Whatcom Museum features artists from across the U.S.

Meg Aubrey: The Pick Up, 2017; Oil on panel, 20 x 30 in.

The Whatcom Museum is showcasing 57 artists from across the U.S. as part of its third biennial Bellingham National 2019 Juried Art Exhibition and Awards.

The exhibition opened on February 2 and will run through May 19 at the museum’s Lightcatcher building at 250 Flora Street in Bellingham.

The theme for this year’s exhibition is “Water’s Edge: Landscapes for Today.” Artists were chosen by guest juror Bruce Guenther, adjunct curator for special exhibitions at the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education.

A specialist in post-war American and European art, Guenther was the chief curator and curator of modern and contemporary art at the Portland Art Museum until his retirement in 2014. Previously he was the chief curator at the Orange County Museum of Art in Newport Beach, California and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago.

“Guenther selected artwork submitted by artists from across the United States that represents an investigation of contemporary art practices, and addresses our understandings of the earth, climate change and the evolving relationships of humanity to nature,” reads the Whatcom Museum website. “Works range from traditional interpretations of the observed landscape to the metaphoric and spiritual manifestations of the landscape through image, color, language and mapping of our felt responses to nature and the world.”

The featured artwork spans a broad range of media, including watercolor, oil painting, photography, collage and fiber art. It also spans various styles of working, from hyperrealism to abstraction.

Tours are available on Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 1:30 p.m. and are included with admission.