"The people here are tenacious," says photographer Arleen Olson about the people of Humboldt County. "They just get something in their heads and they do it — just like I did this book." The book is Humboldt Wild, a self-published photography book, a project that Olson describes as "monumental." Starting with no knowledge of the […]
Katherine Almy
Katherine lives in the magical land of Humboldt County, California, with her husband Richard and their son, who just happens to be the most intelligent and beautiful child on the planet. She is a frequent contributor to the North Coast Journal and Artweek Magazine. She blogs and writes at http://www.katherinealmy.com and http://www.artwalks.blogspot.com.
Send your art news — six weeks in advance — to katherinealmy@northcoastjournal.com.
Posted inArts + Scene
Obama and the Arts
What the heck is culture anyway? It’s a slippery term referring to anything from yogurt to blue fuzzy stuff in Petri dishes to hip hop to classical music. So when Tim Smith of the Baltimore Sun stated that "One of the best ways to promote and preserve the cultural health of this country would be […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Colors Flowing Like Water
Up in Crescent City, there’s a place where you can rent a room and have access to a beachfront artist’s studio. The owner, Rande Rothman, uses the space herself to create her silk paintings, and she loves her craft so much, she just can’t keep it to herself. She says that after discovering the medium […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Into the Mystery
Throughout history, the primary function of art has been to represent the world as we see it. It has been a way to cheat the relentless forward march of time and hang on to an image that does not age or fade away (well, at least not as quickly as humans do). We have painted […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Season of Fire
This past summer, for days on end, I looked up at the night sky and saw the moon glowing red. From the perspective of humans, the fires that created that red moon were among the worst on record, with nearly 300 square miles burned and 16 firefighters killed. The roaring flames were relatively short-lived compared […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Snap Snap
My family took advantage of this unseasonably warm weather last weekend to go canoeing on Stone Lagoon. As we landed at the boat ramp, after a day of paddling, a small car pulled up. It had no boat rack or trailer, so I was curious about what she was doing on the ramp. The driver […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Art of Propaganda
What do you think of when you hear the word “propaganda”? Lies? Deceit? Politics? Dictionary.com defines it as, “information, ideas or rumors deliberately spread widely to help or harm a person, group, movement, institution, nation, etc.” Wikipedia states that propaganda “often presents facts selectively (thus lying by omission) to encourage a particular synthesis, or gives […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Inside Out
It’s a funny thing about education. Of course it’s necessary, but when it gets too formalized, it can become limiting. A person who relies only on the education of institutions may gain a lot of knowledge, but will not gain wisdom. Wisdom comes from life experience — hard knocks and intimate relationships, meeting other cultures, […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Junk + Art + Retail
The other day I drove by a telephone pole that had about a dozen signs advertising yard sales stapled on it — and that was just one pole. These days, when you go to take your cast-offs to the thrift store, they often have a sign out saying they are not accepting drop-off donations; you […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Form Meets Function
When I got an e-mail from Steven Vander Meer about the Life Drawing show at Good Relations in Eureka, it occurred to me that I haven’t written much about one of the most popular of artist’s subjects: the human form. On the surface, the reasons for painting the figure are pretty obvious. We like to […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Rock On
“The majestic rocks off Northern California’s coast dominate the shore, slightly beyond the physical reach, but not the imagination, of humans.” So says Annie Reid, curator of an exhibit at the Westhaven Center for the Arts titled "Sea Stack Survey of the North Coast." The display running until the end of August showcases the work […]
Posted inEat + Drink
Leftovers Anglaise
I’m drawn to folk recipes — the kind that aren’t actually written down, or if they are call for things like “some sugar” or “enough salt.” Recipes that make use of leftovers in your refrigerator. Take Shepherd’s Pie. for example. Even better take a dish that was introduced to me by my British husband — […]