We are now accepting applications for the 2012 Spring Show. Postcards are being delivered to art related businesses throughout the Seattle area. See our events page for general information. See the prospectus for the complete schedule, submission rules, fees and other vital information, then Apply for admission to the show using the online form.

Please sign up for our newsletter today so you will receive all notifications and updates! That is the most important thing you can do to make sure you will be completely informed about the Spring Show and all future shows.

First Thursday Artwalk -Pioneer Square

Art in the trees!

Art on the tree’s knees!

Art on paper.

Art on canvas.

Art on wood.

Art on metal.

Art on textiles.

Art on ceramics.

Art in booths.

Art on the sidewalk.

Art on people!

Art is calling… will you answer?

Please help us determine the direction of our Public Art Shows at the Bemis Building.  We are interested in hearing from all residents, and all blog subscribers. Public art shows are a fantastic opportunity but they take a lot of preparation, planning and execution. It really takes a lot of effort, but as everyone knows “many hands make light work”.

Comments are off, because that’s what the form is for – just fill it out. We’d love to hear from you.

Rip Van Winkle by N.C. Wyeth 1921 -public domain by flickr: "freeparking"

While that may seem like a strange topic, he did learn something about an unintended slumber. Ours was due to a high turnover in both blog contributors and building residents. The upside is that we have a new batch of artists to interview, and more new art to share with our subscribers.

We also propose a few changes in the blog to help insure sustainability in the future. The main idea here is an expectation of contribution by all the residents of this lovely building, so stay tuned. There is more to come.

Now, we ‘d like to introduce ourselves as the new editors: Troy is the new “Artists” editor.  Marly is the new “Art of Work” editor and Bronwen is the new “Art Localista” editor. With our new community driven approach we thought having an area of specializaton would help, rather than going with a vertical chain of command. There is room for more editors, so speak up if you are a resident with an interest and let your voice be heard.

Our first action is to express our thanks to the original team of editors: Jenn Morgan, Kadence Englehardt, Lisa Berry, Tim Derry, and Erin Marie Letterman. Without their effort and dedication this blog simply would not be. We would also like to thank the others who contributed articles: Cameron Karston and Jessica Bright, and to all of the subscribers who voiced their comments to the articles and features of the site. No community is complete without everyone pitching in.

For the next little while we will be busy with some basic housekeeping chores. So if you were wondering what happened to your comments, they’re stuck in the queue. We will evaluate them one at a time and either clear them or publish them. Most we expect will no longer be relevant, but your cleverness may still win through and be seen. We will also be making other subtle changes here and there, in addition to resuming publication of new articles.  As the new items are published, opportunity for comments will resume, so peak up if you have questions, submit an article if you have a great idea (anyone can contribute an article) and by all means, let us know how we’re doing so we can improve.

That’s it for now folks!

Troy, Marly and Bronwen.

Artist, Beverly Gimlin, whom you may remember from Light, Silence back in May of this year is having a show this November. Here’s the official invitation; we hope to see you all there!

A Seattle Neighborhood Art Walk Draws People into the Business

By Erin Marie Letterman

“Art it up!”,, read the Greenwood art walk brochure.  That was exactly what I intended to do as my friend, Jody, and I hopped out of her car onto Greenwood Ave.  The sunny weather was reflected in the faces of the visitors.  Rivulets of people were already streaming in from side streets along the avenue.  The local shops were gearing up for the festivities planned by the Greenwood-Phinney Chamber of Commerce; opening their doors and encouraging visitors by staying open after hours, serving drinks and appetizers, and doing whatever else their creativity affords them to attract attention.

My first stop was the Steven Cole Salon, and with good reason (Warning: Shameless self promotion to follow).  Yours truly is showing six paintings there, and I wanted to make sure everything looked alright for the expected influx of viewers.  Showing work at alternative venues like salons, pubs, and coffee houses is a great way for emerging artists, like myself, to gain exposure and build their resumes.  It’s a win-win situation for local businesses to get free decor while artists get their foot in the door, business-wise.

