transported by art
Five unique West Sound art galleries
Words by Inez Maubane Jones
photo: Amber Medley-McGing
Legacy, exploration, transformation, uplift, stewardship. These are the words that leaped to mind when we visited a sampling of local art galleries (there are more than 20 in Kitsap County) and learned their stories. This region’s open spaces and outdoor splendor have inspired a vibrant arts scene with local, national and international influences—from the Pacific Northwest to Africa. So, when it’s cold outside, warm up at these and other West Sound galleries and be transported to cultures near and far.
Jeffrey Moose Gallery / Bainbridge Island
Jeffrey Moose was born to Arkan sas southerners who were commissioned to Cameroon and Mexico City as diplomats. With an activist mom and a dad who later served on the National Security Council for the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, Moose had a culturally rich upbringing.
“I grew up around African masks, listening to African drumming, surrounded by artists, writers, potters, painters—a real Bohemian vibe,” he said.
After studying lithography and working in San Francisco and Seattle, he co-founded an arts co-op on Bainbridge Island in 1989 called Net Contents Gallery. He later opened his own gallery in downtown Seattle and, after 23 years, moved the business back to Bainbridge, on Winslow Way. He plans to celebrate the gallery’s 30-year anniversary in 2025.
“I show work connected to the environment and showcase artists who celebrate nature,” he said. “I bring in contemporary indigenous art that people aren’t aware of. I try to go in directions that other people don’t go.”
Find Moose jamming with the band Ranger & the Re-Arrangers and showcasing innovative aboriginal artwork and his own work this winter.
Carrie Goller Gallery / Poulsbo
For Carrie Goller, “exploration is oxygen.” Born and raised on Bainbridge Island, Goller attended Northwest College of Art and emerged as a multimedia artist, working in oil, encaustic, watercolor, egg tempera and acrylic.
Before opening her own gallery 10 years ago, she had a banking career and was a business paralegal and bookkeeper, which informs her approach to running a gallery. “As an artist with experience in many galleries, it was important to me that our gallery artists be paid right away,” she said.
Goller’s gallery, located on Front Street, welcomes you up rainbow stairs.
“People are looking for an experience when they enter a gallery,” she said. “We make them feel welcome and open to asking questions.” This openness has led Goller to form a close relationship with internationally acclaimed painter Max Hayslette. The 94-year-old’s work appears in over 400 private, corporate and public collections. At one point, thousands of galleries in 32 countries carried his prints and art. “He only shows in my gallery now,” Goller said. “He comes to Art Walk and signs each poster in person.”
Visit Goller’s gallery this winter and be delighted by her “Floriferous” series.
Bainbridge Arts & Crafts / Bainbridge Island
Celebrating 75 years this year, Bainbridge Arts & Crafts (BAC) stands alone as the oldest community arts organization on Bainbridge Island and one of the oldest and largest arts organizations in the Pacific Northwest.
“We are unique in that we act as a springboard to help artists launch full time into arts careers,” said Executive Director Debra Ruzinsky, noting the impact of the nonprofit organization’s cherished history.
BAC is a vibrant, modern, welcoming space. From “trashion” fashion to student art, this gallery is anything but static. “We impact others ... through teaching techniques, methods, traditions and innovations by artists,” Ruzinsky said.
The gallery’s YouTube channel and Art Talk video interview series features Pacific Northwest artists sharing insights into their work, process, challenges and hard-earned wisdom. “We started from zero and now have 82 videos and close to 300 subscribers,” said Ruzinsky.
Join BAC this winter for a show of works by Marceil DeLacy and Danis Morgan.
Lisa Stirrett Creative Warrior Studio / Silverdale
Lisa Stirrett had a monumental goal: become a globally recognized art brand that empowers women. She’s accomplishing this through her nonprofit, Creative Warriors. Through the organization, she’s funded the Pay It Forward Loan Program, which empowers women in Burkina Faso and Liberia to create local sustainable businesses. “We help women start in-country, sustainable businesses, and we have sewing schools, as well as other programs,” she said.
Stirrett’s art journey began over 24 years ago with Gyotaku, a traditional Japanese method of imprinting fish. She then moved on to encaustic art (a form of painting with hot beeswax), metal design, and eventually, float glass art. “The world of float glass is exciting,” she said. “I continually push the envelope and come up with new and innovative ideas.”
Stirrett has owned and operated a working glass studio since 2006. She moved to a 77-year-old historical building in Silverdale six years later. Sea creature lighting grace the ceiling, while vibrant glass bowls, metal sculptures and paintings perch on shelves. “I have a motto with my customers: if we can think it, we can make it,” she said.
Join her this winter for various classes, including a mosaic coaster pop-up.
Little Wing Gallery / Port Townsend
When artist Eric Fanson and his wife Wren Winfield found studio space in a 1890 Victorian gem in Port Townsend three years ago, it felt like “walking through the clouds,” said Fanson, quoting lyrics from the Jimi Hendrix song “Little Wing.”
“I could feel the emotion, energy, passion of the song,” he said, noting he’s especially moved by a Stevie Ray Vaughan rendition.
This stayed with him, later inspiring his gallery’s name (also a nod to his wife’s name). “The energy is absolutely amazing,” said Winfield, an artist and designer. “You walk in and you’re immediately uplifted.” Winfield designed the studio and gallery to honor the building’s Victorian-era history, while creating a comfortable hang space for art and visitors.
Fanson received his MFA in painting from the University of Oklahoma and describes his nonrepresentational art as “physical mystical.” The gallery is currently showcasing his work, which is simultaneously earthy and ethereal. “They take me to a place of feeling that’s beyond words,” Winfield said of his paintings. “I feel the mystery, the spirit of the divine of life.”
For a full listing of local galleries, check out Visit Kitsap.
photos: Amber Medley-McGing (weaving loom), courtesy of Jeffrey Moose Gallery (Tree Bouquet), courtesy of Carrie Goller Gallery (Hood Canal Glow)
Art walks around the West Sound
BAINBRIDGE ISLANDFirst Friday of every month
5 to 9 p.m.
BREMERTON
First Friday of every month
5 to 8 p.m.
GIG HARBOR
First Saturday of every month
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
POULSBO
Second Saturday of every month
until 8 p.m.
PORT TOWNSEND
First Saturday of every month
5:30 to 8 p.m.