Artists

Bondi Glass Wrx
Deanise Killingsworth
Email: bondiglasswrx@frontier.com

How do I create? Let me count the ways. . . . .!
It’s in my genes to be creative. I was knitting, crocheting and sewing at seven years of age. I was also on rockhound digs in various parts of the US and Canada with my grandfather about the same time. I was an insatiable student of the creative arts, always asking my grandmothers and grandfather if I could “make” one of whatever they were creating. As I progressed through school, art projects and courses weighed heavily in my class schedule. I took every art, sewing and cooking class available to me in junior high and high school. Creating with glass and stone has always been prevalent in my work, especially since my grandfather’s passing in 2000, when my sisters and I inherited the thousands of cut stones he had accumulated in his life as a “Rockhound” .We started creating finished beaded jewelry pieces with the cabochons he left us and selling them at a variety of shows. From there I “needed” to learn just how glass beads are made. Which lead to my creation of “Montana Opals” and huckleberry jewelry. Who knows what will evolve from my creativity but I’m sure that glass will always be part of the process.

I also feel very fortunate to have lived the last 25 years in this beautiful community of Troy on the Kootenai River. It has fed my creative soul on a daily basis and for that I am grateful!

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Yaak Valley Ceramics
Christine Oster
Email: christine.g.oster@gmail.com

I live with my husband and three dogs in the Yaak valley. We have been spending summers here since 1999 and retired and moved to Montana permanently in 2011.

I have been studying ceramics for 6 years. I worked with 3 different teachers in Indiana before coming to Montana and belonged to the Bloomington Clay Studio the last two years I was there. Both my husband and I are potters, working in stoneware fired to cone 6. All of my work is food, microwave and dishwasher safe. I enjoy throwing, altering, and also handbuilding. I like to create everday objects that are lovely and inspiring.

I have been a paper artist for about 12 years. I started out working in watercolor and quickly realized that I am a collage artist as I added layer after layer of rice paper and found objects to my paintings. I love the colors and texture of the papers I use. I enjoy sharing this art by making greeting cards.

My cards, pottery, and ceramic jewelry are my creative expression. I hope they bring beauty into your life and a smile to your face.

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Yugen Woodcrafts
David H. Swanson
Phone: 406-293-9686
Email: yugen.woodcrafts@yahoo.com
Website: www.yugen-woodcrafts.com

I had inherited a wood lathe from my father's uncle but never used it until I built a workshop in 2006. I began making wooden spatulas to give to family and friends. I soon realized that what I remembered from what I was taught in eighth grade shop class wasn't going to get me very far, so I signed up for classes at the Woodcraft store in Spokane. That changed my life. I bought a new lathe, then another, then another. I went to workshops taught by Russ Fairfield, Trent Bosch, and Mike Mahoney. My style is evolving from utilitarian to artistic as has the name of my business. It started as Eagle Woodcrafts, which as a presence on Facebook, and is now Yugen Woodcrafts. Yugen is a Japanese word that has been described to me as meaning an awareness of the universe that evokes an emortional response too deep and mysterious for words. I hope that you find yugen in my work.

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Randy Beacham Photography
Phone: 406-295-9320
Email: beachamphoto@yahoo.com
Website: www.randybeacham.photoshelter.com

Randy Beacham is a freelance photographer and writer specializing in environmental photography of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and British Columbia. His stunning photographs of wildlife and landscapes have been featured in several esteemed publications including American Forests, Big Sky Journal, Montana Magazine, Sierra, Wall Street Journal and many others. Published essay topics include how to photograph Yellowstone National Park in winter, the Lewis and Clark expedition through the Bitterroot Mountains, the National Bison Range buffalo roundup, environmental photography, old-growth inland temperate forests and the Cabinet Mountains in NW Montana. Although Randy works in collaboration with Framing by Nancy Wright, his photographs are available with or without frames.

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Yaak Time - Picture Framing
Nancy Wright
Phone: 406-295-4660
Email: yaaktime@hotmail.com

KC Rocks
Nature Inspired Jewelry
Kathy Cotten
Phone: 406-295-5554
Email: knettoc@frontiernet.net

I having been in the art business for over 20 years. I began by making baskets and working in watercolors. I was a co-owner in an artists co-op in Colorado that represented 200+ artists. After moving to Montana in 2005 I took up jewelry making and love to include natural elements like rocks with recycled elements to create one of a kind pieces. Working at the elementary school full time keeps me very busy physically and emotionally, but creating beautiful jewelry feeds my soul.

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Terrel Jones Fine Art, LLC
Terrel Jones
Phone: 406-295-5227
Email: terreljones@frontiernet.net
Website: www.terreljones.com

Terrel Jones is our resident artist in oils and watercolors on canvas. Drawn to painting because it is "immediate, colorful and juicy." Terrel enjoys the physicality of the art: the brush stroke interaction with the canvas, the mixture of color, the spontaneity of redirection as a painting emerges at her fingertips.

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Kootenai Valley Metal Works, LLC
Bill Merritt
Phone: 406-295-3804
Email: bill@kvmetalworks.com
Website: www.kvmetalworks.com

Our Metal Sculptor, Bill Merrit, designs and creates uniquely one of a kind which refelcts the natural beauty of this area. The piece you select will surely enhance your home. Given as a gift, you will add a measure of delight and joy to the recipient.

