On display March 6 - April 25
Join us for the opening reception this
Friday March 6 and April 3, from 4-8pm
Bobbie Halperin was born in 1942 in Portchester, New York and grew up with four sisters. She earned a BFA from Washington University in St. Louis in 1965, then went on to graduate school in painting at the University of Iowa where she met Mark Halperin who was in their poetry writing program. After she married Mark, they moved to Ellensburg in 1966 because he got a teaching job in the English department at Central Washington University. Bobbie painted for almost 60 years, and her style continuously evolved. Her earliest work was vivid interiors and portraits. While living in Oaxaca with Mark in the 1970s, she moved toward bright lush landscapes that had some of the Van Gogh movement in them. She later worked on Matisse-like cut-outs, using primal shapes. In 1986, one of these drawings was selected to be the image on the Hal Holmes Center. She has had six one-person shows and has had work in juried exhibits throughout the United States.
She was later attracted to images of nature--fruits and vegetables, flowers and animals, and landscapes—that were lyrical bursts of color and shape. After a trip to Italy with Mark, she fell in love with Giotto’s paintings in the Arena Chapel in Padua; the paintings of hers that came out of this trip were like a marriage between Matisse and Giotto—Matisse’s forms met Giotto’s stylized narratives.
Most recently, she worked with computer-printed images which lean toward abstraction with more muted and subtle color combinations and forms, yet some of these can be starkly bold and vibrant as well. Bobbie said, “I was never satisfied just doing one thing.” About these images, she wrote: “I painted for many years along with etching, silkscreening and wood cutting. About 12 years ago, I realized nothing new was happening with my paintings. I had to make a change. I started cutting up paintings and making a new image. I glued pieces on foam board and pressed them with thick wood to flatten the foam board. It was tedious work. I did this for about two years. I realized if I kept this up, I might end up with one painting! I had read about Photoshop and thought it might be a medium to explore. I bought it and started painting oil sketches. After scanning parts, I moved them into Photoshop. I thought I could learn Photoshop on my own but discovered I needed help. I took a class in it. I’m still discovering ways to use Photoshop. I take painted sketches that I have scanned and cut various parts. I take one part and make it transparent. I take another transparent part and layer it on top. The result is similar to using a medium (varnish, linseed oil, etc.) on top of a painted layer and adding another color, giving it depth.”
After 57 years of living and painting in Ellensburg, Bobbie moved to Arkansas to be closer to her son, Noah, and his family. Rather than move all her work there, she has decided to support the galleries that first showed her work in Ellensburg and the community that gave her work an audience. She is donating all proceeds of this show to The Palace Gallery. She died of Alzheimer’s August 28, 2025.
Written by Joseph Powell
She was later attracted to images of nature--fruits and vegetables, flowers and animals, and landscapes—that were lyrical bursts of color and shape. After a trip to Italy with Mark, she fell in love with Giotto’s paintings in the Arena Chapel in Padua; the paintings of hers that came out of this trip were like a marriage between Matisse and Giotto—Matisse’s forms met Giotto’s stylized narratives.
Most recently, she worked with computer-printed images which lean toward abstraction with more muted and subtle color combinations and forms, yet some of these can be starkly bold and vibrant as well. Bobbie said, “I was never satisfied just doing one thing.” About these images, she wrote: “I painted for many years along with etching, silkscreening and wood cutting. About 12 years ago, I realized nothing new was happening with my paintings. I had to make a change. I started cutting up paintings and making a new image. I glued pieces on foam board and pressed them with thick wood to flatten the foam board. It was tedious work. I did this for about two years. I realized if I kept this up, I might end up with one painting! I had read about Photoshop and thought it might be a medium to explore. I bought it and started painting oil sketches. After scanning parts, I moved them into Photoshop. I thought I could learn Photoshop on my own but discovered I needed help. I took a class in it. I’m still discovering ways to use Photoshop. I take painted sketches that I have scanned and cut various parts. I take one part and make it transparent. I take another transparent part and layer it on top. The result is similar to using a medium (varnish, linseed oil, etc.) on top of a painted layer and adding another color, giving it depth.”
After 57 years of living and painting in Ellensburg, Bobbie moved to Arkansas to be closer to her son, Noah, and his family. Rather than move all her work there, she has decided to support the galleries that first showed her work in Ellensburg and the community that gave her work an audience. She is donating all proceeds of this show to The Palace Gallery. She died of Alzheimer’s August 28, 2025.
Written by Joseph Powell
It is The Palace Gallery's honor to posthumously exhibit some of the last artworks created by Bobbie Halperin. Reimagined Vistas has been made possible through the generous volunteerism and input of Cindy Krieble, Joseph Powell, Beverly Heckart, and The Palace Gallery team. Thank you all!
The Palace Gallery is free and open to the public 12pm-4pm every Saturday and the First Friday of every month from 4-8pm.
We're also open for special events throughout the month.
Come join us downtown at 210 W. 4th Ave, Suite X!
We're also open for special events throughout the month.
Come join us downtown at 210 W. 4th Ave, Suite X!
COMING MAY 2026:
THE SECRET INGREDIENT
An exhibition of artworks by
CARLA KLINKER
"The secret ingredient is Love. It’s not really a secret.
You began at the heart. Spun your brainstem and nerves and guts out like a cocoon.
I seek to reveal the unknown in order to see what is hidden, to illuminate the underlying connectedness of all things. A heart-led purpose to pursue truth and beauty.
Shift to heart centered work, refocusing on what binds us together, on accepting the mantle of a higher self.
This is a series of work about the stubborn insistence to focus on love.
As a daughter, child, mother, woman, and as an artist I am tasked to be my whole self.
Compelled by love, I make work that illustrates what I see when my eyes are closed. Art as illustration of the feeling of what it means to be alive."
Carla Klinker is an Alaska based painter, sculptor, and natural fibers artist. The Palace Gallery is excited to host a collection of her unique and expressive works through the month of May, 2026. Learn more about Carla and her artwork here.
Join us to welcome Carla and experience her artworks during Ellensburg's First Friday Artwalk, May 1st, between 4pm and 8pm. Come by Saturday, May 2nd, at 1pm to hear Carla discuss her work, demonstrate techniques, and take questions.
The Palace Gallery has FREE admission!
You began at the heart. Spun your brainstem and nerves and guts out like a cocoon.
I seek to reveal the unknown in order to see what is hidden, to illuminate the underlying connectedness of all things. A heart-led purpose to pursue truth and beauty.
Shift to heart centered work, refocusing on what binds us together, on accepting the mantle of a higher self.
This is a series of work about the stubborn insistence to focus on love.
As a daughter, child, mother, woman, and as an artist I am tasked to be my whole self.
Compelled by love, I make work that illustrates what I see when my eyes are closed. Art as illustration of the feeling of what it means to be alive."
Carla Klinker is an Alaska based painter, sculptor, and natural fibers artist. The Palace Gallery is excited to host a collection of her unique and expressive works through the month of May, 2026. Learn more about Carla and her artwork here.
Join us to welcome Carla and experience her artworks during Ellensburg's First Friday Artwalk, May 1st, between 4pm and 8pm. Come by Saturday, May 2nd, at 1pm to hear Carla discuss her work, demonstrate techniques, and take questions.
The Palace Gallery has FREE admission!
Nettle Shield,
natural fibers & dies
|
Sky Shield, mixed media
|
Paper Hearts, mixed media
The Palace Gallery / Art Is Fine LLC / 2026