This show in our Anne Hall Gallery will feature beautiful watercolor works by the late Marcel LaRocque and will open on Saturday, March 7th at 2 pm. LaRocque was born December 30, 1922 in Rhode Island and passed away May 3, 1988 in Oregon. He and his partner, John E. “Jack” Coyne, owned and operated Panache Antiques at 3536 SE Hwy 101 in Lincoln City for about 10 years prior to his death. The shop was located where Theatre West currently resides and Marc & Jack gave the theatre troop its first permanent home. LaRocque was trained as a designer and worked for the May Company in Ohio & California prior to moving to the Oregon coast. He did elaborate window displays for the department store chain and also was a gifted set designer. He taught watercolor classes in Lincoln City and worked with another local artist by the name of Joan Farrouque.
LaRocque was a member of the Watercolor Society of Oregon. One of the paintings that will be included in the exhibition, “Rites of Spring”, won special recognition in the Society’s 1987 Fall Show. Though best known as a watercolorist, LaRocque was an innovative and experimental artist who worked extensively with mixed media and collage. We will have snacks and refreshments for the opening, and art curator Matt Blakeman will be there to answer questions.
Join us for
a presentation by Joyce Sherman on Highway 101 and the famous McCullough
Bridges on Saturday, February 8th from 2-3 pm. Learn how the
Oregon Coast Highway was built and how fortunate we are to have McCullough’s
bridges at almost every bay and river crossing. You’ll see a photo of the first
bridge across Rocky Creek as well as McCullough’s Ben Jones Bridge across the
creek, and you’ll find out how Lincoln County was created. Learn how Ben Jones,
Oswald West, Conde McCullough, and Sam Reed were important figures in the building
of Hwy 101.
Joyce Sherman first photographed the Yaquina Bay Bridge when she was 12, using her father’s Speed Graphic 4×5 “press” camera. They both entered photos in the State Fair later that summer; Joyce’s photo of the bridge won second place. In 1962, she and her parents pooled their money to buy a cabin and a couple of acres of Logan Creek in Roads End. After 52 years of splitting her time between Roads End and Portland she and her husband Marty became full-time Roads Enders in 2014. Joyce is an avid fisherman and owns River Graphics, which provides design and marketing for sport fishing companies.
The Red Devils group formed in Taft and Devils Lake in 1933 to promote events like “The Redhead Roundup” and the “Devils Lake Regatta.” The group promoted events and entertained visitors with different shenanigans, including kidnapping redheads and throwing them in the ocean or lake, holding mock weddings, and other general tomfoolery. The local businessmen had a large part in the success of tourism here in North Lincoln County, and were key in the “20 Miracle Miles Campaign.” This Exhibit will showcase Red Devils photos, quotes from those who have experienced them, and artifacts, including a four-foot-tall parade float devil head, several Red Devil costumes, and more! This temporary exhibit will open on Saturday, February 8th and run for all of 2020.
