Art Beat

Eureka would be a far less lively place without the many murals that uplift its public spaces. Duane Flatmo’s transformation of the inescapable bulk of the rear of The Arkley Center into a monumental poster praising the performing arts is the iconic example of what a mural can do. The fabulous array of fauna depicted […]

Remove art from the world and not only would its beauty be blunted, but minds, hearts and even lives would be lost. If we had the proverbial dollar for every time an artist said, “Art saved my life,” we could fund art in schools around the world. Not every artist suffers the sort of torment […]

Ouch! It saddens me to begin with unhappy tidings my first time writing Art Beat, but the Accident Galley is on its way out. Co-owners Phyllis Barba and Matthew Ananda Oliveri supplied the details. “Foremost,” said Matthew, “we would like to say to all of our friends and the public that closing the gallery was […]

Few fruits come close to occupying the place in mythology held by the apple. From the infamous Tree of Knowledge incident to the golden apples used to distract Atalanta in her fateful race, apples have been used to deceive. But they’re also symbols of innocence — behold the apple-cheeked youth, wholesome as apple pie. Slice […]

If you, like me, looked forward to someone new submitting his or her thoughts on the Humboldt art beat, sorry to disappoint. Circumstances have compelled me to continue. Given our now enduring relationship, I feel like you should know a bit more about what I bring to the table. Is not all reaction to art […]

A tree trunk sways suspended, looming over the eight-inch seedling underneath. A heart-shaped, fibrous leaf, broad as your average human, hangs to the side of the very appealing three-piece band Children of the Sun. Their California jazz-soul winds through the Accident Gallery, buoys the heaviness suggested by this month’s exhibition, “Going Green:  New Environmental Art […]

What’s a fringe artist do when the fringe becomes the mainstream? Infiltrate the mainstream, of course! Sonny Wong and Sheik, two of Humboldt County’s most prominent graffiti art practitioners, have expanded their repertoire to include painting en plein air — also known as painting’s bread-and-butter. Most recently, their show of landscapes, “Nature Bats Last,” was […]

Despite the persistent northerly gusts compromising the sun’s effectiveness, a certain stubborn balminess permeated Old Town Eureka throughout last Saturday’s Arts Alive! event. At long last, summer had arrived, bringing with it not only the usual hordes of event attendees, but an extra-special party down on the waterfront — the North Coast Journal‘s birthday/relocation celebration. […]

Ah, the weekend has arrived. Even without sunshine, the yard work beckons, the garden calls. Or maybe a late morning lie-in with a novel and mug of coffee. Or an escape to somewhere warm and sunny, assuming such places exist. In any case, why bother with trekking hither and yon to explore North Coast Open […]

Oil spills forth in Mexico’s Gulf — Happy Earth Day! — less than a month after President Obama pitched more offshore oil drilling (Sarah Palin says, “Don’t give up on drilling! It’s akin to man’s race to the moon!”). Oklahoma’s new anti-abortion laws make Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale seem like a lark. In related […]

Humboldt State University’s First Street gallery typically hosts exhibitions worthy of discovery, but this month’s holds particular significance. Works by HSU professor, Arcata Artisan member and 30-year-veteran of the Humboldt County art scene Mimi LaPlant fill the entire gallery space. First Street Director Jack Bentley explained the show’s magnitude: "Mimi is important in that she was […]

It happens around this time every year, The Artware Affair, a gala benefit for the Ink People Center for the Arts that, like many benefits, offers an elegant dinner with entertainment, capped by the proverbial fundraising auction. The theme for this year’s affair, "Elephants and Tigers: Bollywood!" takes things to India on the art front […]