The Focus of Our Efforts
The Art Associates of Missoula is a non-profit organization actively supporting and engaging with the Missoula art community. We are specifically connected with the Missoula Art Museum in conjunction with the Fifth Grade Art Experience and are also dedicated to sponsoring an annual University of Montana art student scholarship.
We provide members a monthly opportunity to gather and engage via gallery visits, working artist and artisan lectures, and various creative workshops.
Our community of artists and art appreciators is diverse and welcoming.
Meetings are held on the third Wednesday of the month from September through May.
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Meetings and Activities
Each year our Fall Kickoff Luncheon takes place in September. This is a time for our members to reconnect, for artists/artisans to showcase the work they've been creating, and for members to commence our annual fundraising efforts. Traditionally, this event takes place at The Keep Restaurant and is one of our most popular.
In keeping with tradition, we hold our annual holiday event each December at the Missoula Country Club, featuring our popular cookie exchange and bazaar.
Our workshops, raffles, Spring Tour, and generous donations are the primary fundraisers for our support of the Fifth Grade Art Experience and our annual University of Montana Art Education Scholarship.
Guests are always welcome! We encourage you to check us out and attend an event before becoming a member. Meetings are held on the third Wednesday of the month from September through May.
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Join Us!
If you would like to join us as a member of the Art Associates of Missoula, please download the application below or join us with no commitment at an upcoming event before becoming a member (see events page for all details and note that some may have an event fee).
Annual membership dues are $45.00 and a check along with an application can be mailed to:
Payable to: Art Associates of Missoula
PO BOX 1678
Missoula, MT 59806
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2024 Upcoming Events and Workshops
Origami Crane Workshop
Wed. April, 24
1:00 pm
Missoula Art Museum
workshop cost is $20 payable at the event
Click here to learn more about the history of the Traditional Origami Crane
2024 Spring Tour!
Save the Date!
Wednesday, May 22, 2024
We are planning downtown Missoula walking tours and more for this year’s Spring event - details to come.
As a reminder, our Spring Tour is one of our primary fundraising events for the Fifth Grade Art Experience and our UM Art Scholarship.
We hope you plan to join us!
April Tour at MMAC
Thank you to the Montana Museum of Art and Culture for sharing the museum with our group. We love the new space!
April at MMAC
April at MMAC
March 2024 Program with Larry Pirnie
A big THANK YOU to Larry Pirnie for sharing his story with the Art Associates of Missoula. Our group filled the room. We loved hearing how Larry made his way through the art world and how his encounter with Norman Rockwell influenced and formed his decisions. We are thrilled to call you a member of the Art Associates and are grateful for your presence.
March 2024 Program with Larry Pirnie
March 2024 Program with Larry Pirnie
March 2024 Program with Larry Pirnie
March 2024 Program with Larry Pirnie
March 2024 Program with Larry Pirnie
February 2024 Program with Courtney Murphy
Artist, Courtney Murphy displayed her clay-making skills and introduced us to her work and techniques!
February 2024 Program with Courtney Murphy
February 2024 Program with Courtney Murphy
February 2024 Program with Courtney Murphy
February 2024 Program with Courtney Murphy
February 2024 Program with Courtney Murphy
February 2024 Program with Courtney Murphy
January 2024 Program with Dana Boussard
Nationally renowned artist, Dana Boussard, joined us for a program in January. Our members braved cold weather and turnout was excellent! Thank you to Dana and everyone who attended. Visit Dana’s website to learn more about her work: www.danaboussard.com
January 2024 Program with Dana Boussard
January 2024 Program with Dana Boussard
2023 Holiday Luncheon
2023 Holiday Luncheon
2023 Holiday Luncheon
2023 Holiday Luncheon
2023 Holiday Luncheon
2023 Holiday Luncheon
Thank you to our members for baking cookies, our artisans who displayed their work, and the Missoula Country Club for providing a beautiful venue.
We are especially grateful to Dudley Anderson and Kathi Quick for donating their pottery for our fund-raising raffle.
