Hours:
Tuesday – Friday, 11:00 – 6:00; Saturday, 11:00 – 5:00
Closed Sunday and Monday
Additional Hours on First Fridays 5:00 – 7:00 pm
907-563-2787 • 3555 Arctic Boulevard • Anchorage 99503
Shannon Cartwright
Finding Alaska
November 6, 5:00 – 7:00
First Friday Reception
Drawn north by stories she heard from her grandmother who was a public health nurse here in the ’40s and ’50s, Shannon Cartwright has lived most of her life since 1972 deeply immersed in a Alaska Bush lifestyle, driving horse-pack trips, guiding in the Alaska Range and Brooks Range, and traveling between her cabins by train, skiis, snowmobiles, and horses.
Shannon’s picture books, many of which are authored by Shelley Gill, present colorful story lines but also are filled with facts about Alaska’s wildlife, land, and people. Bears, fish, moose, sled dogs, cats, and even dinosaurs populate her books, and they are often written with a touch of humor and always with a determination to get the information correct.
With more than 30 books published and 1.5 million copies in print, Shannon is perhaps one of the most prolific children’s book authors and illustrators in the state.
This will be Shannon’s first public reception in Anchorage since 2010! Paintings, prints, books and notecards, as well as buttons and stickers will be available.
This exhibit came together when a collector brought us his original paintings by Shannon. It was exciting to see this many original images from my daughter’s favorite books as a child. Shannon participated in numerous events hosted by the Anchorage Museum when I worked there, so it felt encouraging that she was eager to participate in this gallery event. Along with the originals Shannon is bringing books and giclee prints and Greatland Graphics has provided special packs of notecards representing Shannon’s images. Her personal story is told in Finding Alaska, The Life and Art of Shannon Cartwright. It recently came out as a revised edition and it tells the full story of Shannon’s life and the books she has published. This is the time to get an autographed copy!
At South Restaurant
Don Kolstad
Revealing the Answer
Artist Statement
I have been a full-time artist since 1982, and I feel blessed to be doing what I love with the support of friends and family.
The evolution of my art over the years has led me in directions I would never have imagined: styles, subject matter, mediums, joys, hardships and most of all the continued progress of learning something new and refining my craft.
I feel that art should speak for itself and allow the viewer to bring their own story and connection to the painting. I love to paint, plain and simple, and I work hard to try and do it well! I have a simple goal with my art…to be the best I can.
Finally, the question I ask myself about my art is, “What would I find interesting to make me want to look at my own work?
Maybe you’ll find your own answer to that question as well. I hope you enjoy the show.
At Crush Bistro
Denis Ryan
Life Appearing From
the Alaska Landscape
Life Appearing from the Alaska Landscape shows how life and place are inseparable. Created in Alaska’s vast and shifting wilderness, this body of work explores the relationship between land, wildlife, and sky, where every season reshapes the environment and every living thing responds to it.
Through photographs of bears moving across rivers, coastlines, and mountain valleys, Denis seeks to show animals not as subjects apart from nature but as part of a larger living system. Their daily rhythms mirror the cycles of the land itself, abundance and scarcity, movement and stillness, resilience and rest. Above them, the northern lights stretch across the dark sky, reminding us that even the atmosphere participates in the story of this place. Together, earth and sky form a quiet dialogue that defines life in Alaska.
Originally from rural County Tipperary, Ireland, Denis’s relationship with wilderness began early and grew through years of travel and exploration across the world. Yet it was Alaska that felt like home. Drawn by its raw landscapes, powerful wildlife, and sense of scale, he moved here out of a deep love for the place and now lives and works surrounded by the environments that inspire his photography.
With these images, Denis hopes to inspire people to connect more deeply with nature and wildlife. When we connect with the natural world, we move closer to living in harmony with Mother Earth. Through each photograph, he strives to bring viewers into the wild, to witness an animal in its own environment, to feel the quiet story in its behavior, and to awaken the bond that inspires protection, respect, and care.