Jody was an art walk virgin, having never attended one before, and was curious what to expect.  A consummate people person,  she was already chatting with Dianna Anderson, the salon’s front desk employee, as I finished fussing over my work.  I caught Dianna explaining to Jody, “They’re just fun.  People really get into them.”  She wasn’t wrong!  Looking outside, we could see people setting up small stands to sell their crafts along the street, dogs and kids running about, street musicians getting their gear tuned, and many people dressed in one outrageous costume or another, everyone out to see and be seen.

Next door at the Couth Buzzard Bookstore,  the warm yellow light from the large front windows permeated the store.  The rich coffee smells mingled with the light chatter of patrons gave me the distinct feeling of coziness. There was artwork from six different artists crowding the walls, each piece jostling for a place of prominence.  According to Theo Dzielak, one of the bookstore’s owners, there were just so many artists that had asked to show their work, he decided to show from a range instead of choosing just one artist.  The store was already booked for shows through October!  I asked Theo why a bookstore would participate in art walks.  He explained to me that art walk participation was helpful in building a supportive local business community.  The various businesses in the neighborhood all do their part to show local artists and bring in a good crowd of viewers into their shops.  “We’re all small businesses here — we all support each other.”

After a few more stops in different shops up the street, including a gallery  (www.assembleshop.com), a pet store, and a yarn shop (www.fibergallery.com), Jody and I decide to have a bite to eat at a local restaurant (www.gasparesrestaurant.com).  We snagged a table outside so we could people-watch.  From our table we could see people bustling in and out of the Francine Seders Gallery.  A band was setting up just to the right of the restaurant, apparently booked by the gallery to draw attention to their location at the far south end of the art walk.  Looking north, a handful of men, their hair more salt than pepper, were doing skateboard tricks in order to promote wearing safety gear.  Many grass-roots organizations not affiliated with art related activity still take advantage of the large crowds art walks attract.

;;;;;

;

;

;

;

After having a beer and a snack, we resumed our trek heading back the other way down the west side of the street.  Outside of the True Value Hardware, just next to the parking lot, there was an artist selling his paintings of Hawaiian surf culture.   The artist, John Holm, said his work is carried in a couple galleries in Kaui and Oahu, but he didn’t want to pass up the opportunity afforded by the beautiful weather and the crowd that it inspired.  So he asked the owner of the hardware store if he could utilize the spare bit of garden in the parking lot to show his work.  What an entrepreneurial spirit and a creative way to get your work out there!

Next, we stop at soon-to-open Theo’s Produce store, with local Greenwood painter Jim Carey working on a mural for the store interior entrance.  Such a variety of venues supporting the arts!  We hit up another local gallery called Art on the Ridge, followed by Rockwell Realty.  It was there we found what I thought were the best paintings of the entire art walk, by artist Mary McIntyre Mary McIntyre.  Her figurative work was technically very good, but her painting of old beer bottles and cans was superb.  She managed to transform her recycling pile into something akin to a stained glass cathedral window.  The artist focused on the jeweled play of light and color within the labeled glass and aluminum, thereby diminishing the subject of garbage itself, so the viewer could appreciate the abstractness and beauty of the experience.  Just goes to show that art walks offer the possibility of finding new talent around every corner – even in realty shops!

By the end of the art walk, I feel like I’ve really gotten to know the Greenwood neighborhood.  It has a strong sense of community due to the local businesses working together, and a strong feel of community support thanks to the huge number of people that came out to participate.  What a blast!

Art Localista scouts the art terrain of the world, relating a localized perspective while traversing a variety of global locales. A native Seattelite at heart, Erin Marie Letterman is interested in how various communities sustain and support their local art and artists.

Design by Lisa Berry

Produced by Jenn Morgan

Supported by Bemis Building’s Art Committee

“People remember good stories. They don’t remember the bad ones.”  StEvE EdgE

Thanks to Do Lectures

a poem by Samantha Bennett

And as you stand there

Sunshining all over our Rain Parade

Voice cheering

Toes tapping

Eyes dancing

Let us now praise you.

You, the mango-coconut in our vanilla world.

You, the red balloon in our blue sky.

