Art is elusive, says local painter Micki Dyson-Flatmo. “It may entirely swim away from you.” It’s not that Dyson-Flatmo is unfamiliar with painting or art — she’s a fifth-generation woman artist. As a child, she hung out in her grandma’s studio surrounded by oil paints. In her 20s, Dyson-Flatmo would sit for hours at a […]
Art Beat
Artists, galleries, museums, arts nights and shows around the county.
Posted inArts + Scene
Pigmented Memories
Drunken mobs and brass bands heave with sound and excitement. A matador is hooked in the armpit, his jacket torn open. Three horses drag a dead bull across the dirt. In 1965, painter Peter Holbrook sat in the stands at a Mexico City bullfight, taking photos and reeling at the spectacle. His memory of the […]
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Horizons Unknown
Doubt is a luxury,” declares local French-born artist Marceau Verdiere. “Being able to doubt means you have the time to doubt; you have choices to ponder.” These choices, and the time to consider their consequences, are actually a privilege, he says. In many places people have no time to doubt. They have to figure out […]
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Bird’s Eye on the Marsh
We’ll stop at 1,000 feet and circle right,” says pilot David Marshall as we lift off from Murray Field. “There might be a little bit of turbulence.” I’m in the back of a small, four-seater aircraft watching Ellen Land-Weber at work on her newest series of photographs. Clad in blue jeans and a pink V-neck […]
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A Bay in the Life of Humboldt
Rocky, man-made shores echo with barking dogs and squawking riparian life. Inky waters bob with seals, kayaks, porpoises and sputtering boats. Cyclists challenge 18-wheelers; hikers meet the homeless. High tide to low tide, day in and day out, Humboldt Bay is host to recreation, mariculture, economy and life. “Simply by dint of its geographical power […]
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Slab Experiments
White dust permeates the cracks in his forefingers and thumbs. Celtic music wheels away in the background. Dressed in a faded red shirt with leather elbow patches and a teal-blue hat that says, “relax,” ceramic artist Michael Pearce is lost in thought, assembling another slab-built teapot. He sponges down seams and files away the form, […]
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A Fine Edge
Attending Arts Alive! typically embodies fun, amusement, a bit of awe before a particularly impressive piece of artwork, the joy inherent in being part of the thriving crowd on the streets. Eureka, electrified. This month’s selections start off on a somber note, however, as the event takes place on the eve of what would have […]
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Lasting Impressions
Printmaking can be a nasty business. Traditional etching uses nitric acid to dissolve an image out of a metal plate. Inks are laden with solvents, and everything is cleaned up with turpentine or acetone. For nearly 500 years, artists have braved toxic chemical cocktails to create etchings, but the results are worth it. Metal plates […]
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Live Wire
The Wire Lady grips her cat’s nose with both hands. Deft twists keep the small object in constant motion as she defines subtle structures around its eyes. Almost imperceptibly, the 22-gauge, dark, annealed steel wire takes shape. While Elizabeth Berrien talks, ears emerge from a fistful of 14-inch strands in her left hand. Glancing down […]
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In the Flesh
She’s framed by an angled heel on the left and a blaze of ruby curls on the right. Lying back, her bare chest rises into a field of deep slate blue. One hand rests on her ribcage, winding a tawny shadow toward her lavender underwear. Ochre tones trail from beneath her penciled form as ruddy […]
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Wall to Wall
Remember being a kid and staring wide-eyed at one of those all-you-can eat buffets? The overwhelming, giddy-in-your-toes excitement over what to pick first? Well, this month’s Arts! Alive features a spread so stocked with goodies that I can’t pick just one. So let’s have a taste of the highlights, shall we? And, like that kid […]
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The Big Cheese
“I want people to think of Lucas Thornton when they think of murals in 20 years,” says Lucas Thornton. Confident and proud after completing his latest large-scale achievements both at home and internationally, the local artist and up-an-coming muralist spares no syllables when discussing his long-range plans. “If I could have a mural lined up […]