The River Gallery celebrates silver anniversary

July is The River Gallery’s 25th anniversary. The artists and members will feature a memorabilia wall with photos and news stories from the past 25 years. Each artist will show a painting created for the occasion using silver or 25 as its theme. The Silver Celebration exhibit will continue through Aug. 6 with a closing celebration during the Downtown Gallery Crawl.

The gallery was started in the summer of 1990 by a group of local and regional painters, potters, photographers, woodworkers and jewelry makers wishing to promote art, art education and art appreciation. They formed the nonprofit co-op named “The Ouachita River Art Guild.” Their first gallery was in Glenwood Mall in West Monroe, and they later moved to Antique Alley in downtown West Monroe, growing into a larger store front at 308 Trenton Street.

The River Gallery is the oldest art co-op in Louisiana. Each artist takes a turn at working in the gallery, and the running of the business is spread out among all the members. Membership in the gallery is through a juried process.

Workshops in various media are open to the public throughout the year. Fees for the workshops are at-cost to pay the instructor and expenses associated with the workshop.

The gallery is open and free of charge 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Call 322-2380 or visit www.ouachitariverartgallery.com for more information.