Arts and Artists on Bainbridge

In this podcast Erik Peterson reflects on his approaches to painting and the influences that have shaped his complex and evocative style.

The paintings for the library show are a result of 14 years of loosely focused, highly devoted, daily painting practice and 11 years of formal studio art education provided by Bainbridge public schools, the University of Washington, and American University. Erik also credits his two loving parents who did their best with a sensitive and quietly rebellious kid.

Erik’s exhibit will open during the First Friday Arts Walk at the Bainbridge Public Library on December 6 from 5-7 pm, and will be on display for the month of December.

Credits: Host and Editor: John Fossett; Publisher: Chris Walker

City Manager Morgan Smith and Public Works Director Chris Wierzbicki discuss several important items currently in process with the city including the sustainable transportation plan, roundabouts on 305 and taller water tanks.

Several topics are discussed in this important dialogue and insightful view of key City of Bainbridge governmental activities.  More regarding the on-going evolution of ADU’s and tiny homes is part of the discourse as is the need to build taller water tanks and take the time to do proper engagement with the sustainable transportation plan, hoping for more community interaction. A review and update of the Police Court’s new digs wraps the podcast.

Credits: BCB Host: Joanna Jenkins; Audio Editor: Keith Doughty; Publisher: Robert Ross

Deb Wuensch, president of the Bainbridge Island Modern Quilt Guild, discusses the mission of the Guild, the current yearly challenge and the stirring and informative resulting show coming to the Bainbridge Library in November. She defines some of the modern quilting techniques and explains many different opportunities the Guild offers in supporting this creative element in the community.

The Bainbridge Island Modern Quilt Guild does a lot in our community, having just finished the annual Bainbridge Island Quilt Festival in September and continuing to support the nationally recognized American Hero Quilts project. They offer workshops once a year and are featuring much Guild work in a show at the Bainbridge Library in November. The pieces in the show are from the Guild’s annual challenge, a list of parameters that guide the project. This year it’s quadrilaterals. All the while they continue with their Monthly Business Meetings & Sew-Ins on the second Sunday of each month (except May which is the third Sunday, 11 am to 4 pm).

The Guild’s show opens as part of the island’s First Fridays Art Walk on Friday, Nov 1st @ 5 p.m. in the community meeting room at the Bainbridge Branch of the Kitsap Regional Library.

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; Audio Editor: John Fossett; Publisher: Robert Ross

The Bainbridge Island Land Trust has produced a glorious new book full of photographs, illustrations and stories celebrating 30 years of protection and stewardship of the natural elements on our island.

Natural Bainbridge: Working Together to Protect Our Island connects information about ecosystems with the roles played by the Land Trust and other stewards as they continue preserving areas for future generations.

In this podcast BILT board members Zan Merriman and Erin Kellogg share their perspectives from the two-year project, as well as thoughts on BILT, stewardship, how each of us can help, and where we can see original artwork from the book, not to mention, information for getting our own copy.

Artwork from the book will be featured in a show in the Community Meeting Room at the Bainbridge Branch of the Kitsap Regional Library for the month of August. The show will open on Friday, August 2nd as part of the community’s First Friday Art Walk. 

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; audio editor: Jacque Knapp; publisher: Chris Walker.

How do you capture a storm on canvas? Artist Joanie Klorer grew up in Tornado Alley, and after a career helping others find therapeutic resolution through art she's carried her own awareness of time, place, and storms into abstract paintings she'll share at the Bainbridge Island Library for the month of July.

During her nearly four decades as a social worker, Joanie found art was a great way to help people -- especially non-verbal clients -- express their hearts and experiences. Today she uses her art to achieve the same objective for herself, drawing on her experience of those childhood storms to feed her paintings 

“I think of memory as a shadow which lingers from encounters and places.  Memory, influenced by time, place, and experience forms the catalyst for my paintings.  I believe my paintings are often an attempt at resolution of memories that are stuck like films on continuous replay.” 

Joanie's exhibit, entitled "Where I Come From: Memory and Place," will open during the First Friday Arts Walk at the Bainbridge Public Library on July 5th from 5-7 pm. Don't miss it!

Credits: BCB Host and audio editor: John Fossett; publisher: Diane Walker.

“Mischief & Craft” is the title of Gigi Godfrey’s art show opening Friday, June 7th in the Bainbridge Island Library. The title comes from a chapter in the book Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness by Peter Godfrey-Smith (no relation). 

Why did Gigi take the title of her art show from a book about octopuses? She met Eleanora, an octopus, at the Port Townsend Marine Science Center and chose her as a subject.

Gigi, formally trained as a cardiac nurse, is drawn to subjects displaying some sort of rhythm—whether in the way the light patterns form, the shapes link together, or the weaving of color harmony. She’s happiest staying loose with the brush and leaving unfinished work to show through—creating a trail of the evolution.  Color and texture are the real appeal for Gigi. “When searching for the right color value and temperature, I tend to leave all the marks on the final work, showing the decision process, which I call ‘painting out loud’”. 

