BACC: Opening of “Art in the Time of Covid”

Social distancing is easier in Northwest Montana. After all, the Flathead Valley is surrounded by towering mountains and filled with lakes, rivers and open spaces. While challenging at times, this past year has been a time of renewal and creation for two artists who also happen to be good friends. “Art in the Time of Covid: Oil Paintings by Marnell Brown & Sunnie LeBlanc” will feature works created during this difficult, but inspiring year. The exhibition in the Bigfork Art & Cultural Center will open on July 2 and run through August 7. The center is open Wednesdays through Saturday from 11 am until 5 pm. Admission is free.

For Marnell Brown, life off the grid provides the background for her impressionistic oil paintings that reveal the beauty of life in Montana’s backcountry. Painting directly from nature on artist-prepared board, her studies of horses, mules and life on a rugged ranch tell of a simple and profound existence.

Sunnie LeBlanc divides her time between Fort Worth, Texas and her home in Montana’s Flathead Valley. Sunnie calls herself “A hard-edged oil painter” who loves painting in the outdoors in Glacier National Park and throughout Northwest Montana. She loves the challenge of portraying the area’s rugged mountains, clear lakes and wild creatures.