November Event at
Missoula Art Museum
A great program at the Missoula Art Museum! We shared great conversation and friendship and enjoyed MAM Senior Curator Brandon Reintjes facilitation of fascinating conversation around the Molly Murphy Adams exhibit, “The Space Between”
October Event at
Radius Clayworks Gallery
We thank Lisa Simon of the Radius for sharing the beautiful Clayworks Gallery and her vast knowledge of clay making and ceramics in Montana. Also a big thank you to Brian And Karen Sippy for their time and dedication to public artwork in Missoula - we loved our time in the Allez! outdoor gallery and all you did to make your vision of art in the alley come to life. We also had the opportunity at this meeting to applaud Susie Risho, our AAM president, for giving us a personal tour of her show “Ponder” at the Dana Gallery.
October Clay Workshop
Thank you to AAM members Kathi Quick and Claudia Stewart for leading a pot making workshop! We can’t wait to see the finished projects.
September 2023 Kick-Off Luncheon
Once again, over 40 members joined our fundraising event at The Keep Restaurant. Executive Director of the Missoula Art Museum, Laura Millin, joined us for the day. Our festivities began with Laura receiving a $3,000 donation from the Art Associates for the Fifth Grade Art Experience and concluded with her leading our annual raffle.
With the generosity of our members, our fundraising raffle was a great success and we thank everyone who made a donation. As a result of your generosity, our raffle ticket sales exceed expectations and were a fantastic contribution to our annual fundraising efforts.
2022 - 2023
Pictorial-Blog
Art Associates Spring Tour
We hopped on the bus and hit the road, Wednesday, May 24th for a full day of fun!
Our first stop was a guided tour of the Garden of One Thousand Buddhas in Arlee (ewam.org).
- Next, we visited the Ninepipes area for a Docent-led tour of the Ninepipes Museum of Early Montana (ninepipesmuseum.org), guided nature walks with a biologist, and lunch at the Ninepipes Lodge Restaurant at Allentown.
After lunch was a visit to the Sandpiper and handMADE Montana Galleries in Polson. It was a memorable day!
Our group enjoyed meeting the Ninepipes Museum founder Bud Cheff and his wife. Their collection of artifacts and memorabilia is impressive with many in our group committing to a return trip to explore more of the massive collection.
In Polson we met two local felt artists and spent time on our own exploring additional shops, enjoying coffee, and more!
The Art Associates and Courtney Blazon
We spent the morning of April 19 with Courtney Blazon. Courtney shared how she's preparing for her upcoming show at the Radius Gallery in September and also gave us a preview of a downtown Missoula mural project she's working on.
Thank you, Courtney! We appreciate your enthusiasm and love of art. We are excited to see your new work in person.
Art Associates at the Montana Museum of Art and Culture
On Wednesday, March 22, 2023, the Art Associates met at the Montana Museum of Art and Culture (MMAC) at the University of Montana. We learned more about MMAC's upcoming move into their new 3-level 17,000 sq ft building currently under construction.
Meg Milanick, a MMAC docent, explained how volunteers are currently cataloging and preparing the 11,000+ pieces of artwork correctly before they are moved to the new space - a monumental task.
The museum is scheduling its first exhibit to open in the Fall of 2023 with a show featuring select pieces from MMAC's collection. Excitement is growing around the progressive format planned for the inaugural show.
Our group also examined in detail a drawing by Nez Perce Native American artist Phillip John. The piece was drawn around 1905 while Phillip was in prison for the alleged killing of a prospector in 1988.
Hanging Driftwood Mobile Workshop - March 2023
A hanging driftwood sculpture workshop was led by Art Associates member Kim Birck at the Missoula Art Museum. Our members enjoyed creating their own beautiful hanging piece of art and had a great time.
Art Associates in Action with Rich Adams
On February 15, artist Rich Adams showcased his graphite and watercolor portraits of wildlife and more. Rich spent many years away from Montana and now happily lives in Missoula where he spends his time focused on art, photography, and all of the things that inspired him as a child. To see more of his work, visit richadamsfineart.com
Thank you Rich for sharing your love of art, animals, and nature with us.
