Throughout this tumultuous year, the Eugene arts scene has been as active as ever and many local artists have prepared for the holiday season with a plethora of art ready to be sold and shared with the community. Artists, businesses and museums have restructured their annual holiday art sales to be safe enough to remain open throughout the holiday season with everything from paintings and pottery to small affordable art prints.
The Eugene Holiday Market at the Park Blocks
The Eugene Saturday Market has hosted a yearly Holiday Market for 35 years that typically takes over the entire Lane Events Center downtown. This year it will look quite a bit different; instead of the traditional indoor market, it will be an open-air market in the same spot that the Saturday Market is traditionally held. Every Saturday through Dec. 19 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., rain or shine, the Park Blocks off Eighth Avenue and Oak Street will come alive with a bustling marketplace.
Most of the vendors who participate in the Saturday Market will come back for the holiday market with an abundance of pieces to sell. There will be beautifully complex stained glass, handmade jewelry, pottery of all shapes and sizes, handcrafted woodwork and much more according to the Holiday Market website. Admission is free and lots of free parking will be available in walking distance.
New Zone Gallery and Annex Holiday Markets
Just a few months ago the New Zone Gallery opened their Annex on 13th Avenue, and this year they will be offering art for sale for the holidays at both their old and new locations. The yearly full-scale holiday store will be at the gallery downtown on Seventh Avenue. There will be a wide range of art and gifts from a wide and flexible price range all created by local New Zone members.
The store will have photographic prints, original watercolor and acrylic paintings, clothing, books, cards, holiday ornaments, decorations, jewelry, bags, ceramics, pottery, woven baskets, woodwork and more. The Annex location will feature a traditional shop offering a smaller selection of similar items. They will be open for their traditional hours of 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday and the holiday market will be open until the first weekend of the new year.
“It’s just been such a chaotic year, so it’ll be nice to support the artists,” said Steve LaRiccia, the New Zone gallery coordinator. “It’s a win-win-win. It’s a win for the artists, a win for the community, it’s a win for those who buy.”
The Club Mud Ceramics Holiday Sale at Maude Kerns Art Center
The Maude Kerns Art Center is hosting its annual Art for All Seasons exhibit and Club Mud Ceramics Holiday Sale through Dec. 18. The exhibit will include artwork from roughly 160 of the center’s members. Many of the pieces are available for purchase in person and online. Club Mud, an on-site cooperative ceramics group, will host its annual holiday sale within one of the exhibition spaces at the center adjacent to the exhibit.
Among the pieces for sale are cups, bowls, mugs and incredible detailed ceramic sculpture pieces. The Maude Kerns Art Center is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. via appointments made online or over the phone through the two-week freeze.
“I think this is just a wonderful example of a way in which people can invest in their local artists to highlight the amazing talents that we have here in the Eugene Springfield area,” said Michael Fisher, executive director of the Maude Kerns Art Center.
