The Oregon Coast Council for the Arts presents “Turning,” an exhibit by Seal Rock artist Helen Nighthawk, from January 4 to February 1 in the Upstairs Gallery at the Newport Visual Arts Center. Nighthawk will be presenting acrylic and ink paintings on paper and plywood, and wood sculptures. A First Saturday opening reception will be held on January 4, 2-5pm, with Nighthawk talking about her work at 4pm.
A visual artist and poet, Helen Nighthawk has been painting in the fine arts tradition for over 50 years. Having moved to South Lincoln County 13 years ago, she has been involved with the Nye Beach Banner Project for many years and has been a featured artist at libraries around the county.
Nighthawk’s past creative professional roles included working as a scenic artist for numerous films, television shows, and public and private productions throughout Seattle. Her credits include collaborating with directors David Lynch and Robert Altman. “You can see this scenic work in my painting approach,” Nighthawk says. “Though our average canvas size there was 60’ by 40’.”
Nighthawk also created a spate of large figurative carvings, done on ancient planks and found beams in old Seattle circa the 1990s. Two of Nighthawk’s sculptures can be found at the Monarch Arts Center in Tenino, WA, while others are in private collections around the Pacific Northwest.
The Upstairs Gallery is open from Tuesday-Saturday, noon to 4pm.