You’ll see Eleanora and more of Gigi’s work at the upcoming Library Art Show on Bainbridge Island.  Opening reception is Friday June 7th from 5-7 pm.  

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Chris Walker

First presented with oil, brushes and canvas at the age of 10, artist Joan Clark has returned to painting after a long hiatus with charming results. Her paintings of people and animals open at the library on Friday, May 3.

Mainly self-taught, Joan’s influenced by the great Dutch Masters, Rembrandt & Vermeer to name a few. She loves Leonardo da Vinci and likes to paint from photos -- often images she finds in National Geographic Magazine.

But it was a photo of her granddaughter that got her back in the studio. At first it was hard, she didn’t think she was going to be able to do it. However, with perseverance, something she encourages other artists to do in tough spots, she realized she still had the skills, and she’s never looked back.

Joan’s show opens at the library as part of the community’s First Fridays Art Walk on Friday, May 3rd from 5:30-7 pm, and will be on display at the library for the month of May.

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker

Ars Poetica -- the pairing of art and poetry -- is now coming to Bainbridge. Selected poems are being paired with photos from members of the Bainbridge Island Photo Club and will be on display at the Bainbridge Public Library, opening March 1.

The annual Kitsap County event, which is now in its eighth year, invites poets to submit their work to a panel of judges. Area artists then choose from the winning poems and create art inspired by the chosen poetry.

The end results will soon be visible at Collective Visions Gallery in Bremerton, at the Front Street Gallery in Poulsbo, at the Poulsbohemian Coffee House, and this year, for the first time, at the Bainbridge Public Library.

Listen here as poet and organizer Sue Hylen explains how she managed to coordinate plans for the library and for the Bainbridge Island Photo Club, and tells what to expect for opening night, Friday, March 1, from 5 - 7 pm.

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

Bainbridge artist Susan Wiersema uses photography, watercolor, and colored pencil to reveal the soulful nature of animals. Her new show, My Pet Project: Portraits of Cats and Dogs opens at the Bainbridge Library @5pm Friday, February 1.

Listen here as Susan talks with BCB host John Fossett about her love for animals, her fondness for the Doctor Doolittle books, and how she came to discover the field of pet portraiture.

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

For Northwest artist David Repyak, art and life are all about relationship. His new show, Human Nature, which opens at the Bainbridge Library @5pm Friday January 4, explores the relationship between humans and nature.

“Struck at an early age by the beauty and power of the natural world.” David has spent this last year creating a new collection of figurative oil paintings, drawing on a lifetime of influence from the natural world and his connections to it.

David, who earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Syracuse University in Syracuse and his teaching certification from University of Washington, is a Montessori classroom teacher, an art teacher and artist.

David has shown his work in individual and group shows around the state, juried competitions in the Northwest and his works are included in several local collections. He finds his inspiration in collaboration with other artists, and after leading art classes in Washington elementary schools for the past decade has now also begun teaching painting to adults.

The show opens at the Bainbridge Branch of the Kitsap Regional Library as part of the First Fridays Art Walk @ 5 pm on Friday, Jan 4th, and will show through the month of January. Don't miss it!

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

Christmas, Spring, boats and carousels: Peggy Brunton's paintings are filled with light and color. See them at the library in December; opening Friday evening December 7.

Artist Peggy Brunton received a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Washington and has taught ceramics, painting and art history for Seattle Pacific University. Her work has won awards in many prestigious Northwest exhibitions and has been placed in private collections in Berlin, London, Madrid, Paris, across the USA and throughout the Northwest. She has been chosen to be in permanent collections at Moscow Museum of Modern Art, Henry Gallery, and Seattle Art Museum.

Listen here to learn of her approach to her work -- and don't miss her opening at the First Fridays Art Walk at the Bainbridge Library, December 7 from 5-7 pm.

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

In anticipation of Celluloid Bainbridge's upcoming 20th anniversary retrospective (November 17-18), festival founder Kathleen Thorne and Lynwood Theatre maven TJ Faddis  talk with BCB host John Fossett about the history, technical challenges, and highlights of this iconic film festival.

Over the last 20 years of the festival there have been numerous surprises. Listen here and learn about the Trojan Horse, the true test of a Bainbridge Islander, the superstition surrounding one film, which filmmaker has TWO films in the festival (one under an assumed name), Kathleen's own surprising contribution to the festival, and what's a cowboy hat got to do with anything?

For this year's festival, the Opening Night Reception will take place at 5pm on Saturday November 17 at the Marketplace at Pleasant Beach. Guests will enjoy fine food and drink and the company of Bainbridge Island author Jonathan Evison.

