GREENWOOD: Bherd Studios 5-Year Anniversary

If you're not at Bherd Studios' five-year anniversary show to-night, you're missing out on the art opening of the season!

Over the past five years, John and Michele Osgood, owners/directors of Bherd, have made it their mission to promote the talents of emerging and locally established artists from the Pacific Northwest by providing a space for them to be seen and 'bherd'. "Look Up Here: 5 Years of Urban & Contemporary Art" features work by 33 artists who have curated shows and participated in past Bherd Studios exhibits and events. Each of these artists have created unique and inspiring bodies of work and consistently go out of their way to support other artists in the Seattle art community.

Redd Walitzki @ Bherd Studios

Redd Walitzki and her partner Carl Faulkner created Studio X-17, a gallery space designed to exhibit emerging, counter-culture, and controversial work. Established in 2008 as part of the 1st Thursday art walk in Pioneer Square, X-17 has showcased over 200 local and international artists. X-17 is currently looking for a new home due to the closure of the 619 Arts Building last year, but a new art space, Pi2, is in the works. Both Redd and Carl designed rooms for the City Hostel Seattle project, and have exhibited work in numerous venues in the Pacific Northwest.

Siolo Thompson recently curated the "Pretty Sexy Dirty Girly" show at Bherd Studios, a selection of provocative works by talented women artists. She has been invited to curate a show for True Love Gallery in July, and she frequently exhibits at Bherd and other Seattle art spaces. She participates in live painting events around the city, and her illustration and animation work have been featured locally and internationally.

Chris Sheridan has shown his paintings in Seattle, L.A., San Francisco, New York, Miami, Philadelphia, and other cities up and down the coasts. He also created a room for the City Hostel Seattle project, regularly participates in Bherd events, and builds hand-crafted and custom painted skateboards featuring his unique imagery.

Kate Protage has had exhibits in Seattle, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Princeton and New York. She shows regularly at Bherd Studios, and her Seattle art affiliations include the SAM Gallery, CORE Gallery, and the Twilight Artist Collective. Her work has also been featured in multiple magazines.

These are just a few examples of the efforts of the artists recognised in Bherd Studio's 5th anniversary show. Without their dedication and vision, Seattle's urban art scene would be a very different place.

EGO & Siolo Thompson @ Bherd Studios

"Look Up Here" featured artists:
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Carlos Aguilar 
Michelle Anderst 
Debbie Bianchi 
Zach Bohnenkamp
Chris Brett
Jenn Brisson 
Mike Capp 
Cash
Duffy
Ego
Justin Kane Elder 
Marty Gordon 
Jeremiah Hammer (dear earthling)
Justin Hillgrove
Ksera
Larkin 
Jesse Link
ninjagrl
John Osgood
Augie Pagan
Kate Protage
Mat Savage
Chris Sheridan
Michelle Smith-Lewis
Kellie Talbot
Siolo Thompson
Sensei23 
Solace 
Urban Soule
Dan Voelker
Joe Vollan 
Redd Walitzki

Check out the feature in Juxtapose Magazine! 

"Look Up Here" will be up through Friday, 27 April. The encore opening on Friday, 13 April will feature the 5-year anniversary art book (contact Bherd Studios to pre-order your copy) and artist signings. Bherd Studios is a part of the Greenwood Collective, an historic building home to six other art galleries that open every 2nd Friday for the Art Walk in the Greenwood-Phinney Ridge neighbourhood.

Chris Sheridan, Kate Protage and more! @ Bherd Studios

UrbanLight Studios, part of the Greenwood Collective and just down the hall from Bherd, is hosting an owl-themed extravaganza! Tiny owl cake pops in a fluffy tissue nest are going so fast they're practically flying out the door, but I manage to snag a picture before they all disappear. These unique and edible bite-size treats are courtesy of Julie and Jessica at the Ballard-based bakery, So Mini Sweets.
 

So Mini Sweets @ UrbanLight Studios

Other works of owlish delight include paintings by Andrew Miller (Mantisart), and Zelot.

