A quarter-century of Americana

Torus Tammer

In 1974, Bill McGowan gave his wife painting lessons from Paint ‘n’

Place in Fountain Valley as a Christmas gift. The lessons turned into an

enterprise.

“I made a little investment and bought the Paint ‘n’ Place for my wife

to run,” said McGowan, who was working for Toyota at the time.

Twenty-five years later, the McGowans -- along with partners Fred

Turra and their son, Chuck -- are still in the art business. The gallery,

renamed Artworks Etc., celebrates its quarter-century mark as one of

Fountain Valley’s first galleries.

Artworks Etc. specializes in western American art, otherwise known as

Americana. Western art today depicts American pioneering culture. More

specifically, it’s about American imagery such as western landscapes and

wildlife indigenous to North America.

McGowan has been fascinated by the western genre since childhood. It

runs in the family -- both of his parents were professional exhibition

shooters. They traveled to towns to show their expert marksmanship.

McGowan said he would watch his parents do things such as throw a coin

up in the air and shoot it. These experiences strongly influenced his

choice of genre for the gallery.

“Because of this kind of childhood, it was an easy decision when it

came time to choose the gallery theme,” he said.

Among the artists the gallery shows is Huntington Beach sculptor Tom

Gillenwater. A piece of Gillenwater’s work is also being featured as part

of the Festival of the Arts in Laguna this month.

The gallery sells both original artwork and a number of limited

edition prints.

According to Turra, it’s difficult to find original paintings by many

western artists. A number of them are sold on a waiting-list basis or are

expensive to buy.

“Printing isn’t a new idea. Rembrandt did multiple images,” Turra

said. “The beauty of what we do is that we can provide a fine piece of

affordable American art.”

Running the gallery is a team effort. Chuck McGowan does much of the

framing, which is in itself art.

Turra, who also specializes in framing, said creating frames is a huge

part of their operation. It’s a more creative endeavor than most would

think, said Turra, who has framed everything from car parts to oil

paintings.

“Not everyone does hand-painted, hand-carved mats, as well as

designing frames that match and complement the paintings,” Turra said.

“You name it, we do it.”

And they do, said Sharon Young, who has been a customer of the gallery

almost since it opened. Young said she wandered over to look in a window

one day and just kept coming back.

“I have 100-plus pictures at my home, each one framed by Artworks,”

Young said. “Once you get to know the people here, they become like

family, and they really know what they are doing.”