Seattle Art Blog - News, Discussion, and Events

Feb 28, 2009

A juried exhibition of mixed-media art will take place from March 3 until April 5 at Parklane Gallery, 130 Park Lane in Kirkland. Juror Frederic Wong has selected the works for this exhibit. Fong, formerly an educator with the Seattle Art Museum,  is a current arts administrator and curator for the City of Lynnwood.  The Northwest Collage Society was established in 1987, and is affiliated with the National Collage Society headquartered in Hudson, Ohio. The opening reception will be held during Kirkland Art Walk Night on Thursday, March 12 from 6:00-8:00pm.

Feb 28, 2009

During the month of March Good Earth Pottery, located in the historic Fairhaven district of Bellingham at 1000 Harris Avenue,  is hosting the first ever “All County High School Clay Art Show”.   Earlier in the year, all public high schools in Whatcom County were invited to submit selected work from their most talented and advanced pottery students for inclusion in the show. A reception will be held March 7 from 3-5pm to meet the young artists and their supportive teachers.

Feb 27, 2009

Finally Friday, held from 6-9pm on February 27, Bellevue Arts Museum invites all to listen to music, enjoy  complimentary wine and appetizers and see the new exhibition, “Book Borrowers.” The exhibition highlights over 30 works from locally, nationally and internationally renowned contemporary artists transforming books into sculptural works and is on view until June 14. Shown is Brian Dettmer Core 4, 2007 Altered book, 12 x 7.25 x 5.75 in.Collection of Matthew Picton .Photo: Brian Dettmer.

Feb 26, 2009 I keep telling you that we're losing this incredible talent when the Seattle P.I. closes down in  March, so read Regina Hackett's reviews while you can. Among other things, she says, "If there were nothing else, the exhibit would be worth seeing for its choice selection of Thomas Eakins and Winslow Homer. Eakins painted intelligence, and Homer layered simple scenes with structural and emotional complexity."Technorati Tags: Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Regina Hackett, Seattle Art Museum

Feb 26, 2009

The current show at Catherine Person Gallery, 319 Third Ave South, is a solo  exhibition by Seattle painter Lynne Saad titled “Unexpected Opportunity” which runs until March 21, 2009. Lynne Saad was interviewed by Nancy Guppy, host of Seattle Channel 21's Artzone, in 2008: Watch the Video here.

Gage Academy of Art, 1501 10th. Avenue East, #101, features “Driven to Abstraction” in the Rosen Gallery until March 27. Margaret Watson curates this group show featuring artists from Building C in Ballard. Mary Iverson, lectures on the origins and history of working in series on March 13.

Lowell Art Works, 5205 South 2nd Avenue,  Everett, features a figurative art show with works by participants of the Lowell Art Works Life Drawing Group and resident artists of Lowell Art Works. The show is on view until March 14.

University of Washington School of Art presents the Winter IVA Show: A celebration of the artistic achievement of the Senior students of Interdisciplinary Visual Art. The show, held at the Sand Point Gallery, will run from February 27th to March 8th and will be kicked off by an opening reception on February 27th from 6:00 - 8:00 pm.

Feb 26, 2009

 On view until May 25, 2009 - the only time many of these works have ever traveled to the West Coast -“ Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness: American Art from the Yale University Gallery,” is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to learn American History through 230 iconic paintings, prints, photographs and decorative arts from what is considered to be one of the finest collections of American art ever assembled. Also on view are selections from Yale’s world-renowned collection of early American silver, including the oldest surviving pair of American candlesticks, created by Jeremiah Dummer, the first American-born silversmith; a silver teapot crafted by Paul Revere; and flamboyant late-19th century Tiffany & Co silver pieces. A host of objects, from a nearly eight-foot , late-colonial Philadelphia High Chest, to popular prints, pottery, shoe buckles and a sewing thimble, provide fascinating insights into the changing fabric of American life. Details on these unique items reflect the artists’ and artisans’ diverse backgrounds, as well as the impact of life in the New World. Shown is John Trumbull, The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776, 1786–1820. Oil on canvas. Yale University Art Gallery, Trumbull Collection.

Feb 22, 2009

Art Radio Seattle’s Steven Vroom podcasts the latest in art news from cloudy, warm and balmy South Lake Union where the studios of 911 Media Arts Center are located.

Feb 19, 2009

                                                    Opening at Greg Kucera Gallery, 212 Third Avenue South,  in a reception on February 19 from 6-8pm, are the famed quilts and related prints by women from Gee’s Bend, Alabama. The recognition of the women of Gee’s Bend as artists came though contact with travelers to the area and contacts in New York. In 1967, Lee Krasner visited Gee’s Bend with her dealer Donald McKinney of Marlborough Gallery. Both bought quilts and slowly, by word of mouth, the reputation of the women of Gee’s Bend as quilt making artists grew. In 1999, William Arnett, creator of Tinwood Alliance, brought the quilts to the attention of noted writer and curator Jane Livingston. Her essay, “Reflections on the Art of Gee’s Bend” is the centerpiece for the 2002 exhibition catalog produced by the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, for the exhibition which has traveled to the Whitney Museum of American Art; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Milwaukee Art Museum; and others. Shown is Louisiana Bendolph, Housetop Variation.

