When people come into a reception at the East Fork Gallery in Gardnerville, they're excited to learn about art, said 87-year-old painter Marge Buttles.
"This place inspires people," she said. "They tell me, 'I can't draw a straight line,' and I tell them that they're not supposed to."
Buttles couldn't have chosen a more fitting metaphor for the life of the oldest artists co-op in Carson Valley. Founded in 1979 by a cadre of local artists, the gallery has risen not along a straight line, but along a magnificent curve.
When, in 1995, an arsonist's fire ravaged the downtown building that housed the original gallery and several works of art, eight members continued the cooperative and reopened in the Carson Valley Museum & Cultural Center. In 2000, the gallery moved to its present location in The Record-Courier building. The 1,000-square-foot suite currently bears 13 members, including Buttles and original charter member Elfriede Short, as well as 15 additional artists on consignment.
"The most appealing aspect when people walk into a place like this is that they see something on a wall and emotionally connect with it," said gallery director and painter Margaret Biggs, whose mother Lois Jones was also a founding member. "They actually get to meet the artists and connect with them."
Biggs doesn't shy away from the fact that the recession has been tough on galleries.
"Regardless of the economy, you need something on the wall that gives you pleasure," she said. "Even in downtrodden times, you need that creative spark in your life."
That creative spark is captured on the walls of East Fork Gallery in original paintings of all sizes, watercolor landscapes and oil abstractions, in the painted porcelains and pottery displayed throughout, in the stained glass, woodwork, jewelry and greeting cards.
"If you look back at the history of ancient civilizations, this is what's left: art, sculpture," Biggs said. "For all artists, there is such a desire inside to be creative, to create and build things, instead of being negative and tearing down. Regardless if the gallery is here in the near future, all the artists who are part of it will still produce."
Both Buttles and Biggs are confident, however, that the gallery will flourish in the future.
"We have the advantage of being artist-owned," Biggs said. "We don't have employees. Our advantage lies in the volunteer time and efforts that keep this place looking as good as it does."
Plus, the women said, East Fork is more than a gallery.
"It's an education," said Buttles. "A lot of people who come in can see how to decorate their homes."
"We're a source of information for art classes and other galleries," said Biggs. "We have the Tahoe Art League catalog in here, and we send people down to Lone Tree all the time."
To capture those potential patrons "who work in the day and don't have time to go gallery hopping," East Fork has joined forces with the Main Street Gardnerville revitalization effort, specifically the summer wine walks.
"People are surprised, pleased and amazed at what they find when they come in," said Buttles.
"The prices are reasonable, and we have a variety of gift items," added Biggs.
When asked what their favorite pieces in the store were, the women had trouble choosing. Buttles eventually pointed out a large oil pastoral called "Homage," painted by Nanette Oleson.
"It has a lot of depth and a European flavor," she said.
She also directed attention to an abstract oil piece called "Giverny Gardens," rendered by Biggs in intermingling blues, yellows and greens.
"It's a takeoff of Monet, and I love it," Buttles said.
In turn, Biggs pointed out one of Buttle's pieces, a dreamy yet familiar watercolor landscape called "West Side Barn."
"I don't know if I can choose a favorite," Biggs admitted. "I think a lot of them are so good."
East Fork Gallery will be celebrating its 31st anniversary with wine and refreshments from 4 to 8 p.m. July 23.
Located at 1503 Highway 395, Suite K, the gallery's regular business hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
For more information, call 782-7629.
