The April collection of artists in the Fine Art Gallery features bronze sculptures by Deanne McKeown, finely-crafted knives by her husband Byron McKeown and the stunning Jewelry creations of their daughter, Lesley Aine McKeown, plus oil paintings by longtime artist and instructor Gretchen Lopez and fiber sculpture on manzanita wood by Mary Flaisig, showing now through April 30.

About the gallery’s featured artists:

Deanne McKeown

Known for her creative bronze sculptures and beautiful jewelry, Deanne McKeown has led a storied career in the arts. She often looks at the world in a 3D fashion featuring ravens, shamans and fanciful critters combined with antique objects such as type writers, roller skates and old books.

“None of us perceive the world in exactly the same way. Our oneness lies in a yearning to touch and to understand. My work is an endeavor to share my thoughts and vision through form and color and relationships, hoping to charge my images with meaning, which will reach across the spaces between us. However, in the long run, it’s all about making art  —  great if there’s communication, but, if not, I’d still do it anyway. In looking back over a lifetime of working and exploring ideas, I realize that I have never created art, art has been, and is now, creating me.”

Byron McKeown

As equally creative as his wife, Byron McKeown delights with his handmade knives and walking sticks — some of the finest craftsmanship available. Handcrafted Damask steel blades accompany handles made from antler, lapis and stone to name a few items. The walking sticks are as beautifully crafted while being a functional accessory.

Leslie Aine McKeown

“When people ask how I became an artist, I often laugh and say, ‘it’s genetic.’ I was raised in art. My parents met and married while they were students at the Art Institute in Kansas City. I was born shortly after they graduated and began their careers as professional artists. My father made jewelry in the ‘1960s and ’70s and worked for Hallmark, while my mother painted, sculpted and illustrated medical textbooks until 1979, when we moved to Sedona. In 1982, the jewelry bug bit me. As an apprentice, I learned traditional Native American silversmithing techniques. In 1984, I launched my career as a jeweler and I’ve never looked up since. It’s always been the challenges of metal-smithing that I crave.”

Gretchen Lopez

Lopez’s works are inspired not only by her love of painting, but from her ethnic heritage and the world around her. As a 10th-generation native of California, Lopez is a descendant of the first Spanish settlers and the California Rancheros, with roots stemming from the Chumash and Apache. Her work is inspired by this rich ethnic heritage. Vibrant color and spontaneity are expressed in the gentle beauty of the Native and Hispanic people she paints and, by combining the traditional with the contemporary, she is able to paint with freedom. Lopez typically works from life with a model to guide her brushwork across the canvas. Of late, Lopez has taken her easel outdoors to paint en plein air the beauty of the landscape or the architecture of an old mission.

Mary Flaisig

From her beginnings as a tapestry weaver and a basket weaver, Flaisig creates her 3D fiber sculptures by weaving on a structure of rattan that she builds on branches which are often manzanita wood. For the weft in her weaving, Flaisig uses yarns in wool, mohair, sild, rayon and other unique fibers often collected on her travels.

Sedona Arts Center is one of Northern Arizona’s most well-established cultural organizations and serves as the creative heart of Sedona. Founded in 1958, the nonprofit organization is based at the Art Barn in Uptown and offers year-round classes, exhibitions, festivals and cultural events that enhance the creative life of the Verde Valley. The center’s Fine Art Gallery, open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., promotes the original works of over 100 local artists and regularly offers special assistance for collectors and art buyers, offers private studio visits and fosters hundreds of arts education opportunities each year. For more information, call the gallery at 282-3865, the administrative offices at 282-3809 or visit online at SedonaArtsCenter.org.