Zelot @ UrbanLight Studios

Andrew Miller @ UrbanLight Studios

Ceramic artist Eva Funderburg has created a contingent of tiny owl-cat monsters. A part of me wishes these adorably dangerous creatures were about 20 times as large and alive so that I could smuggle home the entire fleet to train as my personal owl-cat guard. Then again, I suppose a pocket-sized monster has its uses...

Eva Funderburgh @ UrbanLight Studios

There is a fun and exciting Art Wall going down in Home Suite Home. Grab a pen or three and make your mark! The artscape changes considerably over the course of the evening; but before I leave for the night, I witness the scribbled antics of a mischievous raccoon, a be-sneakered hog of horrific proportions, an alien being with far too many limbs to be comfortable, and a plethora of obscure and archaic symbols. I scrawl a phrase in Elder Futhark and a watchful eye, and my guerrilla art mission for the eve is complete.

"Art Wall" @ Home Suite Home

Support your local art scene! Cheers!

~ BCDuncan

MARCH: Upcoming Art Events

If you need your art fix for the first couple weeks of March (and I know I do!), here are some shows that you won't want to miss:

The 1st Thursday Art Walk in Pioneer Square, Thursday, 1 March from 5-8pm (some galleries open as early as noon). The very first art walk in the United States, Pioneer Square's "1st Thursday" was established in 1981 by a group of art dealers with the intention of promoting their galleries. Now, three decades later, the art walk includes more than 50 galleries, studios and cafes, and is a fundamental part of the Seattle art scene.

"Gauguin and Polynesia" @ the Seattle Art Museum, Thursday, 1 March from 10am-9pm. Gauguin dabbled in Impressionism in the early 1880's before settling in French Polynesia and immersing himself in Primitivism, the style for which he is most remembered. The "Guaguin and Polynesia" exhibit will be up until 29 April.

The 1st Friday Art Walk in Fremont, Friday, 2 March from 6-9pm. This month, Fremont features the art of Soopajdelux @ Portage Bay Goods, Ivan Meljac photography @ Frame-Up Studios, the artists of Under the Needle @ the High Dive, and many, many more!

Print Exchange @ Captive Spirits Distillery in Ballard, Saturday, 3 March from 7-10pm. Captive Spirits is celebrating its grand opening! Although no alchohol will be served, it will be an open house for the new space, the Captive Spirits distilling process, and a showcase of fabulous print art.

The 2nd Thursday Art Walk in Capitol Hill, Thursday, 8 March from 5-8pm. Check out Ghost gallery, Gamma Ray Games, CakeSpy, Cupcake Royale, Bauhaus, Boom Noodle, and dozens of other art spaces for new and exciting work!


"Look Up Here" @ Bherd Studios celebrates five years of Northwest urban and contemporary art. The exhibit opens during the 2nd Friday Art Walk in the Greenwood-Phinney neighbourhood, Friday, 9 March from 6-10pm, and will remain on display through 27 April.

Support your local art scene! Cheers.

~ BCDuncan

GREENWOOD: Tasty, Pretty, Sexy, Dirty, Girly

*WARNING - Mature Content*

Art Up! The art walk in the Greenwood-Phinney Ridge neighbourhood spans over 20 blocks and includes more than 40 galleries, studios, and cafes. I'd love to hit them all, but that's a tall order for a single night. 

I'm wandering with friends this eve, and one of them has work in a couple different art spaces, so our mission begins with Tasty, a gallery of 'delectable collectibles'. Regularly featured are selections of crazy-beautiful creations by local artists and craft masters. This month the collection is "Girls Gone Wild", cutting-edge art by inventive women artists.

Redd Walitzki's new work is an ethereal melding of watercolour and sparkle dreams. She captures waif-like figures emerging from delicate bits of foliage, and bugs made somehow adorable.
 

Redd Walitzki @ Tasty

Redd Walitzki @ Tasty

The sparkle stencil pop art paintings of Glitter Mortis glimmer from across the room, and the surreal stylings of Patricia Ariel intrigue and beguile.

