Washougal artists to host holiday market, studio tour

Elaine Lim feels that now is the time for her to get to know the East Clark County art community and for it to get to know her. With a recent display at a downtown Camas art gallery and an upcoming appearance at a prominent Washougal art event, she’s quickly turning her hopes into reality.

“I’ve been painting for four years, and I feel like I want to get more involved with the art community, and I feel like I should start off locally, (get to) know the local artists a little bit, and get to know people who love art,” said Lim, a Washougal resident. “I feel like this is … the right time for me to start putting myself out there and be brave.”

Lim is one of seven new artists scheduled to participate in the 2024 Washougal Studio Artists Tour Holiday Art Market, set to take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 16-17, at 13 Washougal locations.

The fourth annual event will feature 25 local artists and their works, including watercolor, acrylic painting, fused glass, textiles, bronze sculpture, jewelry, mixed media, and more.

“Visitors can look forward to a relaxed yet engaging art experience, as the studios are conveniently spaced along about 15 miles of country road, making it easy to explore the entire route in a single day,” said event organizer Shirley Bishop. “From acrylic and watercolor paintings to stunning multimedia pieces, handcrafted glass work, wood creations, and fiber art, this market is filled with diverse, one-of-a-kind treasures. These unique offerings make it easy to find heartfelt gifts for the holidays, handmade and full of character.”

Bishop debuted the Holiday Market in 2021 as a way to expand on her popular Washougal Studio Artists Tour event, which has been held every Mother’s Day weekend in May since 2018.

“Customers at our Mother’s Day tour asked if we held anything like this near the holidays,” Bishop said. “Customers were impressed with what they saw. They were impressed with the quality and uniqueness of the art. They wanted access to our local artists for their holiday shopping.”

Lim will be joined by Trish Johnston (watercolor), Keith Russell (oil painting), Sandy Moore (fabric collage), Sharon Buckmaster (mixed media wearable art), Jeanine Clark (painting, drawing, modified batik), Tamara Dinius (mixed media), Toni McCarthy (beaded and metal jewelry), Phyllis Carter (fused glass), Liz Nye (mixed media), Regina Westmoreland (mixed media), Deborah Nagano (mixed media), Judi Clark (painting and mixed media), Ellen Nordgren (mixed media), Bishop (fused glass), Kathy Marty (hand-woven rugs and home decor), John Reylea (reclaimed plywood structures), Marina Pearson (acrylics), Susan Elizabeth Fronckowiak (acrylic on canvas and wood, photography), Anna Norris (acrylics and pottery), Blythe Anne (photography), Lesleyanne Ezelle (ceramics and alpaca fiber), David Van Zandt (bronze sculpture and acrylics), Charlene Hale (fused glass), and Mica Wilson (acrylic painting on canvas, alcohol ink paintings on paper).

“Seeing everyone’s different mediums and how they go about perfecting their craft and looking at everyone’s creativity just really inspires me,” Lim said. “There are so many creative artists out here, and they do stuff so differently, and it makes me think outside the box and get out of my little bubble.”

The event will also feature an interactive twist. Bishop, of Studio13 GlassArt, will host a drop-in workshop, where visitors aged 8 and older can create their own ornaments for $10.

Lim discovered watercolor in 2020 during a visit to a local arts and crafts store.

“I was in a rut, feeling like I wasn’t fulfilling the creative side of me,” she said. “I was in Michael’s shopping, a watercolor palette looked intriguing, and I was like, ‘Why not give it a try?’ And so I did, and then the rest is history.”

Lim said on her website that her paintings “are an ode to the ocean, a celebration of its power and ever-changing beauty.”

“I explore coastal themes, and it was my daughter who really propelled me in that direction,” she said. “(The onset of) motherhood was really, really stressful, so watercolor has become like therapy and an outlet for me. The whole pressure of motherhood just manifested itself in honing my skills and going deeper and deeper into learning the craft. Every time I need an escape, I find myself at the ocean in my mind. I just really love coastal themes. It’s just so relaxing.”

Lim, who grew up in Singapore, said on her website that watercolor “is the perfect medium for expressing the essence of the ocean” an allows her “to create paintings that are both ethereal and grounded, capturing the ephemeral nature of the waves as well as the enduring presence of the shore.”

“I grew up (on) a little island surrounded by the ocean. I guess it’s always been in me,” she said. “We love visiting the Oregon coast because there’s so much beauty there. I conjure a feeling in my mind, I think about what that feeling really looks like as a picture, and I go online for reference pictures and piece together something that really resonates with the feeling that I’m trying to convey.”