STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

Dirk Yuricich has a photo of Yosemite that is so realistic, you have to double and triple check it to make sure it’s not made of the craggy stone that makes up El Capitan.

Molly Omann has created eagles and other wildlife sculptures out of tiny pieces of driftwood she picks up along the rocky beaches in the Pacific Northwest.

These are among two of the 132 artists you will find at the 57th annual Sun Valley Arts & Crafts Festival begin presented by Atkinsons’ Market today and Sunday.

Denver artist Mark Zirinsky shows how his geometric design reflects light differently when presented at varying angles.

The festival runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 16, at Atkinson Park in Ketchum.

This year’s creators include Mark Zirinsky, a Denver gem cutter who crafts mesmerizing geometric designs from aerospace aluminum, cutting pieces by hand and a milling machine. He builds most of his tools from the junk discarded by aerospace, military and racing manufacturers and he has amassed more than 200 copyrights.

He does it all from his Mars workbench, so named because parts of the cameras that the Mars Rover used to capture images of Mars were built on that workbench.

Jay Kim has created equally dazzling pieces by shaping brass sheets into covex and concave bowl shapes with hammering. He then applies a handheld torch to bringing out a variety of colors and patterns.

Veronica and Gabriel Sandoval show off an artwork featuring a Texas longhorn.

“While working on my pieces, I like to think of myself as a storyteller who conveys stories created by the Cosmos,” he said.

Gabriel and Veronica Sandoval, Mexican-born artists with Spanish, Italian and Native American blood, and Scottsdale, Ariz., pound out shapes on hand-embossed metal by hand, then flip it to do more fine-tuned shaping. They then paint the 3D flowers they’ve formed with the riotous colors of the Sonoran Desert in bloom.

“It’s the finest Italian technique with Eastern European influences from such countries as Ukraine. When you see Italian icons, you notice they’re more embossed. In countries like Ukraine, they’re less embossed so we try to strike a balance,” said Gabriel Sandoval, who majored in oceanography but turned to art after meeting his wife Veronica.

The work, which reflects the ancient art of Repousse from the 12th century, is painted in acrylic and oils and framed in teak and other woods. The Sandovals have an array of art work, which ranges from big circular works to crosses boasting colorful painted flowers.

Kathryn Hulbert found some intriguing earrings in Indio, Calif., jeweler Carlos Montanaro’s collection.

“They change with the light,” said Veronica Sandoval.

Artists for this year’s festival were chosen from nearly 500 applicants by a jury. Artists hail from as far away as Naples, Fla.—that would be contemporary pop artist Holly Manneck who paints large-scale vibrant pictures of Volkswagon Beetles stacked one on top of another, skis sticking out their windows. Other pictures key in on ski scenes, the cars boasting license plates that say, “Ski more.”

There are serval local artists, as well, including fused glass artist Dru Shoemaker; jewelers Guki Khalsa, Lee Drake and Kary Kjesbo; abstract artist Natalie Smith; plein air painter Karen Jacobsen; painter Rand  Smithey; woodworker Sean Petersen, and Christopher Brown, who paints intricate landscapes in graphite pencil.

A Kids Activity booth is on site. The Arkentones, made up of Tess Makena and Chris Carwithen, will provide harmonies from noon to 1:30 p.m. today and 2 to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, while Burley’s Devon Tyler provides upbeat tunes of the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s from 2:30 to 4 p.m. Saturday. Carey’s Paige and Morgan will perform 90’s-style country music from noon to 1:30 p.m. Sunday.

Montana artist Bradley Van Anderson creates ski sculptures from twisted skis, golfing sculptures from the heads of putters and, in this case, a donkey from horseshoes.

PHTP