Images of Dissent

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The March/April 2017 show will feature powerful photographs documenting movements, political protests, and community actions. The three sets of photographs in the show are very different from each other, but all bear witness to the power of the people to rise up against unjust authority and oppression.

Artists and Curators:

Revolution UkraineEsse Quam Videri of Typonexus brought together a collection of images captured by six different photographers during the Ukrainian uprising of 2014, also known as the Euromaidan Revolution (Революція гідності, Revoliutsiia hidnosti). Each of the images in the collection shows an intimate proximity to intense conflict during a significant period of history in the Ukraine.

Naomi IshisakaNaomi Ishisaka has been documenting the powerful imagery of Black Lives Matter protests in the greater Puget Sound region over the past several years. Each of her photographs is striking individually, and together they form a well-documented overview of movement and momentum in the streets.

Alex GarlandLast year Alex Garland spent three days at the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota, documenting the protests led by the Standing Rock Sioux tribe against construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline through their tribal lands.

NOTE: 20% of the gross income from this show will go directly to the ACLU of Washington.

Women’s March Patches!

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Local artist Olena Perry of High 5 Arts has created a limited number of custom patches for people to wear for the Women’s March on Seattle on Inauguration Day, January 21st. There are two versions of the uterus patch. One says, “Mine” and is intended to be worn by people who own a uterus, and “Hers,” which is intended to be worn by people who do not have one of their own. The patches are handmade – individually block printed on canvas and heat set.

There is a limited supply of the patches available!

The artist is donating all of her design skills and time. All proceeds go to the Seattle Women’s March.

$1 each if picked up in person at the gallery, or $1.50 each for patches that are being mailed (must be pre-arranged with the artist). Additional donations to the Seattle Women’s March can be made at the same time.

Pay Online

Please take a photo of your patch in use, and post it online with the hashtag #SeatteWomensMarch.

Women's March Patch

A Day With(out) Art

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On December 1, 2016, as part of the yearly nationwide “a Day With(out) Art” the gallery will screen COMPULSIVE PRACTICE, an hour-long presentation curated by Visual AIDS. COMPULSIVE PRACTICE will be looped continuously in the Gallery from 10:00am to 8:00pm.

Day Without Art launched on December 1, 1989 as “a day of action and mourning” in which thousands of arts institutions and organizations around the world unified together to demonstrate the power of art to raise awareness of the ongoing AIDS pandemic. In 1998, for its 10th anniversary, Day Without Art became Day With(out) Art. Visual AIDS added the parentheses to highlight the ongoing inclusion of art projects focused on the AIDS pandemic, and to encourage programming of artists living with HIV.

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For the 2016 Day With(out) Art, December 1, 2016, Visual AIDS presents COMPULSIVE PRACTICE, a video compilation of compulsive, daily, and habitual practices by nine artists and activists who live with their cameras and have been deeply affected by HIV/AIDS. This hour-long video program has been distributed internationally to museums, art institutions, schools and AIDS service organizations.

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From video diaries to civil disobedience, holiday specials and backstage antics, Betamax to YouTube, COMPULSIVE PRACTICE displays a diversity of artistic approaches, experiences, and expectations. The compulsive video practices of these artists serve many purposes—cure, treatment, outlet, lament, documentation, communication—and have many tones—obsessive, driven, poetic, neurotic, celebratory. COMPULSIVE PRACTICE will demonstrate the place of technology, self-expression, critique, and community in the many decades and the many experiences of artists and activists living with AIDS.

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COMPULSIVE PRACTICE is curated by Jean Carlomusto, Alexandra Juhasz, and Hugh Ryan. Participating video makers and artists include James Wentzy, Nelson Sullivan (1948-1989), Ray Navarro (1964-1990), Carol Leigh aka Scarlot Harlot, Juanita Mohammed, Luna Luis Ortiz, Mark S. King, Justin B. Terry-Smith, and the Southern AIDS Living Quilt.

Visual AIDS utilizes art to fight AIDS by provoking dialogue, supporting HIV+ artists and preserving a legacy, because AIDS is not over.

More information is available on the Visual AIDs website.

