Come shop our 11th Annual Holiday Boutique, featuring over 20 local artists and crafters.
We have something for everyone - paintings, jewelry, crochet, stuffed toys, painted rocks and much, much more!
 |
| Walter Crew |
 |
| Robert O'Relli Bradley |
 |
| Julie Van Wyk |
 |
| Jim Isham |
 |
| Jeff DeSalles |
 |
| Jane Russell |
 |
| Elaine Coyne |
 |
| The Places I've Been |
"I continue to explore the power of color, to create an emotional and visual experience by limiting my palate, pushing the color, a removal technique and using additives that create a different sensation for the eye and mind." — Tom Quinlavin
 |
| Transition |
 |
| V |
 |
| Featured art: Aloe by Renaye Johnson |
In each of our shows this year, we have been delighted to shine a light on local arts groups - Lamorinda Arts Alliance, California Watercolor Association, Concord Art Association, Contra Costa Plein Air and now Martinez Arts Association.
All of these groups not only provide support for artists in the area, but they also benefit the entire community by hosting special events and building stronger awareness for the arts.
Come by soon to check out the latest work from MAA members!
 |
| Shenandoah by Dorrie Langley |
 |
| Memories by Peggy O'Farrell |
 |
| Painted rocks by Jeff DeSalles |
So many great reasons to visit the aRt Cottage - we have a great show featuring artwork from the members of Contra Costa Plein Air Group, plus we have lots of new handmade items in the gift shop! You're sure to find something special for yourself, your sweetie's birthday, a hostess gift or just because.
 |
| Crocheted hats by Julie Van Wyk |
 |
| Crocheted bikinis by Julie Van Wyk |
 |
| Felted Frog by Kelly Williams |
 |
| Felted Owl by Kelly Williams |
 |
| Black Diamond Mine by MJ Lazarski |
For July and August, our gallery celebrates the joy of the outdoors with art from members of the Contra Costa Plein Air Group, curated by the group's founder, Nancy Roberts.
"To experience the beauty and joy of our existence here on earth is the path to achieve great happiness. My intention as an artist is to share some of this beauty from my perspective. My paintings attempt to explore the nuance of nature, inspired by working outside, en plein air. When not painting on location, I enjoy returning to my studio to work on commissions and in-depth studies. Primarily self-taught, I have followed a non-traditional path to my professional art career from a thorough study of the masters and contemporaries alike. Developing my composition, color harmony, tone, light, perspective, and brushwork skills help me portray paintings that are simultaneously engaging and inviting." — MJ Lazarski
 |
| Sakura by Nancy Roberts |
Don't miss this summer show - you'll enjoy looking at many beautiful locales and familiar scenes, as interpreted by 20+ local artists:
 |
| Martinez Marsh by Roswitha Kress |
 |
| Jim Isham |
Our show for May and June features beautiful work from members of the Concord Art Association:
CAA members will be guest docents here in the gallery each day during the show - be sure to come by and say hello! We're open Wednesday through Saturday, 11am-5pm.
Everyone is welcome to join us for the Artist Reception on Saturday, May 21st, 2-4pm.
 |
| Renaye Johnson |
 |
| Rocks by Lorraine Wells |
Cyanaen Rocks
How could water move
Euripides Ignatius and Plato
Do not have no way around it
Dancing rocks bright red corals
The wind blows high this very day
day passed night on its way
Bright blue sky
Dancing rocks
Jason sea Odyssey
Sea is so calm here
rocks more as soft boulders
How could they move
a little in two centuries
Could the water move
we through it
could we move along the Water
rock stone boulder
dance in the sea
We will kiss the lizard king and she
And be well in home
Yes home.
Thomas Stanton
© 2022
••••••••••
The Benicia First Tuesday Poets’ Group and members of Benicia Literary Arts have written ekphrastic poems about paintings from our show, Watercolor - A Happy Medium.
Ekphrastic poems are vivid verbal descriptions of a work of art. Fifteen different poets each came to the aRt Cottage to pick one pieces from each of the 15 artists in the show.
 |
| Settled - Barbara Tapp |
Settled
two buildings
one in decay
the other a beautiful house
located in close proximity
each with a history
one more recent than the other
both inhabited
the building in decay
lives bats, spiders and other creatures
the beautiful house
people dwell
both places create a home
comfort from weather,
place to raise young,
have food,
realms of safety,
and most important thrive
both buildings life has settled
settled in
settled
Thomas Garry
© 2022
 |
| Day Trippers by Ruth Miller |
 |
| Oldie But Goodie - Leslie Wilson |
 |
Campfire Stories - Fiona Hughes |
 |
| Sea Spectator - Cynthia Slyker |
Sea Spectator
Do you see it all
from your perch above the churning waters
humans carelessly degrading the environment
the floating fields of jetsam
ensnaring the legs of your brethren
the coatings of oil fouling your feathers?
Does it make you angry
that people so foolishly flout
the interconnectedness of our species
the precariousness of nature’s balance
the fragility of our joint health?
Do you wonder
when you must fly farther through overfished waters
when your ancestral foods now taste of toxins
when your thin eggshells crack so quickly…….
what kind of world your offspring will inherit…….
As I do?
Katrina Monroe
© 2022
 |
Cloud Shadows - Ruth Beeve |
 |
| White Roses - Iretta Hunter |
Café courtyard. Cold afternoon.
Shivering. Tepid tea.
I did not know she watched me.
The pen in my hand dropped…
as I picked it up,
her gaze pierced mine.
Translucent porcelain white petals,
blooming amidst barren stumps
and thorns sleeping until
the wine of springtime.
Who knew a confetti of detours
and loss tossed by pandemic
into the universe of upheaval
would bring us together.
Me, waiting for grey clouds
to rain a poem; a white rose
holding onto an untimely gift
of life not unlike mine,
a transient chance to begin again.
Georgette Howington
© 2022
 |
| The Emerald Pool - Linda Sutton |
 |
| Cows in the Shade - Samantha McNally |
 |
| Through the Persimmon Leaves - Stephen Berry |
 |
| Brittany Patterns - Juanita Hagberg |
Signs
Water finds its own path, snaking through soil and reeds
 |
Dreaming of a Jaguar - Bonnie Fry |
Our show for March and April features stunning watercolor work from these fifteen talented artists:
 |
| Juanita Hagberg |
 |
| Leslie Wilson |
 |
| Ruth Miller |