You, the hooray-for-your-new-job (or hooray-for-your-engagement or hooray-for-your-wedding or hooray-for-your-new-baby or hooray-for-your-divorce) party-throwing friend.

Your door is always open

And don’t think we don’t take advantage of it.

Your heart is always open

And don’t think we don’t take advantage of it.

You have a particular kind of bravery:

The not-being-afraid-of-feelings kind of brave

The stand-up-and-be-counted kind of brave

The jump-off-the-high-dive (again) (naked) kind of brave.

We always know when you’re in the audience, because

We recognize your laugh.

And as you sit us down and give us your full-beam attention and as you ask us for every detail of our latest adventure (how do you always lead us to the conclusion that our life is an adventure?) and as we, flattered by your unwavering, bright-eyed gaze, end up going on and on and on and on, we have to mentally waft away the annoying, fluttering thought,

“Yes, but: Who takes care of you?”

Because we know that underneath the nonstop carnival there is a lot of

Damn hard work and that some of

Your sparkle

Is the glitter from the parts that got

Broken.

We’ve seen you fall and get right back up and assumed that it must not have been that much of a

Tumble but the truth is that

You alone have the

Strength to Rise.

And so it is from you we learn that while we may not always

Feel happy

We can always feel

Joy.

And as you Gush and Exclaim and Twist and Shout and Wiggle with pleasure and Yelp and Hoot and Swear out loud and Burst into tears and Rush in and Hug and Holler across the room in a way that some might think of as

Embarrassing, we

Bask in your fearless conviction that

No human experience is unlovable.

Thank you for that.

So let’s break out the

Sequins and the feather boas and

Have dessert first and

Grin at strangers and

Let’s do the Hokey-Pokey and really

Put our Whole Self in

And order one more bottle because it’s so nice to all be together

Under the Abundant Sun.

© 2009 Samantha Bennett

Originally from Chicago, Samantha Bennett is creativity/productivity specialist and the creator of The Organized Artist Company. She is also a working writer, actor and teacher who works primarily with creative people who’d like to be more organized and organized people who’d like to be more creative.   She is the author “By The Way, You Look Really Great Today: Selected Poems by Samantha Bennett” and the about-to-be-released-any-minute-now, “365 Reasons To Write.” To view or purchase more of her works, please visit her website.

Just Take It For What It Is: Beauty Redefined

by Tim Dery

;

A lex Lim’s eye-catching photos of beautiful models in breathtaking outdoor settings remind me of a cover for a surrealist fantasy novel, or a poster for said novel turned into a movie. It’s not fantasy though; it’s all real. It’s not hard to spend hours taking in the photos on his site and letting your mind wander into the landscapes and lives and stories presented there.

His studio in the Bemis Building is a cavernous but simple space, with huge windows that let in plenty of natural light. One end is set up with photography gear and pieces for a shoot, and some of his work adorns the walls.

Alex is a Seattle-based photographer whose website (www.atreidex.com) is hard to pronounce. We’ll get to that.

Tim Dery: I really like the setup of your website, how easy it is to browse through the pictures. Is that Flash?

Alex Lim: Yeah, I played around with some of the different portfolio options. I stuck with that one, simpleviewer. There’s a pro version you can customize more, but I try to keep it as simple as possible. It’s easy to navigate, you see thumbnails right away, nothing’s hidden, it’s easy to skim through.

TD: Your photographs on the site are fascinating – the landscapes look like surrealist fantasy landscapes.

AL: Thanks. Most people ask if they are greenscreen, studio shot type of stuff. It is kind of annoying, because you put in so much work to drive five hours and then climb the mountain or whatever and people think it seems fake. It is a little flattering because if it is that impressive or it evokes that sort of reaction in someone, that’s gotta be good.

Right now I’m in the middle of planning something where we’re going all the way down to the Washington Oregon border. It’s not that far, but for some of the Seattle photographers and models, for this sort of work, it’s pretty extensive to take a whole team that far.

TD: How big a team do you usually have when you shoot?

