46th Street Mural Project: Call for Artist Designs

46th Street Mural Artist Needed

CALL TO ARTISTS- 46TH ST. MURAL PROJECT: A mural to bridge the Fremont and Wallingford communities in Seattle, to bring a positive visual message to pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists traveling under Highway 99 (Aurora Ave.) at N. 46th St. Our goal is to oversee the creation of a mural as a positive expression of our community and to bring people together from the local neighborhoods in the process. The selected artist(s) will coordinate execution of their design with Urban Artworks (www.urbanartworks.org) who will serve as project manager. Urban Artworks will execute the actual painting of the mural. We are looking solely for a design from the artist. LOCATION: North side of underpass at N. 46th St. at Aurora Avenue North–Hwy. 99–in Seattle, WA 98103

SITE: A long wall divided in to 3 sections that taper on both east and west ends– mural design also to include 9 columns that stand in front of the mural wall. Dimensions–approx. 4500 sq. ft. total (see attached pictures + diagram): West section: approx.1000 sq. ft. Middle section: approx.1300 sq. ft. East section: approx.1200 sq. ft. 9 columns: approx. 100 sq. ft. ea.

ARTIST ELIGIBILITY: Professional artists with previous experience creating outdoor murals are preferable, but all may apply. Artist will be required to be present at the community meeting (early in the process) and dedication (at the completion of the mural) unless distance is prohibitive. If this occurs, an alternative plan will be discussed with the 46th Street Mural Project Steering Committee. The artist must be available for consultation pertaining to the execution of their design throughout the process.

SUBMISSION MATERIALS:
- work samples
- resume
- references

SELECTION PROCESS-
1) The 46th Street Mural Steering Committee will initially choose three finalists based on submission materials.

2) The three Finalist Artists will then attend a community meeting to discuss their ideas for the space and learn more about how the community feels about this space and the neighborhood. The three artists may be asked to confer with the Steering Committee after the community meeting.

3) Based upon community and Steering Committee input, the three finalist artists will each submit a design for review and vote by the community via website. An award of $300 will go to each finalist upon submission of their proposed design.

4) The Steering Committee will chose the final design, which will then go to Artworks for mockup, then to the city for design approval, and final review by Steering Committee before acceptance. When all of these criteria are met, the artist will be awarded the honorarium of $2000, in addition to the previously awarded $300 for submitting a design as a finalist.

CALENDAR:
February 19, 2010: Artist applications due
March 2, 2010: Community meeting with three Finalist Artists
April 9, 2010: Proposed designs due
April 23, 2010: Vote by community on website closes
May-August, 2010: Workplan and execution, with Artworks

CONTACT: 46thstmural@gmail.com
Facebook:46th Street Mural

Arts|West Presents "Urban Constructions": Jan 31 - Feb 27

Opening: Wine and Cheese Artist Reception on February 11, 6-7:30pm

[Excerpted from the ArtsWest Website]

The creation of art is a means to explore the barriers that we build around us; viewing art is a way to see beyond these defenses to another perspective. In Urban Constructions, John Osgood and Monika Dalkin provide innovative and inspired representations of the literal and figurative walls that surround us.

Dalkin presents playful constructions in shapes of homes. Working adeptly in many mediums, her strong conceptual pieces in ceramic and mixed media on panel convey a natural creative expression. Her iconic house shapes convey a myriad of ideas from warmth and protection to stability and social standing, all the while creating labels for those that live there. Dalkin’s installation of 100 ceramic 'tags' which make up a house structure, draw upon this idea directly, as well as a metaphor for graffiti. A visual language of shapes and symbols on the surface of her work explores the mysterious facets of all sorts of walls. Dalkin holds an MFA from the University of Arizona, has exhibited her work internationally and has ongoing representation at Gallery 110 in Seattle.

Osgood paints idiosyncratic characters with a bold palette in a graffiti art style. His collection of colorful oddballs are inspired by life and the uncomfortable and forlorn circumstances that happen within it. These unique characters are the embodiment of all of the idiosyncrasies recognized as one peers over the walls we surround our true characters with. Osgood was recently recognized in a feature story in the Seattle Times for his brainchild and work on a transformational memorial mural in Greenwood after the neighborhood was targeted by an arsonist. This is yet another example of his immense creative effort to transform heartbreaking situations into remarkable art. Osgood graduated from Washington State University and is owner and resident artist at Bherd Studios Gallery in Greenwood.


