Left and north of Ketchum resides the town's industrial park where in between the storage units and wine distributors a few artists have taken up residency in artist studios. Valley artists Heather Hansen and Matt Larson have made their home off Northwood Avenue to accommodate their mediums. Hansen creates frescos and Larson is a film and video artist.
The couple will open their studio to the to introduce their latest work in a multidisciplinary show titled "A Crooked Line," which will also include Hansen's brother Spencer's photomurals.
"I fell in I love with frescos in Italy," Hansen said. "I had no idea where to begin. Matt worked as a drywaller, and I wanted to do a fresco in the bathroom. I tried plaster and then it kind of magically found me."
Hansen grew up in Oakley where her father owned a road building business. After living in Japan, she moved back to the area seven years ago.
"You can't really go back," she said. "However, it sparked an interest in landscape."
Hansen's frescos are heavy, heated limestone and are very tough to move due to their weight. She likes to think of them as slabs of stone.
"I don't really paint as much as I play," Hansen said. "It's just stone and water and I add wax at the end. It's a literal landscape. I went back to the landscape and embraced it and came full circle."
Larson's latest organic music video, "844," is part of series of videos called "Noise Out of Context." It is a presentation capturing sounds of rural Idaho.
"I have made music with train sounds," he said. "It's a video song."
Larson visited Shoshone to capture the footage and sound of a steam locomotive that was traveling through the town.
"I was not sure of how trains run through Idaho, and I looked up Union Pacific and saw there was a special train going through Shoshone," Larson said. "I arrived late, but the train was three hours late. It was a steam-powered, old locomotive. There were all these people out, pulled-up in lawn chairs like a parade."
Larson dropped by Shoshone's infamous "Snack Bar" where he captured another unusual rural Idaho sound.
"I dropped a tip in the tip jar there and everyone says 'thank you' when it hits," Larson said.
Hansen's brother Spencer will also be showing work at the open house. His photographs of rural Idaho places round out the theme of the studio's open house. Spencer works as a commercial photographer, but spends a great deal of time capturing sights in rural Idaho he has made into panorama photographs.
All three artists are accomplished in their field, but find that the pressure of trying to live in Ketchum as artists has become increasingly difficult.
"I feel like this valley spends a lot of time patting itself on the back," Larson said. "Supporting local artists is rare. People recognize Sun Valley as an arts community, but generating interest for artist like us is tough. There's a lot of concentrated talent here, and it is under utilized."
A crooked line
Open Studio on Friday, Aug. 24, from 6 to 9 p.m.
Saturday, Aug. 25, through Thursday, Aug. 30, open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. To make an appointment, call (208) 309-0439.
Open Studio for Gallery Walk on Friday, Aug. 31, from 6 to 9 p.m.
Studio 115c is located in Ketchum's light industrial district, on the corner of Northwood Way and Lewis Street.
A portion of the proceeds will go to the fire fighting effort.
?Infinity? is a fresco by Heather Hansen.
