Tablet Magazine

Art Briefs

Getting It Out There
On the Boards boasts new works from the Pacific Northwest

"Salvage Yard" by Simon Crane at OTB

On the Boards is offering an innovative, uncensored, unique and thought-provoking experience, where theatre, dance, music, video, storytelling, performing and visual art collide. April 3-11 they will feature their 21st Annual New Works Festival. The festival consists of two exciting weekends in which performers from all over the Pacific Northwest get to congregate and unite in what can be described as a spectacular playground for artists. This year 16 artist/companies have been selected to push the limits and present new and challenging innovations in art.

Some of the highlights include Allen Johnson’s “Another You,” which draws from his experience as an artist, poet, trucker and mechanic to create a solo performance, exploring the recklessness and vulnerability needed for an intimate encounter with a god, a lover or oneself. In “The Applicants,” Jessica Jobaris creates a dance/theatre piece based on the humorous and sensitive subject of male courting rituals. Four men attempt to transcend their loins and offer their hearts to their ideal female symbolized by Sophie, a film projection bunny with an ample backside. And in “Ready, Go on Three,” Emily Stone and James Moore investigate competition, endurance, failure and the illusion of greatness. They take the Olympic motto of “Swifter, Higher, Stronger” to the nth degree in hopes of answering this question: When does one decide to give up? —Todd Edward

The 2004 Northwest New Works Festival runs April 3-4 and April 10-11, at OTB (located in the Behnke Center for Contemporary Performance). Studio performances run from 5-6pm. Mainstage performances run from 8-9pm, with installations in the lobby a half hour prior to curtain. For ticket information, call 206.217.9888 Tuesday-Friday, noon-6pm or visit ontheboards.org.

Artist in Action
Justin Asher’s exclusive shoes

I wasn’t aware that as I was stumbling home late one night “bombing” various different signs that not only was I committing a felony, but on a cosmic level I was making a contribution to the art community with my friend Justin Asher. Asher, a painter, DJ, “bomber” and pioneer in a new underground medium, has fused the spontaneity of urban “bombing” designs with old school shoes resulting in a fresh fashion reminiscent of the sought-after sneakers of our adolescence. Each shoe takes eight to 20 hours to hand create with paint, silkscreen and imagination. This new venture began when Asher first painted hip-hop inspired designs on retro Nike dunks for friends. Soon, Mark Shin at Seattle Retro Shoe Store encountered Asher’s improvement on the classic kicks and, not surprisingly, also discovered there was a market for these new designs.

Asher’s handle, or brand name “Axiom,” is as unpretentious as his work. His vision of using a functional, wearable product as a medium for his art is visually and aesthetically apparent when I look at myself with a pair on. I feel the concept of practical art in the comfortable form on my feet and see the amazing talent painted on the shoes. Soon to be global, Asher is currently collaborating with Lifted Research Group, a conceptual clothing and shoe line. He also has deals lined-up to make player exclusives for some of the Seattle SuperSonics. But you can catch his gallery of work on display at Seattle Retro Shoe Store and look forward to some new hybrid prototypes to be displayed at the same outlet this month. —Kara Dylan

If you want a pair of these exclusive kicks, check out Seattle Retro Shoe Store or email Asher at axiommedia@hotmail.com.

Grand Illusion Going to Good Hands
Longtime supporters take over Seattle’s oldest independent cinema

While Northwest Film Forum (NWFF) packs its boxes, reserves the moving trucks and forwards its mail from the location on 19th Ave NE, it also bids adieu to a dear friend: The Grand Illusion Cinema. According to the NWFF website, nwfilmforum.org, NWFF rescued the Grand from closure in 1997. Following a remodel, the University District cinema served as the venue to “hundreds of cinema classics and rarities."

The care and feeding of this Seattle landmark falls to the loving hands of long-time NWFFers Guerren Marter and Spencer Hoyt. Over more than five year history with the Grand Illusion, the two have become the “backbones of the cinema.” The transition, which occurred over the month of March, will precede some “light improvements,” with the doors re-opening in April. Marter and Hoyt plan to continue the Grand’s dedication to repertory films and educational outreach. In that disposition, the Grand Illusion plays host to films furthering the cinematic arts as a conversation within the community.

In early February, the Grand presented “In My Skin,” a film by Marina de Van, adding the concept of the body as a restriction to one’s interaction with the outside world to that exchange. Depicting a woman’s obsession with her own open wounds, sources indicate there was no puking during any viewing of this film. All of you alleged pukers: your credibility stands in question.

In addition to more challenging fare, the Grand also offers some of the best in late night offerings. From the seminal pre-“Matrix” geek-fest, “Tron,” to the copious breast-fest “Revenge of the Cheerleaders,” one has been able to—and, God willing, will continue to—find something to joyfully throw Milk Duds at on the screen after 11pm. —Ty Garfield