With September ushering in the relentless turn of colors that eventually becomes the black, white and grey of winter solitude, there is a healthy abundance of colorful art to treat the eyes. And some black and white too.

Of great significance is the fact that we once again have three new exhibits opening on Friday September 6 and more importantly, they represent, conservatively about 150 collective years of making art!

Jeri Wright, an accomplished photographer who lives in Wilmington, is having a retrospective exhibit of sixty-five years, yes, six and a half decades of photography. She must have started as a child with a Kodak “Brownie” camera! Has she made the transition to digital film – come find out! What an opportunity this will be, to see her life’s work. “Through the Years” opens Sept 6 at the Tahawus Windows Gallery, 2nd floor, 14234 Rt 9N, Main St, Au Sable Forks, NY. 646-734-7151. The opening reception will be from 5:30 – 8 pm, Sept 6, and the exhibit will continue through October 6. Jeri may also be contacted to make an appointment to see the show by calling 518-946-2658. You don’t want to miss this!

In Saranac Lake, at the Adirondack Artists Guild Gallery, member Ken Wiley will present an exhibit titled “There and Here: 50 YEARS”. Fifty years ago Professor Wiley, who was the Art Department at North Country Community College for many years, enrolled in his first painting class. There are many residents and artists in this area who can say they enrolled in his classes. His exhibit of 23 watercolor and acrylic paintings were all completed this year, but they certainly represent his 50 years of expertise. His paintings are wonderful compositions emphasizing design and technique. The opening reception will be Friday, Sept 6, from 5 – 7 pm and the show will run to Sept 29. The Artists Guild is located at 52 Main Street, 518-891-2615.

About two and a half blocks down the street, photographer Phil Gallos will be the featured artist at NorthWind Fine Arts, 36 Broadway. “S.L. Noir: Saranac Lake After Dark” also opens Sept 6 from 5 – 7 pm. The Merriam-Webster dictionary app defines “noir” as in film noir, as  “crime fiction featuring hard-boiled cynical characters and bleak sleazy settings conveyed by shadowy photography and foreboding background music”.  The photographer says “the pictures portray the unexpected beauty and mystery that night brings to the streets of this Adirondack village”.  Contact the gallery for more information, 518-354-1875.

Saranac Lake has a new gallery too – Georgeanne Gaffney has returned to downtown with a studio/gallery at 89 Main Street. At this time I’m not sure what her hours are, but if she is there working on her figurative and landscape paintings, then it will be open. You can reach Georgeanne at 518-524-8603.

Our remote hub of creativity is the Paul Smith’s College VIC. Under the management of Brian McDonnell, there have been monthly art exhibits in the great room of the VIC for the past 2 years. Beginning Sept 5 will be “A Sense of Place” – pastels by Gabriels artist Diane Leifheit and photographs by Malone artist Jon Chodat (who will also be the featured artist in November at the Adirondack Artists Guild Gallery). Leifheit said “I’ve focused my work on where I live in the northern Adirondacks. It is no accident that several pieces represent the VIC. It is my back yard.” Chodat’s photographs display an acute level of observation; from a hummingbird hovering within the flashy red of a monarda flower to the stillness of the Great Blue Heron waiting for dinner in the reflected gold of an autumn river. Come out for a hike on the VIC trails and attend the reception to be held Saturday Sept 7 from 5 – 7.

Adirondack Artists Guild member Jacqueline Altman has a show of her watercolors on display now through Oct 14 at the Lake Placid Library Guy Brewster Gallery. “Sharing the Joy” does just that – share the joy the artist experiences while painting. The Library is located at 2471 Main St. Call to check on Library hours, 518-523-3200

If that’s not enough, the Adirondack Juried Exhibition will open at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts on September 13, from 5 – 7 pm. If you are an artist, works may be submitted Sept 3-7, from 1-5 pm. Check the online prospectus for details.

September 19th will be the final 3rd Thursday ArtWalk of the season. Undoubtedly there will be artists and live music all over the streets of downtown Saranac Lake. Maps can picked up at galleries and venues identified with signs and balloons. Celebrate our wonderful, productive arts community and “do the artwalk”, 5:30 – 7 pm. Want to participate as an artist or musician?  Contact ArtWalk Coordinator Jill Wenner at 518-637-2745.

September 27-28-29 will be the annual “Artist at Work Studio Tour” – artists from throughout the northern Adirondack region will open their studios and galleries to the public. With peak fall colors gracing the landscape, this weekend is the perfect time to pick up one of the Studio Tour Guidebooks, available at places like the Adirondack Artists Guild Gallery, the Adirondack Carousel, Bluseed Studios, Mark Kurtz Photography, NorthWind Fine Arts, Piece by Piece Studio, the Small Fortune Studio, and the Chamber of Commerce in Saranac Lake; the Paul Smith’s College VIC; the Lake Placid Center for the Arts, BookStore Plus,  the Lake Placid Library and the Lake Placid Visitors Bureau; Riverstone Wellness, in Wilmington; the Jay Craft Center, Young’s Gallery and Studio, and Buttons, Buttons in Jay; and the Tahawus Windows Gallery in Au Sable Forks. Select the artists you are interested in and plan a scenic drive to visit their studios. See just how they work to create their paintings, photos, pottery, jewelry and more. FREE. For more information, visit one of the above venues or go online to the Studio Tour web site. If you don’t make it to some of the exhibits included in this post, they will all still be up for the Studio Tour.

Enjoy all the colorful art of fall in the Adirondacks.

Above, a photo by Jeri Wright; below, “Back Off” by Ken Wiley.