ARTIST CALL: Icons

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Entries are now being accepted for the show, “ICONS: Contemporary Artists Speak Through the Idiom of Religious Iconography,” which will be on display in the gallery during the month of December, 2016.

We do not expect artists to create new work for this show; we are looking to connect with artists with existing work that fits the theme. The work does not necessarily have to be religious thematically, but must have some visual reference to religious works. Political and commemorative works are particularly encouraged.

The word iconography comes from the Greek εἰκών (“image”) and γράφειν (“to write”). A secondary meaning (based on a non-standard translation of the Greek and Russian equivalent terms) is the production of religious images, called “icons”, in the Byzantine and Orthodox Christian tradition; see Icon.

Submissions can be made by filling out the form below and uploading 2-5 photos of relevant work to the link below, or by providing links to photos of work online.

Upload files here. Before uploading, create a folder with your name to post the files into, or upload a single compressed file with your name.

Darius X: A Boy Named Soo

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Darius X, Self-Made Man, ©2015
Darius X, Self-Made Man, Linoleum Block Print, ©2015

October’s show is a remounting of Darius X’s “A Boy Named Soo,” which was presented for the first time at Gallery 4Culture last February. This group of linoleum block prints created over a 12-year period represents an extensive exploration of the various intersecting elements of the artist’s personal identity: trans-racial Korean adoptee, trans* man, Queer Person of Color, Asian-American, resident of the Pacific Northwest.

Artist Bio: Darius X fell in love with the craft of linoleum block printing when he took an art class at his Tacoma, WA high school. He finds inspiration from traditional Japanese woodblock artists, modern pop artists as well as his natural surroundings and communities in the Pacific Northwest. His artwork has been featured on the cover on the Adoptee activist anthology “Adoptionland: From Orphans to Activists” by the Vance Twins. He has shown work throughout the Pacific northwest and in S. Korea. He has been a teaching artist at the Wing Luke Asian American Museum. He was a member of IDEA Odyssey Art Gallery, a visual arts collective promoting cultural diversity, community and economic development in the International District. In 2003, he co-founded the Queer People of Color Liberation Project (QPOC LP) and created a mixed media performance series that focused on racial and gender oppression. He has studied at School of Visual Concepts, Seattle Central Community College and University of Washington.

The show will be up for the entire month of October. Join us for the artist reception on October 6th, during the B-Town Beat Art & Music Walk.

ARTIST CALL “Form + Function: The Tea Cup as Useful Art Object”

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Tea Cups

Entries are now being accepted for the juried show, “Form + Function: The Tea Cup as Useful Art Object,” which will be on display in the gallery during the month of November, 2016.

The tea cup is a nearly universal functional object, manifesting in a wide variety of forms and styles among the tea drinking cultures throughout the world. Some cups are very specifically designed to work with the teas of a certain type or region, and some are designed to work more broadly with multiple kinds and traditions. Within the one basic form of the tea cup there are a number of variables that impact how well the cup does its job of delivering good tea to the drinker, and how pleasurable that cup is for the tea drinker to use. The pieces in this show will all be used during the preparation and serving of tea by a group of tea professionals and/or passionate, knowledgeable, non-professional tea people. Each cup or cup set will be evaluated, and three entries will be chosen as best in show (1st, 2nd, 3rd place).

RULES:

  1. Tea cups must be functional and safe for use.
  2. Cups may be submitted either singly, or in sets of 3 or 5.
  3. Multiple separate pieces (or sets) may be submitted to the show, but in the case of multiple submissions some pieces may not be on display during the full duration of the show.
  4. All work must be available for purchase by the public.
  5. The ideal cups for use with high quality, specialty teas are small and handle-less, used for focused serial tastings over multiple infusions of the same tea leaf. Large mugs and cups are not as suitable for a concentrated tea experience, which will be reflected in the judging.

There is no entry fee to participate. During the show the pieces will be available for sale under our standard commission structure.

Submissions can be made by filling out the form below and uploading 2-5 photos of relevant work to the link below, or by providing links to photos of work online.

Upload files here. Before uploading, create a folder with your name to post the files into, or upload a single compressed file with your name.