(Photo by Caitlin Deane for the Illinois Valley News)
The Southern Oregon Guild presented the second exhibition of 2025 at their “Art in the Vineyard” Gallery May 4 at Bridgeview Winery. This colorful show featured the artwork of Guild member and local Illinois Valley artist, Alan Laurie, with 21 original paintings from his series titled, “A Touch of Glass,” which were completed in 2023.
The opening reception also featured the musical ambiance by harpist George Leverett and a variety of award-winning Bridgeview wine and refreshments were available for purchase inside Bridgeview Winery’s Tasting Room.
Each oil painting features a variety of crystal clear glass with vibrant fruit or flowers displayed inside. The fruit looks so real that it feels like you could grab it off the canvas and take a juicy bite.
In a follow up email with Laurie, he wrote that his favorite painting of the collection was the Strawberry Parfait. “It’s quite a bit more simple than a great deal of the paintings in the show, but there was something about it that I have always loved even though I love all of those paintings. And the thing is I didn’t want to paint it at first. It somehow seemed too difficult or not appealing or something. But I dove into it and ended up allowing it to be my favorite.”
When asked what his inspiration was for the “A Touch of Glass” collection, Laurie explained that he went on a slight hiatus from painting after his “Barnyard Beasts and Beauties” gallery show and focused his talents on creating 3-D wall art in the form of Ojo de Dios Mandelas.
“In September 2021, having successfully completed radiation treatments for cancer, I was ready to get back into painting. I came up with the idea of painting still-lifes, featuring clear glass objects. I was inspired by the work of a well-known painter by the name of Janet Fish who is known for her paintings of clear glass objects. I fell in love with that process immediately and over the remainder of that year, and all of the year 2022 until January 2023, I pretty much painted every day with my ‘new phone excitement’ of a new subject matter.”
This must see exhibit will be on display from May 4 – June 15, 2025. Bridgeview Winery is currently open 12-7 p.m. Friday-Sunday, with hours subject to change during the summer months. Bridgeview is located at 4210 Holland Loop Road Cave Junction, OR 97523. For more information, visit SouthernOregonGuild.org or call 541-592-5019.