third Place for Sculpture from the European Confederation of Art Critics in the Chianciamo Biennale, at the Chianciano Art Museum in Italy in 2011, and First Place in Applied Arts in the London Biennale of 2013. In 2013 alone, he will have participated in eight exhibitions: from London to a two-person exhibition near home. In addition, Bill was asked to be a representative for CCAC’s exhibition celebrating 100 years of the Metals Department, and a mix of group shows in New York City, Miami, Seattle and Las Vegas. Bill is the designer of the 10 foot Equitorial Bowstring Sundial located at the Richie Observatory in Battle Point Park on Bainbridge Island, WA and completed in 2015.