ArtsWest Playhouse and Gallery
4711 California Avenue SW
Seattle, WA 98116
www.artswest.org

Ladies First: 2nd Annual Urban Contemporary All Female Art Show

Save the Date Art Opening: Fri. Feb 12 from 6-10pm


What better month than February to highlight a ladies only urban contemporary art show. This is our 2nd Annual show and feel that perhaps we should just declare the month of February as a celebration of Fabulously Fresh Females Artists! The artists that we are presenting next month are each incredibly productive, talented and highly motivated women who have shown their work on a national and some on an international level. If you attend any popular local art festival or craft show, you are sure to see Soule, Soopajdelux, Michelle Smith-Lewis and Coco Howard among the mix of entreprenurial talent.

Here's a closer look at one of Soule's pieces that will be featured at the show...

And here a closer look at Coco Howard's needlepoint wall hanging...

More sneak peeks will be revealed as we get closer to the opening, so please stay tuned!

http://www.bherdstudios.com/
Gallery Hours: Wed - Fri from 12-6pm and by appointment

Michael McGovern: SEA to PDX Screen-Printer Extraordinare

"Untitled" by Michael McGovern
15" x 22"
Mixed Media on Wood Panel
$500.00

Michael McGovern is one of the featured artists currently in our gallery for the "Screen-Play" exhibit showing through Friday, February 5th. He is an instructor at Sev Shoon, a wonderful print-making studio located in Ballard. I was lucky enough to stumble across his work through the Sev Shoon website and was completely taken in by his dreamy and eerie images using screen-printing as one of his main mediums for creating his pieces. Here is a little background on his work - I highly encourage you to stop by and see his work in person, though.

Michael Edward McGovern - Artist Bio
Michael Edward McGovern was born and raised in Portland Oregon and attended the Pacific Northwest College of Art where he studied photography and printmaking and earned a BFA in photography in 2004. Five years later in 2009 Michael graduated with his MFA in printmaking from Northern Illinois University where he studied under Michael Barnes and Ashley Nason. Currently living and working both in Portland Oregon and Seattle Washington Michael McGovern continues to make work based in both printmaking and photography.




"Slumber" by Michael McGovern
18" x 23"
Mixed Media on Wood Panel
$500.00


See more work from Screen-Play!


Artist Statement:
The environments and people that have surrounded my life inform the art I create. My work is about constructing autobiographical images that explore the ghosts of my past. I am interested in how both personal and cultural histories have profoundly affected my visual language. I compose memorials to the intangible memories of my past. By visually recording impressions of specific times, places, and events in my life I am preserving memories that seem to fade with each passing year. My work calls upon the repetitive nature of photography and printmaking to create a network of reoccurring images that I can meditate on to help search for a truth. I use a lexicon of images that relate to specific events in my history. Repeated images of bridges, birds, trains, war, urban landscapes, and old family portraits find their way into my work lending themselves to an unfolding narrative. All these images carry a personal biography, but also carry the weight of their own metaphors helping to furnish an ever-growing personal narrative.


http://www.bherdstudios.com/
Gallery Hours: Wed - Fri from 12-6pm and by appointment.

Bremerton Art Banner Project

Above is John Osgood's art banner in downtown Bremerton


Today John and I took a trip over to Bremerton to check out the new art banner installations and find his banner. In mid 2009 Washington artists were juried by the Bremerton Arts Commission to feature their work up and down the main streets of downtown Bremerton.

We took this video to highlight some of the other artists that are featured on the banners as well...

Meet Douglas Bick of Shambolic Prints

2 of Douglas Bick's pieces in our gallery for our current exhibit, "Screen-Play"

Douglas Bick was born in New York and raised in Flatbrush Brooklyn until the age of 19. He received his B.F.A. from S.U.N.Y. Purchase in Westchester, NY. He has lived in various parts of New England, the past 4 years and recently received his M.F.A. from the Rhode Island School of Design. He has his sights on moving in the near future to the West Coast and is looking at Portland, OR for his next adventure.



"ZZZ's Fiend"
17" x 11" framed
multi color silk-screen
$1000


"Y Fiend"
17" x 11" framed
multi color silk-screen
$1000

($1800 for the set: Y Fiend + ZZZ's Fiend)



"Scintillating Addiction II"
24" x 36"
1-color woodblock, 5-color silkscreen


Douglas Bick Artist Statement
from New York

An open-ended book is a story with no true beginning or ending. I strive to accomplish this concept by allowing the viewers of my work to embark on a visual adventure. I place expressive illustrations of pictorial forms within an image in a format that allows the viewer to conjure up their own surreal tales, based on their relationships with the concepts, objects, and their personal life experiences. As the artist, I administer the visual documentation of these tales with precise theories and comments on social and political issues, relating to contemporary society. The ideas behind these story lines are illustrated with a central and focused concept; I am just currently fascinated with the ideology behind having the viewer venture for personal reflection.

