Art Watch 12/2-12/9

Mockingbird Gallery will debut new works from two artists who have been in the spotlight before at the December First Friday Art Walk. Troy Collins and Bart Walker will both have new works on display as part of the show "Of Purpose and Passion," which opens on Dec. 4 and will remain on display until the end of the month.

The gallery features bronze sculpture and paintings from artists in the Pacific Northwest, some of who are nationally established. Montana-native Collins' newest oil on canvas captures a golden fall landscape with layers of texture giving life to the trees in his painting.

"Collins works mainly with a palette knife resulting in a thick impasto of color," according to a press release. "He studies and paints the landscape—especially aspens—in every season."

Collins' vibrant paintings have appeared in the Pentagon, a U.S. Ambassador's United Kingdom home, and in the California State Capital, according to his website.

"My goal as an artist is to move the viewer to experience a flood of powerful emotions, to feel the energy that flows through me as I put brush to canvas," Collins says in his artist statement, "to convey my love of art and to passionately captivate and to inspire each person that views my paintings."

Walker is from Teton Valley, Idaho, and his love of the outdoors in evident in his art. Bart's painting captures a man and his horse surrounded by lush mountains entitled "Morning Commute."

"Walker's beautifully detailed paintings are reminiscent of early California landscapes, alive with deft brushwork and soft nuances of light," according to a press release.

Walker's paintings have been featured in galleries across the country. He paints outdoors and his works include moose, livestock, seasonal rivers, mountains, and natural landscapes. Before Walker began painting he was usually backcountry skiing, fly fishing, and mountain biking, and his landscapes and work reflect his time spent outdoors, according to his website.

Catch both Collins and Walker's newest works at Mockingbird Fine Art Gallery, 869 NW Wall St., Suite 100.