AL: On most of the fashion editorials or location shoots, maybe 4 to 6. They can get a lot bigger, but I usually try to keep the size down because it makes the logistics easier to manage.

TD: How much planning goes in to one of these shoots?

AL: It takes a two- to three- week period, mostly managing everyone else and the logistics. That way, the team is on board with what you are doing, and the schedules work out.

Often on basic fashion test shoots, there’s a rough concept and a meet and great. Then you have a quick high-energy session and you’re done. I prefer the shoots where there’s more pre-production, more planning going in.

TD: How do you find your locations for the shots?

AL: Wherever (laughs). Sometimes literally just go drive around all day. I try to use all the tools out there; Google Maps has some location photos. With an IPhone you can do a Google Maps satellite view and combine it with the associated photos, then drive around looking at the pictures around you. If anything looks remotely interesting, I’ll go check it out. I found a few places like that.

When I was down in the Bay area, I didn’t know a lot of the outlying neighborhoods and cities very well. Most of them have a decent website. What do they do? They take some of their most notable places and stick them up there as promotion. That’s a great way to find cool sites in the area. I have a shot of my girlfriend at this mountain theatre that’s how I found that one, at the city’s website.

TD: That picture is incredible, it was one of the first ones that really jumped out. My reaction was “What am I looking at? This is crazy!”

AL: Thanks. That’s Cushing Memorial Amphitheater. I never did a full shoot there. We were out on a scouting trip; we went there just to check it out and it was super foggy and cold. Whenever we go out scouting like that we’ll bring some outfits along, just in case we want to do an impromptu photo shoot. That one turned out pretty well.

TD: It was great how you tied your martial arts background into your photography story on your website bio.

AL: I though about it a lot, especially he first couple of years when I was starting to shoot. Most of the people I encountered that were more in the arts community seemed really different than me. I looked at things in a more serious, strict kind of way. There are a lot of superficial aspects related to the fashion industry; there’s so much ego and attitude, and the pomp and fakeness. I felt different than most of the people I was meeting. I felt that was a strength for me, coming from a background where I value a lot of these other things that seem to be lacking in this industry. I thought “this has got to help set me apart and my work will be different”. It’s less of a conscious thing now, and it doesn’t translate as literally as it did a few years ago.

TD: When you first started as a photographer, were you doing fashion shoots?

AL: Yeah, when I first started it was the same as a lot of photographers, where they start general and then realize they need to shoot people or people related things if they want to make any money. A lot of them end up dabbling in the people stuff, and then they realize that “I don’t really want to shoot babies, I don’t really want to shoot seniors”, you know…

TD: Dogs, cats…

AL: Right, dogs, cats, weddings, so then it becomes “what am I, am I a portrait photographer?” There’s portraits, there’s fashion, it was kind of like that, although really fast, over the course of the first two or three months of picking up the camera. At the end of the first month I was like “I really don’t want to be shooting events”, by the second month I was sort of “I want to be getting portrait clients”, and then after that I was thinking “that feels really limited, I want to create something”, so then I went to fashion and editorial work where you can tie everything into the photo. It’s a lot more my taste where the location of the story and all that stuff comes in to play. That’s how it evolved, right in the first few months.

TD: What prompted you to pick up the camera?

AL: I started a couple months after college while doing a halfhearted job search in tech fields. I got a business degree, but I really didn’t want to have a regular nine-to-five corporate job. Eventually I made a website on the side that was supposed to be for graphic design, web design, and photography. The photography came from just the year before when I bought an SLR for a Taekwondo fundraiser.

Good cameras were getting cheaper, I was interested and eventually bought an SLR when it was affordable. I thought “Hey I’ll use it for a club fundraiser”. It was Mom’s weekend over at WSU, when all the families come visit and everyone is just roaming around everywhere. I thought “why don’t we see if we can put up a fundraiser and take portraits of the families, since they probably haven’t had pictures with their kids in years?” It kinda worked; we made a decent amount of money. The photos were terrible, but that’s where the little bit of spark started, in terms of “I can do this, I can shoot people”. I shot maybe 150 different parties in a 3 day period! Even now, that sounds ridiculously crazy, I wouldn’t want to do that. But it was fun to play the photographer and people just assumed I knew what I was doing, you know?