The art storytelling should not cease once the drafting of the imagery is complete. Printmaking is a process that allows artists to elaborate on their thoughts by creating depth and texture. These traits become intertwined with the storyline and have the ability to convey grace and elegance to any subject matter being depicted. All of my creative thoughts are filtered through the process of Printmaking; the medium has become a part of my identity. I am fascinated by the infinite possibilities that are presently seeking exploration within this timeless medium. Currently I am extremely interested in the process of combining mediums. The way these individualized art practices contrast and react to one another is perfect!

Don't miss out in seeing his artwork in person, Screen-Play will continue to be on exhibit until Friday, February 5th. Gallery hours are Wed - Fri from noon-6pm or by appointment (206) 234-8348.

www.bherdstudios.com

"You Are Here" at Centennial Gallery: Jan 7 - Feb 25

You Are Here features a multiple series of works – each demonstrating a segment of time in my recent period of producing artwork. Every emerging artist is told that they have matured when they are able to create a whole body of consistent work to present to the professional art world. But before artists reach this steady consistent body of work, they explore their options, styles and influences. Here is a peek into my evolutional process, finding my voice and exploring my passion.

Cut It Out (2008 - 2009)- series

This series happened quite by accident, while I was working on a piece called “Waiting”. After I was finished with that piece, I wasn't happy with the background, so I simply decided to cut it out. I really liked how the piece turned out and so I created another piece called The Meet and Greet with the design of a cut out as well. Not long after that, I was approached by an independent gallery that asked me to do a solo show. I decided that I wanted to further explore this style and based the entire show on it – naming it “Cut It Out”. I found that cutting the paintings out of wood in nontraditional shapes allowed me to play with the light and shadows on the wall and add dimension and playfulness to the series.

Spray Face (2008-2009) - series

The Spray Face Series was born from the necessity to create. I was in the midst of a studio change. During this time of transition I was doing a lot of moving, cleaning, and building. With one month before the grand opening of my new gallery and studio, with no real place to start painting and my paint brushes buried, I looked for whatever I could get my hands on. When I don’t create artwork, I get this itch that becomes something more like a fidgety/agitated state. I just have to create to quiet my mind and soul. I had previously incorporated aerosol into my paintings, but it played a more minor role in my works. With the cans easily accessible and no clean up required… aerosol became, for the first time in my paintings – first fiddle. Colors, shapes, drips, and pictures began to unfold. Shortly after the majority of work was completed on these paintings, I finally had walls to my studio, a place to paint, and a bucket of water to clean my brushes. I then went back in to fine tune my spray painted pieces with crisp lines of acrylics, and a new series was born.


A Chaotic Background (2006 -2007) - series

Protection #1 (6' x 4'), the centerpiece painting, was completed in 2001. At this time in my life I had just graduated from Washington State University, I was living with a few friends in house in Shoreline, but most importantly, I had a garage to paint in. I finally had my chance -- room to breathe, to let loose, and the desire to create on a big canvas. Also at the same time I was studying about Jackson Pollock and his journey. I channeled his energy to get the desired look I wanted for the background. As I think about it now, what I was doing was conditioning myself for how I was going to do my backgrounds in the future. The energy with a chaotic background resonated with me. To some it might seem like a jumbled mess, but to me -- I see hints and ques. These things allowed me to see other things that maybe are not so fleshed out, but I can fill in the blanks in my head.

From the creation of Protection #1, I continued on painting by drips, splats, and letting gravity do its work. As time passed on, I continued to work with a chaotic beginning, but I started to gather around the idea of color theory and using a comfortable analogous scheme. I believe that when I create backgrounds that are chaotic by using the analogous color scheme, it doesn’t take away from the main idea, but rather lets the main idea settle into the composition.

http://www.johnosgood.com/

"Screen-Play" Art Opening Fri, Jan 8th from 6-10pm

“Screen-Play”
Showing from Jan 8 – Feb 5
Opening Reception: Fri, Jan 8 from 6-10pm

Bherd Studios Gallery presents the work of screen-printing artists Douglas Bick of Shambolic Prints, Mindi Davis & Riley Raker of Blank Space Studios, Lance Lobuzzetta of Efflux Creations and Michael McGovern, Sev Shoon Art Instructor. These diverse artists take the viewer on a visual adventure featuring surreal scenes exploring everything from their internal dialogue on the meaning of life to the preservation of precious memories through autobiographical images. Screen-Play is not only the medium of their work… it’s their script.

The opening reception is held in conjunction with the 2nd Friday Monthly Artwalk in Greenwood-Phinney.


Here is a sneak peek using our brand new Flip Video camera. Bear with us as we are still learning to use it!