The Dale Bunse Memorial Show

Tuolumne County Arts is proud to present the Dale Bunse Memorial Show!

On display at the Sonora Chamber of Commerce from May 24th through June 14th. This exhibit can be viewed during the Chamber’s regular hours or by appointment with TCA, and will showcase a collection of pieces from throughout Dale Bunse’s life and artistic career. Opening and closing receptions for the show will be held on Saturday, May 24 and the 2nd Saturday of June, respectively.

SHOW DATES: Saturday, May 24th, 2025 – Saturday, June 14th, 2025

OPENING RECEPTION: Saturday, May 24th, 2025 • 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm

CLOSING RECEPTION: Saturday, June 14th, 2025 • 5:30 pm – 8:00 pm

Chamber of Commerce Regular Hours—

Monday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

Tuesday – Thursday 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Friday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

About the Artist—

Dale Bunse was born in Daniels County, Montana, in February 1939 when the average temperature was zero degrees, but found himself in a warm family, the middle child between brother Don and brother Richard – the first of Geneva Sherseth and Clayton Bunse’s sons to be born in a “hospital” (they say that’s a generous description of the place), and the last to be born in Montana. Over the years, all three would become artists.

After spending the war years in the San Francisco Bay Area, the family relocated to Oregon and Dale attended Salem schools and then Willamette University. Dale studied painting and ceramics and spoke with great admiration for his professors, especially Carl Hall and Dr. Cameron Paulin. He met his former wife Loie van Loben Sels at Willamette and they both then attended Arizona State University. After daughter Meta was born, Dale’s first post-grad job was as an art instructor at Maryville College in Tennessee. Dale and Loie had their son Garth there before returning to the West when an old Salem schoolmate encouraged Dale to join him at a new community college in California.

Dale taught art for nearly 30 years at Columbia Community College in the Sierra foothills where he helped “challenge and stretch his students' imaginations” with such assignments as making ceramic boats for races in the campus reservoir. He was a prolific painter and potter, first selling his work from the Bunse Pottery at home, and then from the Clayton Gallery in downtown Jamestown. He claimed he always found it hard to give advice to others about what to study because for him he had always known it was art. He loved the creative process and creative people and helping folks discover art. He supported other artists and hosted shows of their work in his gallery. His travels throughout the Western US, and trips to Europe, Mexico, South America, China, and Uzbekistan infused both his teaching and his art and he enjoyed bringing those experiences, cultures, and environments into his work.

For the last 25 years of his life, Dale lived in cooler, greener Oregon, but even after retiring, he did not stop painting, sketching, throwing pots, or teaching. He volunteered many hours at the Willamette Art Center in Salem, where he said, “I could just be the old guy who knows stuff.” In Independence, he joined the River Gallery, collaborating on projects and life drawing and gallery shows with his brother Richard and dozens of other talented artists. Dale maintained a studio and home with his love, Laurie Chambreau.

To the end, he drew inspiration and joy from the rolling hills of both the Sierra Foothills in California and the Willamette Valley in Oregon. For him, and those who went along for the ride, every bend of the road and each curve of the hill was a landscape waiting to be painted.