Fiber Fusion Group Show

The last leg of SDA-WA’s “Fiber Fusion” tour runs from March 9–April 15 at Schack Art Center in Everett. The Center has both free and paid “Discovery Tours:”

Self-Guided Tour—Free (Available daily during open hours.)

This free tour begins with an exhibit questionnaire that will guide you through the current exhibit as you hunt for the answers, learn about the artwork and artists. Feel free to look into the studios to possibly see artists painting, drawing, printmaking, metalsmithing, at work in the Flame & Kiln Studio or blowing glass in the Hot Shop.

Docent Guided Tour—$30 per group 

(Available Wed.-Sun. open hours during scheduled exhibits, beginning the Wednesday after exhibit opens. Check exhibit schedule for dates. Subject to docent availability.)

This guided tour is filled with fun and facts about the history of the Schack, the artwork in the current exhibit and behind-the-scenes peeks at the Hot Shop, classrooms, mezzanine gallery and studios, and other wonderful parts of the space.

Ann Maki in “Reawakening” Show

SDA Member Ann Maki has her fiber art show “Reawakenings” at Social Fabric in Bellingham, 1302 Commercial Street, March 3–25.

Rebecca Wachtman in “Flowers, Fungi, & Flight” Show

SDA member Rebecca Wachtman’s exhibition “Flowers, Fungi, & Flight”  will be at the Pacific Rim Galleria at Bellewood, 3710 Providence Point Drive SE, Issaquah from April 8–28. It will include a variety of silk paintings, as well as a selection of silk and resin sculptures.

Rebecca will be demonstrating silk painting on April 8 from 1 p.m.–2 p.m., and then the opening reception will follow immediately after the demonstration, from 2 p.m.-4 p.m.

Bellewood’s Pacific Rim Galleria is open to the public for the opening reception. If you can’t make the opening reception and want to see the exhibit, Bellewood welcomes visitors and asks that you call to schedule a viewing, 425-391-2880.

Barbara De Pirro in “Northwest Designer Craftsman” & Bellevue College Gallery Space

SDA member Barbara De Pirro has been challenging her self to create smaller sculptural works. She has work in “Northwest Designer Craftsman” at Vashon Center for the Arts from March 3–30 and at Bellevue College Gallery Space April 12-May 17.

Curated & Published

Unmade Bed: The Exhibit by Debra Calkins

This book is a catalog of the art and viewer responses of the “Unmade Bed” Exhibit, curated by SDA member Debra Calkins.

Prostitution is said to be the oldest profession in the world. The reality is that prostitution is the oldest ongoing abuse. There are many organizations that provide statistical information, such as 80% of the people trafficked in the United States are US citizens; half of them are children; 85% of those children come out of foster care. As a culture, we are in denial, thinking not in our neighborhood, not on our corner.

“Unmade Bed” is an exhibit of visual art that tackled the heart response to the sex slave trade. We, all of us, hold in our hands and hearts the ability to stop this inhumane practice. We can overcome the denial, stop the blaming, take action, provide for the victims and change the world. Available here: https://www.amazon.com/Unmade-Bed-Exhibit-Debra-Calkins/dp/1540542556

Cover of Sea Unseen Book, showing a microscopic image of Shark Skin.

Sea Unseen by Carla Stehr

SDA member Carla Stehr’s fiber art is often inspired by microscopic images that she photographed with a Scanning Electron Microscope as part of her scientific work as a Fisheries Biologist. Just after she retired, she published a collection of the most artful images taken during 30 years of scientific research. The book was written so that people of all interests could see the microscopic beauty of marine organisms. The book Sea Unseen: Scanning Electron microscopy images from Puget Sound and Beyond, was printed through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric and Administration by the US Government Printing Office. Below are examples of a few microscopic images and the fiber art inspired by the images.

Denticles is inspired by a microscopic image of shark skin.

Scanning Electron Microscope image of the surface of zebrafish skin. Each fish skin cell has microridges arranged in thumbprint-like patterns.

Fish Skin 2 was inspired by the microscopic image of fish skin.

You & What Army by Francesca Penchant

You & What Army: Portraits 2016 is a collection of photo illustrations created by SDA member Francesca Penchant. Francesca creates fiber-art costumes, takes self-portrait photographs, and then digitally manipulates them to create various characters.
PDF: http://www.francescapenchant.com/assets/whatarmy.pdf
Print: http://www.blurb.com/b/7640948-you-what-army

She also created a book of 2015 portraits called Fifteen Portraits.
PDF: http://www.francescapenchant.com/assets/fifteenportraits.pdf
Print: https://goo.gl/GBtsUJ