Be The Animal: Beth Cavener Stichter @ The Art Spirit Gallery, Cda

In the hands of Disney illustrators, anthro- pomorphism is cute, entertaining. In the hands of sculptor Beth Cavener Stichter, the use of animals to articulate the human condition is powerful, visceral, evocative and sometimes disturbing... See Inlander article

COMMUNITY-MINDED TELEVISION: ARTIST SHOWCASE

Call for Submissions July 2008

WHAT:  Community-Minded TV (CMTV) wants to showcase the work of Inland Northwest artists by airing samples of their work.  All contributors will be credited with name and email (or website address).

WHO:  Visual artists (photography, illustration, painting, sculpture, cartooning, etc.) and musicians who compose/play original music.  Participants should live within a hundred-mile-radius of Spokane County.

WHERE:  CMTV reaches 100,000 households in the city and county of Spokane, and Spokane Valley, through Comcast cable channel 14.

WHEN: Artist Showcase segments will air on channel 14 during times not regularly scheduled with other programming.  (As of June 2008, regular programming is scheduled between 3PM and midnight).  

HOW: Visual art “slide shows” will be paired with copyright-free music at CMTV’s discretion.   CMTV reserves the right to choose which materials to air on the station, and to request the lyrics of music provided.  All material aired must conform to CMTV’s programming standards.  

Art and music submissions should be delivered to the station on CD or DVD, in JPEG or TIF file formats for visual material and MPEG3 for audio files.  No emailed materials accepted.  Music album cover art can also be supplied if available.  Signed releases are required for all materials aired on CMTV.
 
CONTACT:   For more information, please contact Jill Johnson, CMTV Marketing and Programming Coordinator, at 509-444-3381 or jillj@community-minded.org. The Community-Minded TV offices are located at downtown’s Saranac building:  25 W. Main Avenue, Suite 436, Spokane, WA, 99201. Submissions can also be hand delivered to Community-Minded Enterprises, 25 W. Main Avenue, at the 3rd floor reception area outside of the elevator.

Downtown Cda "Galleries"

Summer is finally here (with a vengeance) and most of downtown Coeur d'Alene (aka Sherman Avenue) is abuzz with activity. When my buddy Dale came into town from Seattle, we hit Capone's first, then scooted downtown to geegawk at passersby from the vantage point of the Wine Cellar's new outdoor dining locale, Tango Tapas.

While there, we popped into a few art "galleries." It amazes me what passes for a gallery. If art is shown there, it's a gallery, apparently. Regardless of the quality of the work or the knowledgeability of the persons showing the work, if there's "art" on the wall, it's a "gallery." To me, a gallery space needs to be dedicated to selling and promoting the art and artists (not knick-knacks or t-shirts or whatnot), e.g. The Art Spirit Gallery. Devin Galleries and The Painter's Chair are ok. And Angel Fine Art has some fine artists, like Rachel Dolezal and Mary Maxam, but way too much other stuff too to be a traditional gallery. 

That's not saying what they do isn't valuable; it's just saying gallery is a term way too loosely applied.

Regardless, we dropped into Studio 107, which now shares space with the newly opened TimberRock Winery tasting room. Yikes. Mostly schlocky, really amateur or just goes-with-your-couch kind of stuff, with the exception of some of the work by Nelson Duran, who runs Bank Left Gallery in the Palouse. 

Up the street at La Muse, a new "gallery," an artist named Bonnie was supposed to be showing but if she was, the work was overshadowed by terrific illustrations from David L. Clemons. Cool space. I'll be curious to see what they do with it.

In the meantime, mark your calendar for the new show at The Art Spirit: Beth Cavener Stichter. Ceramic sculpture and some bronzes. Very powerful work. Definitely need to see it installed in the Gallery. 

Jacklin Arts & Culture Center features Julyamsh Indian Art Show

The 3rd annual Julyamsh Indian Art Show and Sale, featuring over 30 artists will be held Thursday, July 24 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Jacklin Arts & Culture Center (at The Old Church), 405 William Street in Post Falls’ historic district. A variety of sculpture, jewelry, paintings, and much more will be on display for viewing and purchase   
  

This event has become one of the JACC’s signature events; a cultural enriching experience, featuring treats like frybread, Native Americans dressed in full regalia, music, art raffle and refreshments. Internationally renown artists including George Flett and Richard Hill will be present to explain their creative techniques.

“The JACC Julyamsh event is an opportunity to build connections and community between cultures,” said Cliff SiJohn of the Coeur d’Alene Tribe. “This event is a special preview of what the general public can experience at the Julyamsh Pow Wow Celebration the following weekend.”

For more information contact Jacklin Arts & Culture Center, 208-457-8950.

Behind the Scenes Gallery Owner Behind the Camera

Centerline, photography by Jim Kolva @ Kolva Sullivan, 115 S. Adams St., Spokane, Wa. Call 509.458.5517.

Jim Kolva wears a lot of hats, including businessman and gallery owner. He's passionate about art, especially ceramics, and--along with his partner Pat Sullivan--showcases both established and emerging artists at his Adams Street gallery. 

This month, however, the white-washed walls are wearing images by Kolva. About a dozen color photos, about 12" x 18" or so, all from one of Kolva's trips to New York City, Brooklyn in particular. "Centerline" is, literally, a depiction of the roadway: gritty, highly textured asphalt flanked by the familiar white stripe and, in various stages of decay, yellow paint.

They're interesting and well-mounted (so that the horizontal "stripe" appears continuous). If they were perhaps larger and a more matte finish (the gloss takes away from the focus on texture), they'd even evoke a Wow. As it is, the photos do exactly what the photographer did: elevate something common from off the ground and into our field of vision where we can't help but take stock.

Stroll Through Sandpoint's ArtWalk

Viggo Mortensen (devastatingly handsome Aragorn in Lord of the Rings) isn't the only reason to trek north to Sandpoint for ArtWalk. His work will be on display at Hallan's Gallery, the Ross Hall photography collection.

So if you need more reasons, there's a new show at the Power House called "About Faces." And there are more than 20 "galleries" participating, virtually all over town, including outdoor sculpture. 

For more info, check out www.inlander.com preview or Pend Oreille Art Council's website.

Inlander Review: Palouse Pair

Rumor has it Inlander is going to upgrade its online version but until then here's the link to the review, minus the gorgeous images of Katherine Nelson's and William Turner's artwork. For that you'll need to get a current Inlander or go to Chase Gallery in Spokane to see the artwork up close and personal.