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Sorenson Originals
Scott Sorenson
Email: info@realartworks-troymt.com

Scott Sorenson hand carves shed antlers found on the forest floor and turns them into playful works such as this hand carved bowl and cribbage board.

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JoAnn Hadler
Email: info@realartworks-troymt.com

Using her expert quilt making skills, JoAnn Hadler creates wall hangings, custom pillows and a variety of delightful accessory bags of differing shapes, sizes and uses. Her attention to detail makes her work a true form of art. Her quilt block collection of Vegetable Cats will delight those of you with a taste for the whimsical.

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Montana Forest Art
Original Creations from Natural Elements
Milli Beal
Phone: 877-292-4835
Email: millibeal@hotmail.com

It is said that when a tree dies its spirit may be released and depicted through the hands of a carver. Milli Beal has a passion for creating original art and home decor carved/crafted from wood, antler and other natural elements gathered from the Montana forest. To her, the forest offers a myriad of natural art and nothing is more gratifying than seeking out and releasing the beauty veiled beneath decades and even centuries of decay. Each of her designs come solely from her mind’s eye and reflects how the piece speaks to her. They are as unique and mysterious as the forest itself, thus no two creations will ever be exactly the same. Custom orders accepted.

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Wood Art by Dave Johnson
Phone: 406-295-4948

Dave Johnson studied architectural design and drafting in college before founding his own construction company in 1991. Today he uses those talents to design and craft beautiful, wooden boxes of varying shapes and sizes, both functional and artistic. He uses natural materials found while hiking and traveling this majestic state of Montana to create matchstick holders, wine gift boxes, custom fly rod holders, and an assortment of small, decorative boxes to protect that special piece of jewelry. Dave’s motto: Have fun; be happy, make money!

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Laughing Sisters Jewels
Joni Akin
Phone: 406-291-9941
Email: joniakin@yahoo.com

Joni Akin started making jewelry in 2007. Her Inspiration comes from the beautiful mountain setting that she and her husband Jerry call home. Her studio overlooks the Kootenai River, with a spectacular view of the Cabinet Mountain Wilderness as a backdrop. Color inspiration comes easy from the palette that nature has bestowed on Joni’s life. Using natural stones and semi-precious gems she appoints their placements into adornments for everyday living.

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Kathy Jones
Email: info@realartworks-troymt.com

With a passion for sewing that began at an early age, Kathy Jones grew up making much of her own clothing and home decor, and was always hemming jeans for everyone in town. It wasn't until she took an Art Quilting Class in Lake Tahoe, that she was introduced to the world of non-traditional sewing. In her Art Quilts you will find original hand dyed or silk screened fabrics, creating exciting scenes and interpretations of nature which inspire her daily in beautiful Northwest Montana. Kathy believes that living in Montana is all inspiring in itself, and being around creative people is infectious.

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RiverView Photography
Paul Stark and Wanda Stark
Phone: 406-291-2012 - 406-291-0026
Email: MtGreyFox@live.com

A native of Montana, Paul Stark captures the essence of its natural beauty using his expert skills in photography. Paul enjoys the outdoors and photographing landscapes, flowers, animals, and ancient Indian. Although his current portfolio consists mainly of Montana representations, Paul plans to eventually expand to other states as well as Canada and Mexico. Unframed, you can choose your favorite to be mounted to suit your décor.

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Legg's Rustic Woodworks
Bill and Carol Legg
Phone: 406-295-5418
Email: leggent@webtv.net

Bill Legg’s interest in wood began as a young boy in Wisconsin where he worked with his Dad in his sawmill. Later he started and owned Legg Enterprises as a contractor, excavator and landscaper for 26 years until his retirement in 2001. In 2002 Bill and his wife Carol bought riverfront property in the Yaak where they built a log home. Bill brought his sawmill with him and after finishing the house he started some woodworking projects - the first being a birch bark mirror for a benefit auction, then another for the Wings auction. From these first items his ideas and talents continued to grow and blossom into cedar end tables, sofa tables, birch bark lamps etc. Bill gladly accepts custom orders for table and lamps to suit the size that you need for your home or office.

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Thompson Creek Creations
Tori Lucier
Phone: 406-382-0156
Email: tlucier@sd3.k12.mt.us

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Donald Jones Photography
Donald M. Jones
Phone: 406-295-6034
Email: don@donaldmjones.com
Website: www.donaldmjones.com

Donald M. Jones is a Montana based Wildlife Photographer specializing in all forms of nature. Don's images are created from his overwhelming passion for being outdoors with his camera in tow. What began as a young boy with binoculars swaying from his neck and a bird book wedged into his back pocket in suburban Chicago has now transformed into a living dream.
All of Don's Wildlife subjects are jus that, Wild. Don refuses to photography any subjects that are Pets or are confined to Zoos or Game Farms. His work is authentic and his message is "Keep the Wild in Wildlife".
As a full-time Professional Wildlife Photographer since 1993. Don has established himself as a driven individual in a saturated market by continually offering his clients new and refreshing images and subject matter year after year. His more than 600 magazine covers, which he has been credited with over his career, are testiment to this. Some of Don's clients include Audubon, Sierra, National Wildlife Federation, Field & Stream, Time, Outdoor Life, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, Columbia Sportsware, Sports Afield, Canadiann Wildlife Federation, Frontier Airlines, and LL Bean.
Don currently resides in the small town of Troy, Montana with his wife and soulmate Tess.

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