TD: So long as you could pretend to know more than them?

AL: Right, like they would come in and I’d say “OK, have a seat. Now try to turn this way”, and they went right along with it. It was sort of weird to be directing all these strangers, but that’s where I realized that having my own business thing on the side could work. It just took over after that.

TD: How much do you think your business degree has helped with your photography business?

AL: (laughs) Not much! I think the martial arts helped more. I don’t mean it from the discipline side of it, but the real life sense of it. I built the Taekwando at WSU. That was more or less a business trial in itself. There were managerial skills involved in running the program, and there were all sorts of political interactions with the administration. I think that definitely did help. It also helped with the people skills and the interactions that I use while shooting. That comes into play more than the actual business coursework.

TD: How do you like the Bemis Building and your space?

AL: It’s great, I’ve only been here a few months. I don’t want to say I’m already used to it, but it’s a weird feeling; when I first got in and checked it out, moving in, it felt ginormous. Now, it doesn’t feel small, by any means, but it feels small-er. I guess it’s pretty big, but not really; my windows are right there! Everyone looks at me like “this isn’t small!”. But it’s been good in the building so far, no complaints. I like living here.

TD: Do you do much shooting here?

AL: Yeah, part of the whole deal with having a live/work space is using it as studio space. That’s something I’ve always wanted to have.

TD: You didn’t have a studio down in Frisco?

AL: No, when I was shooting previously it was always studio sharing, which is OK to help keep costs down a little bit, but it’s a trade off. I hated the idea that I couldn’t build sets, that I had to come in and set up, shoot, and then break down. It’s not ideal. I’m also a bit of a neat freak, so the thought of coming in and cleaning up someone else’s mess got annoying. But now that I actually have my own space, I’m making myself explore a lot more of the in-studio work. If you look at my work, most of it is on location. I definitely like that better. That was kind of a product of not having studio space before, so I had to shoot on location. I prefer to always be outside, even if it’s something that could have been shot in a studio, I’d rather go down an alley or something.

TD: That’s interesting. If you would have had studio space, do you think you would have been on location as much?

AL: Probably a little bit less. I like that outside environments change, light is changing, people are in the way, you have to move and do whatever it takes. It’s just more interesting. It can be more stressful, but I think that’s what helps produce more interesting results. Studio work feels more static and boring. If you are in the studio, whatever you get is completely your fault, good or bad.

TD: You can tweak everything.

AL: Right. That sounds good, but at the same time that doesn’t sound very good! (laughs) Lately I’ve been shooting more regularly in here. I’ve been trying to do more beauty stuff, and a little more subject related stuff, model stuff, even more sensual stuff. That’s easier done in a studio rather than out somewhere. You need a little privacy.

TD: What prompted you to go the direction of the studio work?

AL: I think my weak point is the really technical, precise studio work. There are a number of photographers all over that do that type of work, but it’s the opposite of what I do. They have incredibly simple shots, like a white wall with a shadow, and always in the studio. A lot of it I don’t particularly like, but I admire the fact that they are very good at that style. They’ve done really well with it. I wanted to focus on studio work in the interest of having a better rounded book and having a broader skill set.

TD: How often to you get to just take pictures for the sake of taking pictures? Like for your own pursuits, vs doing stuff for work or for a portfolio?

AL: You mean where I literally have no foresight what this is supposed to be for? It’s kind of a mix. A lot of the photos that I have up on the site are personal work, so that is definitely more along the lines of whatever the hell I want to do, but some of it is a collaboration with a startup designer who’s starting to get a look book going. They want some specific items, but they also want me to bring something to the table creatively.

The way I try to do any photo work has a degree of uncompromising. What I mean is that I don’t want to do any content or any types of shoot that has aesthetics that I don’t personally like. Just because I’d get a job shooting catalog products or something that might pay really well…

TD: Like cats or something?

