ArtView Art Makes Great Gifts
By Jim Christiansen
December, our last 31 days of 2023, includes holiday shopping days and end-of-the-year closeouts. If you went to the end-of-November Shop Local Saturday, with Handmade Arts and resurrected Mod Shop, thank you for supporting local artists. You can still resist the big box stores and find locally created gift ideas in Modesto. Art Walk can accommodate your last-minute seasonal shopping as Third Thursday falls on December 21. Check out downtown creative-related businesses. Watch for neighborhood pop-up art and crafter sales. I may hold one on December 16.
Galleries already decked out for the holiday and Christmas season include Dragonfly Art for Life and The Chartreuse Muse before Thanksgiving. Friends of mine also sell art with Assisted Senior Living facilities and all sorts of non-profit organizations. There may be artists and crafters in your neighborhood doing home sales. Purchasing local keeps the investment swirling in our local community, including the arts.
Mistlin Gallery presents the Give the Gift of Art members show with a theme of affordable pricing and smaller works. I have a trio of Space Cats in the show, but you can find other affordably priced items in the Mistlin Gift Shop. They have smaller art paintings, 3D art, ceramics, jewelry, and prints. Chartreuse Muse features Suzanne Staud’s art, and they have a great gift shop spot with ceramics, art, jewelry, and the Artfully Yours subscriptions. Muse, Mistlin, and Dragonfly offer classes for kids and adults.
In November, several murals appeared, some from the Heartland Grant artists and new ones further out than traditional downtown. Public Storage at 1401 Woodland Avenue has a full series of Modesto-themed mural walls by Jerry Ragg and Mural Décor. At 1331 K Street, you can see the Modesto Baseball history-themed wall. I don’t have an artist credit for that one. Moving toward the west side, 401 H Street has a new mural by Hocus on Johnny’s Market, and it’s the first of many planned, one of the Heartland grant projects. The mural on H Street is spectacular.
Make Studio Modesto had their ribbon-cutting ceremony on November 9. This art and creative business has an open studio, private parties, workshops, and classes. It has been around for a while, although I didn’t know it. They are open Wednesday to Friday from 11 AM to 6 PM and Saturday from 11 AM to 3 PM. Make Studio Modesto is located at 318 Needham Avenue and online at makestudiomodesto.com. I also missed an art exhibition by Jaime Sandoval on November 9 at Retro Bar and Lounge, 1012 15th Street. I checked out Jaime’s art on Facebook, but these shows and events pop up a lot in our area, so keep your eyes open for the creatives in the 209.
Kruse Lucas Imports gallery features the abstract and multimedia art of William Taylor. His paintings will be on display in December, January, and February. It is located at 525 Tully Road, across the road from MJC and nearby the Silos murals.
Stanislaus Arts Council is sponsoring 2 Photography Competitions, with deadlines on December 15. For more information, visit the Arts Council, which operates the Mistlin Gallery, or go to http://stanislausarts.org/
