Business: Wish Rock Studio art on sale ahead of shop’s final days

If you’ve always wanted to buy artwork at Wish Rock Studio, now is the time to do it.

Owners Peter and Sandra Waldner will be closing the Grand Avenue gallery doors for good on New Year’s Eve, December 31, but until then, everything in the shop is 20 percent off.

Wish Rock Studio is open Thursday through Monday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and is located at 17 Grand Avenue in Shelter Island Heights.

“We learned a lot” in nearly five years of operating the gallery, Mr. Waldner said. “Hanging the art for shows was the most fun.”

Mr. Waldner and his wife first opened the gallery of fine art, custom framing, art gifts and books by local authors on Memorial Day 2006. The studio was named for the smooth, banded beach stones children skip into the water while making a wish.

The gallery has been home to Mr. Waldner’s paintings and the works of many local artists, and has hosted a number of shows. Mr. Waldner lists among his favorites an exhibit of the work of young Island artists. The shows often raised money for local charities like the Gift of Life Foundation.

“That I’m going to miss,” Mr. Waldner said. What was the best thing about owning a gallery? Meeting people he and Sandra otherwise wouldn’t have, he said, like Leah and Victor Friedman. Both couples had lived on the Island for years before the Friedmans walked into the gallery. The studio hosted a show of Mr. Friedman’s photographs in 2009.

While the gallery is scheduled to close, the art and craft of the Waldners will live on. Ms. Waldner will offer custom framing services at a new location to be announced this spring. Mr. Waldner will continue to create portraits, local scenes, three-dimensional murals and caricatures by commission. And his award-winning cartoons will illustrate the Reporter’s op-ed section every week.

You can reach the Wish Rock Studio at 749-5200 or visit online at wishrockstudio.com.