DECEMBER Art Fix: Upcoming Events

If you need your art fix for the month of December (and I know I do!), here are some shows that you won't want to miss. This is the last round of art walks before Christmas! Come out and enjoy the pretty holiday lights, track down a unique and amazing gift for that special someone, and support your local artists and craftsmen! It'll be fun, I promise.

Gail Grinnell @ SAM

"Elles" at SAM presents "RUFFLE" in the Suyama Space, a site-specific exhibition by Gail Grinnell featuring 300 yards of stiff cut translucent fabric inscribed with dense contour drawings that create bower-like visual shelters. It closes on Thursday, 6 December, so see it soon!

Braden Duncan, "Mechanical Aviary Mini V" @ Stylus Salon

"2012 Holiday Miniature Art Extravaganza" beginning Tuesday, 4 December, and closing Monday, 31 December. With over 200 tiny art pieces created by more than 50 local and national artists, Ghost Gallery on Capitol Hill simply cannot hold them all, so the show has taken over the Stylus Salon in Belltown as well. Featuring new work by me (Braden Duncan), Allyce Wood, Carlos Aguilar, Deviant Decor, Jesse Link, Jody Joldersma, Larkin Cypher, Lis Wright-Ivec, Ronnie Taylor, Ryan Molenkamp, Urban Soule, and more!

619 Western Building

The 1st Thursday Art Walk in Pioneer Square, Thursday, 6 December from 5-8pm. Edd Cox Fine Art will host an exhibition of artworks created by twenty five former artists of the 619 Western Arts Building and premiere an advanced preview of the 619 Western Documentary. An independent documentary on Seattle’s historic 619 Western Building and the Artists that gave it life. More info: here. 

Also check out the "Holiday Open House & Gift Sale" at 57 Biscayne! Resident artists open up their studios & invited guests enliven the adjoining nooks and crannies of the historic Scheuerman building. Shop for original gifts including jewelry, paintings, letterpress cards and posters, photographs, frescos, book arts, encaustics, screenprints, artsy housewares, vintage items and other goodies! Don't miss "Elles: Platform" at Platform Gallery, featuring the work of seven women artists; the "Art Walk Fire Sale" collective showcase at the Pioneer Square Saloon, "Dog, Monkey, Crow", sculptures by Elaine Hanowell at Art Xchange, and new work at over 50 other studios, galleries, store fronts and art spaces! 

The 1st Friday Art Walk in Fremont, Friday, 7 December from 6-9pm. Kick off your Fremont art walk by stopping by the Lenin statue for the annual "Lenin Lighting!" It's like lighting a Christmas tree, but better! Check out the Holiday Bazaar in the new Saturn Building, featuring over 20 artists and crafters. There is an art bazaar at Pel'Meni as well; mention the phrase "Make art, not war" for $1 off you dumplings. 

The Oatmeal

"The Oatmeal" creator, Matthew Inman has a brand new space in Fremont! He'll be signing books, drawing pictures and personally passing out samples of his favorite snack — Sriracha popcorn. Also check out the mixed media work of Kevin Engle and the photography of Mark Banaag at Fremont's newest art walk venue, Balance Studio; the photography of Tina Carter at Intuitive Bodywork; Kitten Chops at Portage Bay Goods, and more! 

The 2nd Saturday Art Walk in Ballard, Saturday, 8 December from 6-9pm. Patricia Ariel is showcasing work from her new series "Mythologique" at Habitude! Don't miss new work at Annie's Art & Frame, Art & Soul, Blowing Sands Glass Studio, Cupcake Royal, Filthy Rich, Kiss Cafe, Monster Art & Clothing, Nightingale Gallery, Savour, the Sunset Tavern, Venue and more!

The 2nd Saturday Art Walk in the Central District, Saturday, 8 December from 1-5pm. Check out the Neptune Gallery Sculpture Garden and new work at Atelier Autumnthing, Hi-Spot Cafe, Pratt Fine Art Centre, Twilight Exit and more!

The 2nd Saturday Art Walk in Georgetown, Saturday 8 December from 6-9pm. You won't want to miss the tree lighting ceremony! Check out "Little Bits & Pieces" at All City Coffee with new work from a few local artists including Sullivan Giles and Jesse Link. Stop by Equinox Studios for the "World Famous Holiday Open House" for live music, poetry, blacksmith demos, snackums, and art from over 40 artists!

Nautilus Studios will be showcasing "The Collagemonauts" and their Eve of Destruction with Marty Gordon, Tim Manthey, and Craig van den Bosch. Don't miss "Outside the Box" at LxWxH Gallery, a presentation of past and present, featuring all past and present visual artists who have participated in the subscription project from its inception in March 2011 through the end of 2012. Also see new work at American Pie, Artcore Tattoo, Belle & Whissel, Calamity Jane, Fantagraphics Bookstore, Georgetown Arts & Cultural Centre, Krab Jab Studio, Smarty Pants, Totally Blown Glassworks, Two Tartes Cafe, Wax Expressions, and more!

