The Ketchikan art scene is one of Alaska's liveliest, thanks in part to the Ketchikan Arts and Humanities Council, whose helpful staff operates the Main Stay Gallery, near Creek Street at 716 Totem Way (www.ketchikanarts.org). Shows change monthly.
Ray Troll is Alaska's leading fish-obsessed artist. His small gallery, Soho Coho, at 5 Creek St., is worth a visit even if you aren't a shopper. It shows Troll's own work and that of other Ketchikan artists from the same school of surreal rainforest humor. In Troll's art, subtle ironies and silly puns coexist in a solidly decorated interior world. T-shirts are his most popular canvas; "Spawn Till You Die" is a classic. Troll's incredible work-of-art website delves far into his strange mind (and sells shirts), at www.trollart.com. The gallery is open summer daily from 9am to 6pm; winter Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 5:30pm; or you can place an order by calling tel. 800/888-4070.
Adjacent to Soho Coho, Alaska Eagle Arts is a serious gallery featuring the bold yet traditional work of Native artist Marvin Oliver. Upstairs, Parnassus Books is a pleasing little cubbyhole with Alaskana, art, cooking, and popular fiction. Down the boardwalk at 18 Creek St., craftspeople carve and interact with visitors at Hide-A-Way Gifts. At 123 Stedman St., across the creek, Blue Heron Gallery and Gifts carries Alaska arts and crafts that appeal to locals as well as visitors: jewelry, stained glass, clothing, jam, prints, and so on.
Near the Steadman Street Bridge, Chinook and Company, at 207 Steadman, is the place to stop for gourmet foods that fit or go beyond the region's specialties, including wonderful smoked salmon, tapenades, marinated veges, dips, flavored oils, and the like, plus clothing made by small, socially responsibly Northwest companies. Back toward the town's center, at 633 Mission St., Exploration Gallery is owned by local artist Diane Naab and framer Anna Annicelli and shows original work from all over the region.
Stop for kettle-corn popcorn on your shopping trip at Orca Corn, at 602 Dock St., an addictive local favorite that you can get in the usual movie-theater style, or with such flavors as blueberry or maple. Next door is a terrific coffee shop, Refiners Roast, open long hours every day and serving killer brownies and other baked goods along with the great coffee.
Moving back toward the waterfront, Eagle Spirit Gallery of Ketchikan, at 310 Mission St. shows some very impressive Alaska Native art, including large carved pieces from this region.
At the waterfront, the building that stands right over the dock is Salmon Landing Market Place, at 5 Salmon Landing. Of particular interest here is the Dockside Gallery, which shows work of several local artists. Next to Dockside Gallery, hobbyists should check out The Bead and Yarn Shoppe, which has an astonishingly diverse selection, and handcrafted jewelry.
Note: Ketchikan is a shopping and art destination, but if you want something authentically Alaskan you have to be careful.
