BAINBRIDGE ISLAND, WA.- Bainbridge Island Museum of Art opened to the public: Friday, June 14th. From the opening on June 14th through July 4th the art museum will have an “open house” with the entire museum available for viewing, and hands-on activities for the public to enjoy.

Opening Exhibitions:
1st Floor:
Selections from the Permanent Art Collection in the Jon and Lillian Lovelace Gallery. This inaugural show draws from the growing permanent collection - 100 works of art donated from private collections. The collection includes art from the West Sound and Puget Sound region. Some examples include: Alfredo Arreguin (Seattle), Jenny Andersen (Bainbridge Island), Larry Avakana (Suquamish), Gayle Bard (Bainbridge Island), Jan Hoy (Whidbey Island), Philip Levine (Seattle), Christopher Martin Hoff (Seattle, deceased) and Phillip McCracken (Guemes Island).

Barbara Helen Berger: Vision Revealed in the MESA Gallery. This survey of Berger’s work spans 40 years and features paintings, assemblage, sculpture, and original works from her children’s books. Berger is a long-time Bainbridge Island resident and artist, known for writing and illustrating beloved children's books. Berger is excited about the museum as a place to view art from a wide range of artists. "There is something about a museum that lends respect and importance to what's in it," Berger said. "It will shine light on the wonderful artists that [in the West Sound]."

In the Steve and Harriet Davis Community Gallery, Selected Art Instructors: BI Metro Park and Recreation, features works by the Bainbridge Island Metro Park and Recreation District instructors. This gallery will rotate works from the community, including collaborative cultural partners and individual artists.

2nd Floor:
In the Beacon Gallery, Margie McDonald: Sea ‘scape. McDonald, artist from Port Townsend, works predominately with recycled wire and other reclaimed materials. Through her creative touch, old pastel spools of switchboard wire become jellyfish or a 1940s rain gutter turns into an underwater serpent. The Beacon Gallery is a dramatic and highly visible space. It will showcase works from emerging through mid-career artists with compelling bodies of work.

In the Rachel Feferman Gallery, the largest single gallery, the museum showcases the collectively curated exhibition First Light: Regional Group Exhibition. Executive Director and Curator, Greg Robinson, invited six regional art curators and aficionados to help him co-curate the opening exhibit: Max Grover (Port Townsend), Norie Sato (Seattle), Jake Seniuk (Port Angeles), Janice Shaw (Bainbridge Island), Cynthia Sears (Bainbridge Island), and Barbara Earl Thomas (Seattle).

The show spans a diverse selection of regional works by over 50 artists, including: Lanny Bergner (Anacortes, wire mesh sculpture); Marita Dingus (Seattle, mixed media sculpture); Lisa Gilley (Port Townsend, painting); Anne Hirondelle (Port Townsend, ceramics); David Kroll (Seattle, painting), Jane Martin (Bainbridge Island, jewelry); Heather Dew Oaksen (Seattle – video); Julie Speidel (Vashon Island, bronze sculpture); Steve Wilson (Seabeck, documentary photography). In the future, the Rachel Feferman Gallery will highlight artist retrospectives, large group shows, and special collections on loan from around the Puget Sound region.

Guests will enjoy a selection of artist’s books and art jewelry in the Sherry Grover Gallery, a custom-designed display and conference room outfitted with cherry wood and glass cabinets. The inaugural show features artist’s books from the collection of BIMA’s founder Cynthia Sears, as well as art jewelry form the region.

Another highlight is outside on rooftop terrace the George and David Lewis Roof Garden. This sustainable roof consists of “riverscapes” of rocks, sedums and grasses, with large handmade concrete boulders made by the artists.

The Garden Gallery is a unique space created with permanent display cases for showing smaller-scale artworks. The transitional space is located between the entrance to the two classrooms and the roof garden area. Heikki Seppa: Master Metalsmith inaugurates this gallery space. Seppa was a seminal figure in the art metal movement and a life-long teacher. He was born in Finland and he immigrated to the United States via Canada and following his retirement he lived on Bainbridge Island.