Talk of the town; IMA marks a milestone

Published 1:13 pm Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Whenever Erin Braybook gets a chance to journey back to San Juan Island she makes plans to visit with an old friend or two.

But never would she have expected to be the center of attention on any visit to Friday Harbor. Had she known what was in store, Braybook may have opted to wait it out awhile longer in the parking lot of the San Juan Islands Museum of Art.

“I’m a little overwhelmed by it all,” Braybook said after walking through the entrance of IMA shortly before noon on Jan. 2, unwittingly becoming the 1,000th visitor to cross the threshold of the newly constructed art museum and galleries at 540 Spring Street.

She was greeted with the type of exuberant welcome and flourish of fanfare, and with assorted gifts and certificates, more commonly reserved for a visiting dignitary or head of state.

“I came expecting to meet with my friend Charlie (Bodenstab, chairman of IMA board of directors). I definitely was not expecting all the attention, but anything for art, as they say,” Braybook said.

IMA opened the doors to its new home Dec. 5 with the varied works of 58 local artists and yearly Artists’ Registry Show featured in the museum’s so-called “soft opening” and inaugural display of art. Designed by local architect Richard Hobbs and constructed around the frame and on the footprint of the former headquarters of San Juan EMS, the $3.25 million building features three galleries, a second-floor artists workshop, administrative space and a towering glass atrium at the forefront.

The building is constructed at a fraction of the cost of those erected by similar “Downsound” non-profit organizations by capitalizing on its usable space and by avoiding non-functional frills and a tendency among art groups to encapsulate a sense of “grandeur,” according to Bodenstab.

As visitor No. 1,000, Braybook received a complimentary $200 supporting membership, which includes reciprocal privileges at more the 600 museums.

— Scott Rasmussen