About Rainier League of Arts

Rainier League of Arts and craft league was started in 1968 by Paul Chalk, Aletha Deuel, Fred Oldfield, Roseli Souza, Hazel Gibbons and Becky Stol.  Many members, like Fred Oldfield, Norman Butterfield, Mark Downey , Dale Thompson, Alice Larson, Mary Jarrett, Paul Chalk and Aletha Deuel were professional artists.  Fred Oldfield  has a museum at Western Heritage Center, Puyallup, WA.  This museum features his Western Art paintings.

Dorothy Wilhelm also a member became a popular TV celebrity with her show, “My Home Town”.  The membership of the fledging club was large and meetings were held many places before they finally settled on the Collins Grange.

In early years, art shows were used as fundraisers.  PLU, the Lakewood Library, Tacoma Little Theater all hosted our juried shows.  The Meeker Mansion and Eatonville Art Festival featured artwork booths and raffles of our professional artist’ works.  The club also did art festivals in Sumner and Lakewood.

Eventually, the club underwent a name change eliminating the word “crafts” from the title, and renaming us the Rainier league of Arts.  In the last few years Rainier League of arts has had shows at the Eatonville Art Festival, Steilacoom Community Center, Lakewood Library’s Friends Gallery, Roy Community Center, South Hill Border Books, Peninsula Library, Tahoma City Gallery, Annie Wright’s School Gallery, Renaissance Narrows Glen Retirement & Community Center Gallery, Karpeles Library & Manuscript Museum, Windmill Garden’s in Sumner and The Gibson House Gallery.  Some of the members are in local galleries and Artist Gallery of Seattle.  Member’s artwork has been seen in Fine Arts and Hobby Hall at the Western Washington State Fair, 5 County Juried  and 9 juried art show in Olympia, Karshner Museum in Puyallup, Browns Point Art Show, and Maritime Art Fest.  Blue ribbons were won at the Western Washington State Fair (Puyallup Fair) on their paintings, glass blown art, hand stamped cards, and pottery.  Members from our club have done private shows at banks, Hilton Inn, Candy’s Wall of Fame, Belfair, WA. and Galleries in Seattle and in various libraries in Pierce County.

Glenda Wiffler was the organizer in  2005 and Rainier League of Arts produced Tall Ships Tacoma Art Show at the Washington State History Museum. Many of the Rainier League of Arts members were juried in to this maritime art show. This fine art club shows 10 months out of each year throughout Pierce County.

In 2006 Rainier League of Arts worked on a joint effort with Pacific Gallery Artists, Olympia Artists and Peninsula Artists to produce South Sound 4-League Exhibit at the Bronze Works Studio in Tacoma, WA.

Today we have many artists who regularly sell their artwork and some who are just beginning to sell their work.  Our group uses various media; from oil, watercolor, pastels, colored pencil, charcoal, acrylic, wood carvings and glass blown to pottery.