Peak pRoduction
Welcome to Tahoe and Truckee’s neighborhood art scenes
If
you still think “Tahoe art” is limited to the landscape paintings and baskets that came and went from the Nevada Museum of Art in 2015, and the ubiquitous photos of Sand Harbor at sunset, you might be surprised by the range of styles and venues in Truckee and Tahoe this summer. There’s no museum of highelevation artwork to speak of. The scene is spread out among a few happening hubs with studios, shops and satellite spots—plus a handful of outlier outposts. South Shore, North Shore and Truckee are the homes to tight-knit, well-connected, welcoming art communities and a summer-long roster of events.
South Shore: a varied ecosystem Main draG
tahoe art League’s art Center Gallery 3062 Lake Tahoe Blvd. South Lake Tahoe, California (530) 544-2313 www.talart.org
Benko Gallery, on the other hand, is where to take your Bay Area parents. It’s inconspicuous among the neighboring shops around Heavenly Mountain Resort. To find it, look for the Applebee’s—but don’t expect a chain-store vibe. The gallery is spacious and polished, and
its artists specialize in mashing high-energy styles—street art, steampunk and the trippier end of coffeehouse art—into traditional Tahoe themes like tree rings and landscapes. Benko Gallery
3979 Lake Tahoe Blvd., Unit 2 South Lake Tahoe, California (530) 600-3264 www.benkoartgallery.com
Off the Beaten path Lake Tahoe Community College, nestled in a clearing among fragrant pines, is a nexus of art production in the South Shore region. A few years ago, the state of California issued a rule saying that students may not repeat a community college class that they’ve passed with a C or better. That decreased the LTCC art department’s population of “lifelong learners,” which makes it harder for the department to serve as a cohesive art-making community. But art classes are still taught, and the college’s Haldan Gallery, located in the library building, is still a good professional gathering spot, featuring well-known artists from all over the West—including Reno’s Walter McNamara and Frances Melhop. The current show is a group show of LTCC faculty work. The Foyer Gallery, in the adjacent Fine Arts Building, is a small but good-looking exhibition space where Shelly Zentner, LTCC art instructor and founder of Tahoe Activist Artists, is showing her Fundamental Freedoms, a collection of paintings that highlight civil rights activists. Both galleries close for the summer on June 21 and reopen for an exhibition by Nevada potter Joe Winter on Sept. 25, with a reception from 5-7 p.m. Oct. 11. haldan Gallery
Lake Tahoe Community College One College Drive South Lake Tahoe, California (530) 541-4660, ext. 711 www.ltcc.edu/campuslife/haldan-gallery
PHOTO/KRIS VAGNER
It takes about an hour and 15 minutes to drive to South Lake Tahoe from Reno—barring summer traffic holdups—via a scenic sprint up Hwy. 50, through Cave Rock Tunnel and past Nevada’s lakeside casino towers. At first glance, South Lake looks like it might be one giant lakeside resort in a sea of upscale strip malls for the 5-6 million visitors that the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority estimates come through each year. But the city is home to a large population of local artists—and an ecosystem that’s unusually complete for a town of 21,000. Just before town, Tahoe Art League’s Art Center Gallery is easy to spot in a modest building that looks like it might prefer to be a ski-rental shop. Inside, it’s stocked floor to ceiling with paintings and photographs by the league’s members—abstracts, flowers, portraits, and a large variety of landscapes. The best times to visit are the weekends of July 27-29 and August 3-5, when 50 or so of the league’s artists open their doors to the public for the 11th Annual Artist Studio Tour. Maps are available at the gallery, and tour stops in South Lake Tahoe, Meyers and nearby towns are well-marked. If you can’t make it during one of those weekends, the gallery is open year-round, and it’s always a good stop for your Midwestern parents.
by Kris Vagner k risv@n e wsre vie w.c o m
a sculpture by Colleen sidey is among the faculty work in the Haldan gallery at Lake Tahoe Community College.
Fans of Reno Art Works and the Potentialist Workshop will likely feel right at home among the 30 or so artists of the High Vibe Society, a collective that aims to create a stable, yearround trade in emerging artists’ works in a town that’s largely at the mercy of seasonal sales. In summer 2017, the group leased a space for studio rentals, gallery sales, poetry events, classes and workshops. In March, after contending with financial pressures and city regulations, the group lost the space. It’s now searching for a new permanent location. Meanwhile, a GoFundMe campaign is underway, and High Vibe keeps up its profile by hosting house concerts and pop-up shows. Founder Erik Ulcickas also oversees a satellite hallway gallery with affordable 2-D works at South Lake Brewing Company. To keep up on High Vibe events, follow the group on Instagram and Facebook, and visit the website to sign up for its newsletter. high Vibe Society satellite gallery South Lake Brewing Company 1920 Lake Tahoe Blvd., South Lake Tahoe, California www.highvibesociety.org
“peak production”
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