Feb 19, 2009

A no holds barred, no rules exhibition of unbridled talent, juried by Rock Hushka, curator of contemporary and northwest art at the Tacoma Art Museum, opens in a reception from 4-6pm at the Jacob Lawrence Gallery, located in the art building on the University of Washington Campus. This annual juried student show, OPEN, looks to recognize those students who are pushing themselves, and the Seattle art scene, in new and dynamic ways.  With no restrictions on size or medium, OPEN is certain to challenge the preconceptions of the place of formal art education in forming the next generation of leading artists.

Feb 17, 2009

Third Thursday

Edmonds Art Walk.  Galleries are open from 5-8pm.  E-mail scansons66@yahoo.com.

Tacoma Art Walk.  Tacoma's galleries, Museum of Glass, Tacoma Art Museum,

and the Washington State History Museum are open from 5-8pm.  All three museums are free.  Info: 253/272-4258.

Upper Queen Anne Art Walk, 6-8pm.  E-mail info@bouncingwall.com.

Third Saturday

Everett Art Walk, 4-7pm.  Visit www.everettartwalk.org.

LaConner Art Walk, 4-8pm.

Last Thursday

MIcrosoft Art Collection Tours.  Open to the public, free.  RSVP two weeks in advance artevent@microsoft.com.  Maximum of 40 can register.

February 21

All About ART, Benefit Silent and Live Auction in Port Townsend from  3pm to 7pm. All About ART is a juried show/auction with 40 of Jefferson County’s finest artists and featuring over 70 works of art.  Cost is $65.  The event includes complimentary wine, champagne hors d’oeuvres and music throughout the afternoon and early evening.  This unique fundraiser honors artists by paying commission on all works sold.  Proceeds benefit the Port Townsend Education Foundation.  Formal attire is suggested.  To view art, visit:  www.pteducationfoundation.org.  Reservations can be made by calling 360-301-1658 or emailing pteducationfoundation@gmail.com

SAM Passion Bash from 7:30pm-1am. Seattle Art Museum . Proceeds will benefit the exhibition Garden and Cosmos: The Royal Paintings of Jodhpur on view at the Seattle Asian Art Museum  until April 26, 2009. The Passion Bash will feature Bollywood and world grooves spun by DJ Kazan, music by I Heart Shiva, dancing and live entertainment. Tickets are $25 per person or $40 per couple. Age 21 and older only. Price includes admission, entertainment, DJs, dancing, party favors and henna. Indian appetizers, wine, beer, full bar and signature cocktail are all available at additional cost. Attire: The colors of love!

Feb 17, 2009 Steven Vroom's Art Radio Seattle podcast is back in beautiful, cloudy South Lake Union after the untimely death of respected colleague, Ian Harrison. Get the latest news by clicking here.

Feb 14, 2009

Fetherston Gallery, 818 E. Pike Street in Seattle recently opened "Coming Up for Air" an exhibit featuring new artist, Lorna Nakell, and the return of Melissa Stern. Both artists are taking stock of the world, examining culture, and commenting on institutions. Nakell will show paintings with a new emphasis on figurative imagery building upon her previously abstract works. Stern returns with an assembly of sculptural works and drawings that look at the kinds of people we are and how our appearance expresses our social choices. Shown is Nakell’s Tethered.

Feb 14, 2009

Washington artist Mike Smith’s new show, “Spring Forward,” is on view at the Gunnar Nordstrom Gallery, 800 Bellevue Way N.E., Suite 11 until March 8. Smith, who has had more than 100 one-man shows, says, “People always want to know the meaning of my work and where I get my ideas from.  My work is simply about the people and places and animals I love. Images, unlike the written word, do not dictate to you. After twenty-five years of painting almost every day, it has become my world." Shown is The Horse whose Name was the True Name of the Hills That Move.

Feb 14, 2009

Traver Gallery Tacoma,  1821 E Dock Street #100, introduces Portland artist Carmen Vetter in a reception on February 14 from 4-7pm. Her first show with the gallery, “Fading Gray: Patterns on Polarization,” explores the Chinese concept Yin-Yang - a mutual correlation between opposites, expressing the possibility of unity amidst stark contrast. The show closes March 8.

Feb 12, 2009

Tyler Kohloff’s art installation, “Along the Western Front,” is on view at CoCA (Center on Contemporary Art) in Ballard, 6413 Seaview Avenue in the Shilshole Bay Beach Club, until February 20. Navigating the vacant habitats of the American West, Kohloff’s images present a physical and psychological journey, confronting the complexities and contradictions of living in a place one does not entirely understand. A special closing reception with a performance by Hair Envelope and Tin Can Tobacco Band is scheduled for February 20 from 6-9pm.