“Materials Enchanted”
Opening Reception Saturday, May 10th from 2-4 pm.
ANN DURLEY
Becoming an artist was never part of Durley’s plan. She used to think it was impossible. Staying inside the lines was challenging; even drawing stick figures felt like a stretch. However, after many years as an antique dealer, retirement brought an unexpected opportunity. Surrounded by leftover odds and ends — too interesting to toss, but with no real value — she had a spark of inspiration. By adding clock faces, these forgotten treasures were transformed into something new: functional art.
And just like that, she became an artist. Today, Ann’s workshop is overflowing with wonderful bits and pieces, and her creativity has expanded into quirky functional furniture — tables, chairs, and, of course, clocks. With more than 1,800 clocks made (and counting!), her passion continues to grow. She’s especially excited to share her skills through hands-on clock-making classes, where everyone can create a functional art piece.
Stay tuned for an upcoming fall workshop. In the meantime, Ann hopes you enjoy her work as much as she enjoys creating it.
ULI KIRCHNER
Kirchner was born and raised in South Tyrol, a German-speaking region of northern Italy. For almost a decade, he traveled Europe as a one- man band, playing guitar, drums, and harmonica. Eventually, his creative energy turned to woodworking — a passion he has pursued for over 25 years.
Entirely self-taught, Uli’s process blends imagination with technical skill. His tools include chainsaws, bandsaws, scroll saws, and sanders, with which he shapes wood. Sustainability is important, so he repurposes discarded materials and uses every part of the tree — building with lumber, and inlaying with twigs and sawdust. Most wood is from the western U.S., especially Oregon and California.
Many pieces are spalted (marked by natural fungal patterns), and he treats them like pigments. He also embraces imperfections like knots, holes, and cracks — adding in materials found on hikes: twigs, rice, stones, eggshells.
With “offcuts” and burls that spark ideas, he is guided by the wood itself, and each piece evolves during the process. His whimsical “castles” and “villages” are cut with a scroll saw — towers magically emerge with each precise cut.
INGRID ZAHL-THOMAS
Zahl-Thomas is a mixed media artist whose layered compositions blend acrylic paint, handmade paper, graphite, gold leaf, and watercolor pencil on mason board. Formerly a landscape painter, she now works in her Oregon coast range studio with renewed vision. Each artwork piece is uniquely framed in reclaimed wood, extending her creative process beyond the canvas.
Her family valued creativity, craftsmanship, and nature, so Ingrid knew early on that she would be an artist. Her formal training led to a BFA in painting and gallery exhibitions in Portland and Bend, where her landscapes captured fleeting light and natural moods. She also developed her skills in custom framing and worked as an art sales representative, curating work from Washington County artists.
She paused her art practice for many years to help found and teach at a Waldorf school, where she integrated the arts into education. In her studio, she still draws inspiration from nature as she explores its essential forms, rhythms, and movements. Folklore, mythology, and indigenous symbolism infuse her work with deeper meaning. Through these visual narratives, Ingrid seeks to create art that bridges myth and nature, past and present, and invites viewers into a world of layered depth and resonance.