It may be tough to put a finger on why one of Wanda Garrity’s pottery pieces calls to you. It’s the sort of beauty that just “feels right.” But listen to the Wauna artist explain it, and it becomes clear that her work is not about giving art meaning — but rather about making a […]
artists
Posted inPeople & Places
Kountry Korners Krazy Kreatures
You can’t get to Kingston without passing the trolls! Folks from around the area aren’t certain about the history, but it is believed Mickey Whitbeck, who once owned the Kountry Korners store, recruited a carver from Forks. Whitbeck set him up next to the store with a stand to make chainsaw art for tourists. It […]
Posted inPeople & Places
Art with a Spirit
The first thing that jumps at you when you see Susie “Sooz” Mansueto’s tiny wood dwellings is the whimsy — bright, lovely designs that instantly put a smile on your face. But pause to study them, and you realize there’s something much deeper going on — poignant even, as you start reading a phrase painted […]
Posted inPeople & Places
Living and Loving Art Fully
Entering the home of Darrol and Judy Gover, one is struck immediately with the sense that this is where creativity lives, energy thrives, and not a moment of time is to be lost. Darrol, at 82, has a dozen projects going at once. And when he isn’t working in his garden, carving and painting a […]
Posted inFeatured, People & Places
Expressing Native Tradition Through Contemporary Art
While many artists excel in a variety of mediums, it’s rare to meet a master who is equally talented as a woodcarver, jewelry maker, painter, glassblower, printmaker and sculptor. For Larry “Ulaaq” Ahvakana, that’s not even a complete list. Known nationally for his sculptures — especially animals and Inupiaq figures — the Suquamish artist has […]
Posted inFeatured, People & Places
One Man’s Junk — An Artisan’s Treasure
When Jeff Yeager goes to a garage sale, he heads straight to the pile of unsightly junk — old toolboxes, rusty equipment, obsolete metal parts and the like. To the untrained eye, it all looks like a heap of unusable thingamabobs. But Yeager is like the proverbial kid in the candy store. “I always want […]
Posted inAround West Sound, Blog, Featured
Gig Harbor Open Studio Tour Features 26 Artists
The Greater Gig Harbor Open Studio Tour celebrates its 23rd season by consolidating studios so that visitors can see more artists’ work with fewer stops and less driving. Twenty-six artists, including five who are new to the tour, will participate at 15 locations. The tour is open Friday-Sunday, Sept. 18-20 from 10 a.m. to 5 […]
Posted inFeatured, People & Places
Artist John Jewell — Portraits in Two and Three Dimensions
When John Jewell retired from a career of more than 30 years in education, he knew he “wanted to do art.” He’d been gradually taking art classes — starting out as something to do with his daughter. He knew he had found a new passion. What he didn’t know is where that passion would take […]
Posted inFeatured, People & Places
Jim Valley — A Life Lived in Color
Much by his own design, Jim Valley inhabits a color-filled world. During summers on his property in the Cromwell area of Gig Harbor, for instance, he has only to look out the windows of his house to behold the rich, evolving tapestry of his gardens, including the multihued zinnias that were his first foray into […]