Patricia Ariel @ Tasty

Glitter Mortis @ Tasty

Would that I could spend the entire evening sipping champagne surrounded by cupcake clocks, fuzzy monster puppets and tiny top hats, but there is yet more art to see!

Tasty has teamed up with Bherd Studios for their second annual joint art walk exhibition. "Pretty, Sexy, Dirty, Girly" is a collection of works by female artists portraying aspects of feminine sexuality. This month the Bherd Studios boast a wide variety of media and performance art - dance, burlesque and a live DJ flavour this evening with awesome! The exhibit challenges viewers to consider not only their initial reaction to the subject matter, but also the ways in which it affects their interaction with the work, the artists, and the performers.

I've always been intrigued by the many facets of the human form. Finding myself suddenly confronted with and surrounded by femininity is both fascinating and inspiring. My paint brushes are going to get a work out to-night.

Crystal Barbre @ Bherd Studios

In her series "Magnetisme Animal", Crystal Barbre depicts provocative forms of human-animal fusion. Deftly rendered, her oils contain a hint of humour and a healthy dose of symbolism.


Siolo Thompson, curator of the "Pretty, Sexy, Dirty, Girly" exhibit, is displaying her "Naked Alphabet" drawings, deliciously scintillating with a Victorian flair.

Siolo Thompson @ Bherd Studios

Bherd Studios is part of the Greenwood Collective, an art space shared with Echo Echo, Home Suite Home, and Urban Light Studios. As a nod to the upcoming romantic holiday, "Sadie Hawkins" at Home Suite Home features collaborative works by female and male artists.

"Sadie Hawkins" @ Home Suite Home

Redd Walitzki and Carl Faulkner co-created a piece that speaks to both of their styles: Redd's muted watercolour palette and distinctive otherworldly figures, and Carl's colourfully abject 'visual taffy', in this case, bits of string ooze from the model's mouth.

Redd Walitzki (collaboration with Carl Faulkner) & her model Fox @ Home Suite Home

Next door to the Sadie Hawkins show, oil painter Iris Scott is exhibiting some of her newest works. Her impressionistic pieces are vibrant, textural, and painted by hand. Literally. Eschewing traditional technique, Iris prefers to paint with her finger tips. When I ask her about her process, she laughs and replies that finger painting is far more fun than cleaning brushes.

Iris Scott @ Greenwood Collective

Other notable art nooks in the Greenwood Collective include the spray paint/acrylic steampunk birds of CASH (Curtis Ashby), the MantisArt grafitti wall, and Nicole Dinardo's custom couture kitchen mixers.

CASH @ Greenwood Collective

MantisArt @ Greenwood Collective

Nicole Dinardo @ Greenwood Collective

The community of artists at the Greenwood Collective is imaginative, controversial, and compelling. The only down-side to the evening is that by the time I've finished exploring Bherd, Echo Echo, Home Suite Home, and Urban Light, the majority of the studios along the Greenwood-Phinney art walk have closed. I'll have to work on being in multiple places at once next time around...

I'll definitely be back next month for Bherd Studios' five-year anniversary show. "Look Up Here" celebrates five years of Northwest urban and contemporary art, and features artists who have made an impact in the Seattle art community by promoting and supporting other artists.

Come out and support your local art scene! Cheers.

~ BCDuncan

Sadie Hawkins & Blitz

If you don't mind braving the impending wet weather this week, wander down to the Greenwood-Phinney Ridge art walk on Thursday eve. Bherd Studios at the Greenwood Collective is hosting "Pretty, Sexy, Dirty, Girly" and the "Sadie Hawkins" show, a collaborative exhibit featuring local lady artists and the gentlemen they've artistically conscripted.

Also check out "Wild Girls" @ Tasty, a coordinated effort with Bherd Studios to showcase local women artists.

The Blitz Capitol Hill Art Walk opens the following night with new work at a number of venues including Bauhaus Books & Coffee, Cupcake Royale, Ghost Gallery, Green Door Studio, and Vermilion.

Support your local art scene!

~ BCDuncan