AL: Right, I don’t want to do that. It means that I probably don’t make nearly as much money as I could if I was gonna do those types of things, but I don’t market myself that way. I don’t pursue those types of jobs. I’d rather focus on exactly what I want to be doing, be good at it, and be sought for things that are along those lines.

TD: I’m probably going to butcher it, but your website URL is atreidex.com. What’s that from?

AL: (laughs) I took that from when I was really little, from the Dune novel series. Why is kind of vague, and it’s pretty personal how it became my call sign and my URL. It’s a little bit iffy since most people can’t pronounce it, for good reason. I mean, look at it, it’s an unusual word. I’m fully aware that when it comes to a URL on your website, the simpler it is to say and remember the better, but I did it on purpose.

TD: That’s where I looked and said “it’s well laid out, you’ve got a nice blog and the logo and everything, but the URL. How is anyone going to remember this?”!

AL: Well, it was a conscious thing, in the sense that I know it’s hard to remember, it’s hard to pronounce, but there are multiple reasons for it. I didn’t want to have something like alexlimphotography.com. That sounds really easy to remember, but it didn’t fit with the style I was trying to go for. People remember images long before they remember the name. People will bookmark it, or forward it to a friend, so it won’t really matter as much that it’s a hard word.

There’s one photographer that I was inspired by back when I first started shooting, four or five years ago. His name is Sacha Dean Biyan, and his website is eccentris.com. I can never remember it! I was trying to refer it to people, saying “you should go to this site” and I had to look him up by name. It was that situation where everythying was extremely styled and sort of uncompromising in the way he laid things out and it had this funky name, but he’s a super successful dude and his whole thing has really taken off even though his URL is hard to say and hard to spell; it’s a made up word.

TD: You had mentioned wanting to do your own thing and be known for that. What would that look like, what would that be?

AL: I’m really into non-pop-culture ideas of beauty. I don’t want to say “non-white” models, but I think the showcasing of non-white beauty through things like fashion and pop culture is in its infancy. The melting pot idea is not new, but there are still huge gaps and divides. For example, Asian actors don’t get leading roles in movies – that’s just the way it is.

There are certain stereotypes of beauty expected in models, if they are Asian or white or black or whatever. I guess what I would try to focus on in the future, as an ideal, are those types of beauty combined. Cultural evolutions, mixed ethnicity, mixed with elements of different kinds of culture in the fashion. I’d like to produce the sort of photography where you can’t tell the location of the shoot. It’d be futuristic, not in a sci-fi technology sense, but where everyone looks like mixed races. You would see different parts of the globe fused throughout the whole scene. That’s the kind of work that I would want to focus on and be known for.

As for expressing those ideas now, that would probably best be used for tourism or travel, showcasing the best of a culture, local places, local food, and different elements of beauty, stuff like that.

TD: Have you had any opportunities to do that sort of work?

AL: Not nearly to the extent I’d want. Usually it’s smaller elements, like trying to feature a model that’s half Saudi, half something else, that kind of thing. In terms of applying it to work and jobs, it hasn’t really come up too much. That’s my goal, but it’s not the main focus of most of my clients. I try to fit in though, and try to use the multi-cultured beauty idea as much as possible.

TD: If there was something that you could tell people about your work that isn’t readily apparent or obvious, what would you like them to know?

AL: I guess what I hope would come across when people are looking at my work is that it looks different. Not different just for the sake of being different, but because I am different. I don’t consider myself a artsy. I would acknowledge that I have some unique tastes, and the execution of those through my work is my ‘artistic style’, but I really don’t equate it to any higher level.

It’s hard to say just one singular thing I’d like people to know about my work. In a way, it’s just there, just look at it and take it for what it is.

;

Alex is a 28 year old self-taught fashion photographer from Seattle.  He is inspired by self-made individuals, and believes passion is the lifeblood of success. Coming from a martial arts background, he constantly seeks to expand his abilities and excel.  He feels it is a necessity to incorporate ethnic minorities and cultural influences into his work whenever possible, and strives to capture all forms of beauty.

;

;

‘ Art (of) Work‘ offers an intimate view into the artist’s world.

Design by Lisa Berry

Produced by Jenn Morgan