Camas resident David Gerton says that even though he’s into “this stuff some call ‘art,'” he doesn’t like to call himself an ‘artist.'” Maybe fisherman is more like it.
Gerton creates lifelike, life-sized models from the animal kingdom, most often of native fish. His reproductions glow against black backgrounds, as if a salmon has just been caught in a flash of sunlight penetrating the darkness of a deep pool.
“Something Fishy Is Going On,” an exhibit of Gerton’s copper foil creations, will be on display at the Second Story Gallery through January.
The artist’s reception Friday, Dec. 4, will feature music performed by Gerton’s wife, Clarisse Atcherson, a violinist with the Oregon Symphony, joined by violinists Amber Gold and Lucia Atkinson. They will be performing classical music and Christmas carols between 5 and 7:30 p.m., upstairs in the Camas Public Library.
Gerton is modest about the sideline he has created, a skill that involves hammering foil — about twice as thick as kitchen wrap — into three-dimensional sculptures that have depth and natural colorations. He uses patinas, transparent inks, washes and a small blow torch to achieve a result that looks like each fish has been reeled in, dripping, from the water.