If this year’s Art’s Alive! organizers needed a little more spirit, artist Mary Ennes Davis has just what they’re looking for.

Her “Guardian” collage series and iconographic sculptures — pieced together with twinkling tablespoons, wooden rulers, bangles and recycled television cart wheels and resembling peaceful angels — often attract the attention of people looking for a little spiritual uplift.

They certainly are drawing plenty of notice as the featured art displayed on this year’s Arts Alive! poster.

“Her work is just gorgeous,” said Pat Doran, secretary of the La Conner Arts Commission.

Organizers are expecting plenty of visitors for the 24th annual Art’s Alive! Invitational Art Exhibition and Open Show celebration Nov. 7-9 in La Conner.

The event kicks off with an artists’ reception and opening for the Invitational Show from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday at Maple Hall and continues from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Stop by the Invitational Show from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at Maple Hall for a sampling of varied works from 12 regional artists.

Then check out the Open Art Show, featuring the paintings, sculptures, fiber art, glass, ceramics and more by 85 local artists at Maple Center. Artists will demonstrate their crafts Saturday and Sunday at Maple Hall and businesses and art galleries around town.

This year, visitors also can take a first glimpse at eight new juried sculptures that were recently installed as part of the La Conner Outdoor Sculpture Show 2008-09 at various downtown locations along First Street.

In the past, the La Conner Arts Commission installed new works on display for its annual outdoor exhibit at the end of December. This year, the commission wanted to take advantage of the influx of visitors during Art’s Alive! and the better weather, said Margaret Arnett, chairwoman of the show.

“We decided that it was better to go for the big bang,” Arnett said.

All of the sculptures are for sale.

As usual, Art’s Alive! isn’t just about the visual arts, but includes tasty creations for the palate during the Chowder by the Channel chowder-tasting competition from 3 to 7 p.m. Saturday at the La Conner Middle School cafeteria, hosted by the La Conner Kiwanis Club to benefit the La Conner Boys & Girls Club. Fifteen local restaurants will vie for the “best chowder” prize.

Since its inception in 1985, Art’s Alive! has made a name for itself as one of the most prestigious art events in Western Washington, and certainly in Skagit County, said Marci Plank, La Conner Chamber of Commerce executive director. The event draws plenty of visitors who stop in to view the art and to see what local businesses are selling, Plank said.

“It’s just kind of an exciting and fun time in the middle of the cold winter,” Plank said. “It’s great for the merchants, and people really enjoy it.”

Organizers say the event is a good opportunity for local artists, including Davis, the Art’s Alive! poster artist from Bellingham, to connect with potential buyers and become known to a wide audience.

Davis, 49, comes from a family of artists with deep roots in Skagit County. She’s the daughter of Phyllis Luvera Ennes, recently named Patron of the Arts by the Anacortes Arts Festival Foundation, and is a niece of renowned Anacortes weaver Anita Luvera Mayer.

Davis is known for her colorful collages and spiritually uplifting guardians, made from recycled materials she collects from estate sales, salvage lots, junk yards, antique shops or anywhere else she sees something that strikes her creative fancy.

“A lot of times, something will sit here a long time, and then I’ll have a moment where I think, ‘Oh, this will work there, or this will work here,’” Davis said from her Bellingham studio.

Using recycled materials for her art comes naturally, Davis said. Davis said she was raised by a mother and grandmother who never threw anything out. They would recycle scraps and odds-and-ends for other uses, including their creative projects. They often dragged Davis to junk yards, yard sales, art openings and to the beach to collect used or discarded items.

Davis said she’s always been the creative type, even designing and sewing her own clothing.

“I was into anything imaginative,” she said, noting that along with art endeavors, she’s always enjoyed writing. “I never quite fit the mold.”

Davis majored in English and minored in art at Western Washington University. After graduating, she became involved in marketing and said she had little time to work with her hands.

After a trip to the former Soviet Union in 1989, Davis was struck by how the people managed to get by despite a lack of goods. Instead of throwing items away, Davis began incorporating recycled objects into jewelry designs. She started a successful jewelry design business that she ran for 20 years.

Davis’ creative path would take a turn shortly after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Davis and her then 8-year-old son decided to donate to a relief fund for the victims of the attacks instead of buying Christmas gifts. They hand-made gifts, small guardians, or “angels,” fashioned out of recycled items that could be stuffed into stockings, and gave them to friends and family. Each had its own personality and was designed to honor and protect loved ones, Davis said.

As people began seeing the guardians, they began asking Davis to make some for them.

“Selling guardians was very different than putting earrings on somebody,” Davis said. “They have a different connection to people. There’s a heart-string emotion with the guardians that’s different from other art.”

Now Davis works full-time making the guardians and collages out of recycled materials. They’ve evolved from small stocking-sized gifts to several 7- and 8-foot-tall sculptures and collages. Some of her larger sculptures are on display at the county courthouse in Ketchikan, Alaska, the White Salmon Lodge at Mount Baker Ski Resort, and the Northwest Imaging Center in Bellingham.

Davis also devotes some of her time helping elementary- and middle-school children create art.

“I just love kids; I think that they’re not limited in what they think they can do,” Davis said. “What I do is creative and there are no outlets anymore for creativity at school. Very few kids get to take art anymore.”

Beverly Crichfield can be reached at 360-416-2135 or .

Art’s Alive! schedule

FRIDAY, Nov. 7

6 to 9 p.m.: Artists’ reception, open to the public, and opening for the Invitational Art Show at Maple Hall/Maple Center, south end of First Street.

6 to 8 p.m.: Art League North artists’ reception at the La Conner Retirement Inn, 204 N. First St.

SATURDAY, Nov. 8

10 a.m. to 5 p.m.: Open Show, with the works of 85 local artists on display at Maple Center, south end of First Street. Artists will also demonstrate their craft at various businesses and art galleries around town.

Artists’ demonstrations at Maple Hall:

10 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Janie Ackerman, acrylics; Christine Houston, multi-media; Janet Foster, beadwork.

2 p.m. to 5 p.m.: Charlotte Decker, oil painting.

10 a.m. to 5 p.m.: Invitational Art Show at Maple Hall, featuring the works of collage artist Mary Ennes Davis; sculptor Phil McCracken; watercolor and acrylic artist Anthony Turpin; mixed-media artist Mark Iverson; painters Jack Gunter and Karla Matzke; bird sculptor Tom Newell; glass work artist Brian Kerkviliet; ceramic artist Margo Grothe; weaver and sculptor Mary Snowden; pastel artist Jude Galbraith and painter Joel Brock.

3 to 6 p.m.: Chowder by the Channel chowder-tasting competition, featuring 15 local restaurants, at the La Conner Middle School cafeteria, 305 N. Sixth St. $7.

SUNDAY, Nov. 9

10 a.m. to 5 p.m.: Invitational Art Show at Maple Hall.

Artists’ demonstrations from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Maple Hall:

10 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Margaret Carpenter Arnett, watercolor; Kathy Nelson, sea wreaths.

2 p.m. to 5 p.m.: Rose Mary Tate, pastels; Katherine Lewis.

For more information or a brochure, call 888-624-9284 or visit http://www.laconnerchamber.com/artsalive2008.cfm