LUNARIA GALLERY : the story

Silverton Oregon has built a reputation as an art town and a certain amount of the credit goes to Lunaria Gallery. Twenty years ago, five artists got together with the idea of creating a space to display and sell their work in downtown Silverton. Teresa Burgett took the lead and was joined by Theresa Sharrar, Ann Altman, Shannon Rice, and Tonia Jenkins. Initially they occupied a small corner of the Wild Iris Café, which is now O'Brien's. That first First Friday featured the paintings of Teresa Burgett and was accompanied by appetizers and wine. It was the start of a tradition of inspiration mixed with fun, that has continued every month until today.
      Before long the gallery expanded. Early additions to the crew were Celia Stapleton, Misha Brown, Marcella Gentzkow, and Susan Heise-McGinnis. As the gallery gained traction, even more artists came on board. They moved a couple of times before settling in their current location on Water Street.
      Lunaria is a co-operative gallery where members share the work of running the business. Quality and variety are two notable attributes of which the gallery is proud. Every month shines a spotlight on one or two different member artists. In addition to members’ work, there are guest artists and consignors to fill out the space.
      February will kick off the 20^th Anniversary celebrations with an invitational show of past and current members and a special founders show in the upstairs gallery area. From March through October, smaller, themed shows will also feature past members' work.

In our charming  space you will find a stunning array of hand-made objects by our member artists. Look for cards to send with your gifts.

May we introduce one of our newest members

Gary McGuire
 

Gary lives in Woodburn, Oregon and has his studio no more the 30 steps from his home. This makes it very convenient since he is in the studio every day except Sunday. Gary is married to Merial his best friend and partner in his artistic life. They have 5 Children, 10 Grandchildren, one dog and two cats.

Gary’s artistic approach is to let the wood show its beauty in the most natural way. He approaches each piece of wood the same way, looking for the art that is housed within that piece of wood.