The Artist's Shop in Missoula and River's Mist Gallery in Stevensville carry Rich's artwork.
Art Associates in Action - the Art of Mary Engstrom
On January 18, 2023, artist Mary Engstrom shared the ancient Korenon technique of bonding 24k gold to sterling silver, called Keum Boo. The turnout was great and everyone enjoyed Mary's demonstration
To see more of Mary's work, visit her website - Adornments
2022 Holiday Luncheon
This year, we had many delicious cookies baked by our members. We would like to thank you all for your efforts. Additionally, a beautiful piece of art by Dudley Anderson was graciously donated as an auction item.
We would also like to thank all the artisans who displayed, shared, and offered their work at this event.
Cheers to everyone as we raised over $500 at this year's holiday luncheon.
Thank you Dudley
Mirror and Frame Workshop
Exploring Art of the Fifth Grade Art Experience
April Werle (seated left) and Talia Roberts (right) spoke with the Art Associates about their inspiration of the art on display for the "Imaging the Sacred" exhibit at MAM. This exhibit is part of the 2022 FGAE program and their art is seen by Missoula County fifth graders when they visit MAM.
Radius Gallery
2022 Holiday Show
Lisa Simon of the Radius Gallery welcomes the Art Associates
September 2022 Kick-Off Luncheon
Sept. 2022 Kick-Off Luncheon!
It was a beautiful autumn day to gather and celebrate the Art Associates of Missoula at our annual kickoff luncheon.
Over 40 members joined our 2022 fundraising event at The Keep Restaurant. We enthusiastically welcomed new faces and connected with longtime friends as we shared lively conversation and a delicious meal.
With the generosity of our members, our fundraising raffle was a great success.
We thank everyone who made a donation. As a result of your generosity, our raffle ticket sales exceed expectations and were a fantastic contribution to our annual fundraising efforts.
Executive Director of the Missoula Art Museum, Laura Millin, joined us for the day. Our festivities began with Laura receiving a $3,000 donation from the Art Associates for the Fifth Grade Art Experience and concluded with her leading our annual raffle.
Sept 2022 Kick-Off Luncheon!
The Arts in and Around Missoula
Click the title to visit these websites
The Missoula Art Museum serves the public by engaging audiences and artists in the exploration of contemporary art relevant to the community, state and region. Founded in 1975 and accredited by the American Association of Museums since 1987, MAM is emerging as the leading contemporary art museum in the Intermountain West.
The Montana Museum of Art & Culture, or the MMAC, is a University of Montana art museum in Missoula, Montana with a collection of over 11,000 objects, many of which are of the contemporary American West.
Arts Missoula is your local arts and culture agency. We are connecting art and culture through education, advocacy, and community.
Radius Gallery is a contemporary art gallery in downtown Missoula dedicated to showcasing the work of contemporary artists as well as fostering an energetic forum for discussing art and its vitality in the world today.
As artists, we love creating and we love meeting folks who want to visit our studios. Studio Tours happen twice a year in the Bitterroot Valley with artists from Lolo to Darby participating.
The Zootown Arts Community Center is Missoula’s non-profit arts center and supports local and regional artists, performing artists, musicians, and creative spirits by being as transparent and open in our practices as possible, and by being a safe, open, inclusive space in which all community members and visitors can comfortably create, collaborate, and thrive.
Contact Us!
artassociates.missoula@yahoo.com
Board and Committee Chairs:
- CoPresidents - Susie Risho/Pam Gill
- Vice President and Program Chair - Kim Birck
- Secretary - Thomi Ellsworth
- Treasurer - Claudia Stewart
- Public Relations - Kathi Quick
- Hospitality - Charney Gonnerman
- Membership - Anne Bruskotter
PO BOX 1678
Missoula, MT 59806
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artassociates.missoula@yahoo.com
