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North
Idaho Lifestyles -
Gallery Review
The Art Spirit
Gallery
I walked into The Art Spirit Gallery
early on one of those rare beautiful February mornings when the sun
had just reached the high windows and was dancing on the
surface of everything. The art was
alive—a million shades of the
rainbow—and about as many shapes,
textures, and stories.
The high ceiling
drew my eye upward, and I was stunned by
the use of this amazing space. And this
was just the front room. There is also a
mezzanine for more intimate shows… a
back patio for clay workshops… and a
cavernous basement that holds an
additional 400 pieces of inventory. Art even enhanced the bathrooms.
Owner, art enthusiast, and resident artist, Steve Gibbs, a casual and
friendly man who has truly created this
gallery
from the ground up, greeted me warmly.
A gallery wasn’t on Steve’s radar when he
arrived with his wife, Leah Byrd, a
Coeur d’Alene native, in 1994. After 15
years in graphic design, he wanted to
put his art degree from Montana State
University to work in the fine arts. Friend and mentor John Thamm
suggested that Steve start a small
gallery to connect with the area’s
artists. On the ground floor of an old
home on East Sherman, The Art Spirit was
born. Steve soon started monthly shows,
featuring a new artist every second
Friday from April through December, and
in the six years that followed, the
gallery developed quite a following.
The time had come to move to a larger, better space. When the perfect
location opened up on Sherman Avenue,
they launched a complete renovation,
with a huge community effort supporting
and helping the work. The Art Spirit had
found its new home in the heart of
downtown Coeur d’Alene. The classic
architecture that Steve revealed and
recreated inspired other downtown
business owners to restore their
historical buildings.
Today, Steve sends out upwards of 4000 postcards every month to announce
artist receptions, which have grown into
2nd Friday ArtWalks, spotlighting all
downtown galleries. Along with his
gallery assistants, Janet Torline and
Leslie Petersen, they pack up the
previous show, strip every wall, patch
and paint, and hang the new show to be
unveiled the following week to an
excited and receptive crowd, replete
with hors d’oeuvres and refreshments.
The gallery has grown into a gathering place and Steve has
evolved into a community arts leader. He
has been active on the local Chamber of
Commerce board and instrumental in
forming the non-profit, Coeur d’Alene
Arts and Culture Alliance. Most of
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 the
artists featured at The Art Spirit are local, and if
Steve hosts someone from out of the area, they
usually have a connection to the region. The talent
is deep, he says, and he has little need to look
beyond the Inland Northwest.
Steve himself is a close friend with many of the artists,
which became
apparent as he led me around the gallery. He would stop in front of a piece and touch it
gently, as if drawing upon the spirit of the art. He
spoke in adoration of each one, with intimate detail about both the
process used to create it, and the personality and
history of the artist.
Every piece of art in his gallery proves his point, from Steve Adams’
mesmerizing glassworks and Mary Farrell’s intricate printmaking, to Harold Balazs’ vibrant
enamels and Michael Horswill’s imaginative wall
sculptures.
Beth Cavener Stichter’s self-portraits are disturbing and deeply personal
sculptures of animals with human anatomy. They share gallery space with figurative pastels and
bronze sculptures by internationally recognized
artist George Carlson, whose works have graced the
Smithsonian and Denver Art Museum.
One thing that all of the featured artists have in common is their deep
dedication to their craft. Steve chooses artists
who create for themselves and their own vision,
rather than for audience approval. His fundamental
appreciation of an inner vision wins trust from artists a well as the
public, and being regionally based, the artists and
community know each other, like each other, and support each other.
Through this union, Steve’s dream of building Coeur
d’Alene as an art destination is now becoming
realized. The Art Spirit Gallery of Fine Art
415 Sherman Avenue, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho 83814
Phone/fax: 208-765-6006
e-mail:
steve@theartspiritgallery.com
http://www.theartspiritgallery.com |
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