This magical and unbelivable art destination, Matzke Fine Art Gallery & Sculpture Park,  is open Friday-Sunday. We arrived at the locked gate on a Thursday without knowing this fact. We called the owner, Karla, and left a voice message. Later that afternoon, she graciously returned the call and let us know to come by on Friday to see the gallery, opening of a new show, and tour the sculpture park. So thrilled we were spending a second night on Camano Island to be able to meet Karla and enjoy her vision of this art Mecca.

There aren’t words to explain the magnitude of this Camano Island jewel. The gallery and park feature dozens of regional artists, including Karla. Seven times a year, she hangs a new show in the gallery – we happened to arrive on the day the latest show was opening which included an evening reception. Tours and receptions are free and, so, you can’t put a price on the value of this experience. Of course, all of the art – inside and outside – is for sale. I did purchase some cards from a large selection of regional artists. Karla was kind enough to spend some time with us and provide some background on this (second) gallery she owns on the island.

The weather was cool and cloudy the day we visited. Just nice enough to spend nearly two hours wondering the grounds. Three other women arrived while were there – two from Seattle and one from Napa – they had come to pick-up some paintings they had purchased. Wish we could have attended that evening’s reception, but there was still so much to explore on Camano Island.

Hopefully, we’ll get there again.