The Mourning Market at El Corazon, Sunday 9 December from noon-5pm. curious crafts for curious people, with a decidedly gothic/steampunk vibe. All ages, $1 at the door. Mourning Market is Seattle’s premiere dark themed market. An artists collective, featuring the Pacific Northwest’s spookiest artists, crafters and vendors. Hosted at El Corazon, Mourning Market is not your average show.  It is an experience. Encouraging artists and supporting its unique culture and dark romanticism.

The 2nd Thursday Art Walk in Capitol Hill, Thursday, 13 December from 5-8pm. The Ltd Gallery is hosting "Who Shot First? A Star Wars Art Show." Over 40 artists will be displaying their own unique interpretation of these classic films, drawing upon the characters and themes that have inspired them since childhood. Come see new work at Bauhaus Coffee, Blindfold Gallery, Boom Noodle, Cupcake Royale, High 5 Pie, Joe Bar, Laughing Buddha, Online Cafe, Retrofit Home, True Love Gallery, Vermillion, and more!

"Transmission" at the Mercury, Thursday, 8 November from 9.30pm til late. You do not have to be a member for this night, and you do not need a member to sign you in. It is open to the public. No dress code. Free for members before 9.30pm. Starts at 9pm and goes til 2am. The performer will go on around 10.30 and again at 11.30, and the artist will be there all night. Come buy art, drinks, hear music and watch a sexy lady dance. "Transmission" happens the 2nd Thursday of every month.

The 2nd Thursday Art Walk in West Seattle, Thursday, 8 November from 6-9pm. Don't miss new encaustic, oil, and acrylic works by Cyn Moore at the Twilight Artist Collective! Cyn Moore explores the crux between animal symbolism in traditional fairy tales, and the often uneasy relationship between captive animals and humans which exists in modern times. Also check out new work at The Heartland Cafe, Hotwire Coffee, Shoofly Pie, and more!

The 2nd Friday Art Walk in the Greenwood-Phinney neighbourhood, Friday, 14 December from 6-9pm. Don't miss "Hybrid Contortions: Art of the Fantastical & 3-Dimensional" at Urban Light Studios! Curated by me (Braden Duncan) and Zachary Sofia, this delightfully twisted show features work by a dozen local artists who have a flair for the dramatic, an eye for texture, and a tendency toward the 3-dimensional. 

Tasty Delectable Collectibles will be hosting "Gifted 3: A Holiday Group Show," featuring fine art for under $200 and a huge selection of handmade and one-of-a-kind gifts for under $100.

In case you missed it last month, "Picture Perfect" is having an encore opening at Bherd Studios. Seven artists new to the gallery present paintings, prints and mixed media artwork that prompts us to consider how we interact with the wild and wooly, and how those interactions in turn change and shape us. How do we see the natural world: as fearsome and dark, welcoming and fuzzy, a place where we have a niche or an alien kingdom quite separate from ours? Whether cuddly or cruel, the natural world and its animal denizens are omnipresent in the works of “Picture Perfect”. Smiling and biting both show some teeth, and these seven artists bring their work to a new audience and fresh perspectives to the complex relationship between civilization and the wild. Features work by Lea Barozzi, Savannah Horrocks, Jeff Leake, MJ Lindo, Mary Louise Silva, Rawkson and Joe Vollan.

Also see new and exciting work at Full Circle, EchoEcho, Naked City Brewery, Gainsbourg, Two Bird Tattoo, Chocolatti, and more!

The 2nd Friday Art Walk in Belltown, Friday, 14 December from 6-9pm. Roq la Rue is hosting "Let the Devil Wear Black" by Femke Hiemstra and "Disasterama" by Ryan Heshka. Femke Hiemstra’s meticulously tight, jewel-like mixed media paintings and exquisitely rendered black and white drawings are homes to a dark fairytale land where inanimate objects come to life and frolic with animal neighbours. Ryan Heshka unapologetically pays homage to Golden Era sci fi pulp while creating a style that is also uniquely his own. He explores themes of man vs nature, (even though often the "nature" is from another world) as well as the exploring the ideology of pushing the limits of science as a tool to help and further mankind, and the technological terrors that can be inadvertently unleashed as a result.

Braden Duncan, "Key Notes I" @ Otherworlds

The 3rd Thursday Art Walk in Edmonds, Thursday, 20 December from 5-8pm. Come see my (Braden Duncan's) newest "Mechanical Aviary" and "Key Notes" watercolours at Otherworlds, the shiny new steampunk themed shop in downtown Edmonds! And check out Cheesemongers next door if you have the chance. More than 40 other local businesses also take part in the Edmonds art walk. Check it.

The 3rd Friday Art Walk in the University District, Friday, 21 December from 6-9pm. Come see brand new work at Gargoyles Statuary, Artist & Craftsman, BC Surf & Sport, Cafe Allegro, Chaco Canyon Cafe, Solstice Cafe, Starbucks and more! Don't forget to stop by Boulevard Grocery for a bag of fresh-roasted coffee hand-painted by a local Seattle artist!

See selections from my (Braden Duncan, your humble narrator's) "Hummingburst" series as well as my Rorschach watercolour inkblots inspired by David Mack's "Kabuki" comics at The Jewel Box Cafe in Northgate. The show is up all month!

With this much going on, you couldn't possibly complain that there's nothing to do in Seattle!

Support your local art scene! Cheers.

~ BCDuncan