After the Reception, head across the street to the Historic Lynwood Theatre for an exclusive screening of “The Fundamentals of Caring,” the 2016 film based on Evison’s best-selling book “The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving.” Evison will host a Q&A after the film.

And then, free all day Sunday at the Lynwood Theatre, you'll see feature-length dramas, documentaries, comedy shorts, and experimental music videos, all representing the creativity, the hilarity, and the heart that have defined Celluloid from the very beginning.

Don't miss this fabulous 20th anniversary retrospective: it's quintessential Bainbridge!

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

Meet award-winning author and wildlife photographer Paul Bannick, whose exhibit of magnificent owl photographs will open at the Bainbridge Library at 5:30 pm on Friday November 2, with a talk by the artist at 6pm.

In this podcast interview Paul talks with BCB host John Fossett about his years of work in the wild, about his passion for nature and for photography, and about the 19 species of owls and what they have to teach us about the beauty and vulnerability of their unique natural habitats.

A veteran of Aldus, Adobe, and Microsoft, Paul now serves as Director of Major Gifts for Conservation Northwest, an organization dedicated to protecting and connecting wild areas and recovery native species from the Pacific Coast to the Canadian Rockies. Representatives of Conservation Northwest will also be on hand at the opening to share information about one of their current projects.

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

In this podcast interview you'll meet Mario Alejandro Torres, the new Music Director and Conductor for the Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra.

Born & raised in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, Mario is a conductor, teacher, and student who also performs on the viola and violin. He currently lives in Seattle, where he is a doctoral candidate at the University of Washington, pursuing a degree in orchestral conducting.

Listen here as Mario tells Arts and Artists producer John Fossett about his early years as a young musician in Honduras and his hopes for the Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra.

In addition to his new role at the BSO, Mr. Torres is the Music Director of Poulsbo Community Orchestra and Assistant Conductor of the University of Washington Symphony Orchestra. He has played with and conducted orchestras in Honduras, Suriname, Costa Rica and Haiti, and his wife Jenny is an active participant in the Seattle Music Partners Program and the Special Events department of the Seattle Symphony.

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

Artist Dorothy Brown's paintings explore "My Art of Jazz." Experience them at the library during the month of August, and don't miss the opening -- August 3rd at 5:30 pm.

The paintings, created in oils and inspired by the jazz musicianship of Dorothy's husband and son, depict the musicians, dancers, and audiences Dorothy encounters in the world of jazz.

Like jazz, the paintings are improvised, and are meant to capture moments in time rather than exact likenesses of the subjects or their instruments.

So come see the show, and experience this charming tribute to the music and musicians of jazz!

Credits: BCB Host: John Fossett; BCB audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

Artist Deliah Grace Hubbard brings her watercolors and painted furniture to the Bainbridge Library for the month of July, opening July 6.

Listen here to learn about her process, her incorporation of Sumi-e brushstrokes, and her love of color and flowers.

Credits: BCB host: John Fossett; audio tech: Chris Walker; audio editor and publisher: Diane Walker; social media: Jen St. Louis.

How could you capture 3 dimensional movement in a 2 dimensional medium?

This is a challenge that has fascinated artist John Wiens for more than 50 years -- first as an architect, and then later as a sketcher, a watercolor artist, and now as a printmaker, working primarily in BARN's printmaking studio.

"My artwork," he says, "is the expression of my joy of being alive. I am in this world and I’m of this world. Art is the act of celebrating that of being alive.  To accomplish artwork requires awareness, contemplation, receptiveness, courage, skill, tools and an idea. In my work I’m trying to capture something specific in the people, landscape, or the still life

Come see John's movement-inspired abstract monotypes at the Bainbridge Library, opening Friday, June 1 from 5-7 pm.

Credits: BCB host: John Fossett; audio tech: Bob Ross; audio editor and social media publisher, Diane Walker.

During the month of May, the library meeting room will be displaying colorful Guatemalan weavings from the 70s to the present, collected by Daphne Stewart and Elizabeth Dequine.

In this podcast, BCB host John Fossett talks with Daphne about the history behind the weavings, their Mayan origins, and Daphne and Elizabeth's connections to Guatemala.

Some of the items in the collection will be available for purchase at the opening, Friday, May 4th, from 5-7 pm; proceeds from the sale of these items will return to the Cooperativo Flor de Pericón y Flor Ixcaco, San Juan La Laguna, in Guatemala, which helps support native families by giving them a market for their beautiful weavings.

Credits: BCB host: John Fossett; audio tech: Chris Walker; audio editor and social media publisher, Diane Walker.

In this podcast, BCB host John Fossett chats with artist Jennifer Waldron, whose new exhibit, "Company for Dinner," will open at the Bainbridge Public Library on Friday, April 6, from 5 to 7.

Listen here to learn about Jennifer's process, her background, her inspirations, and the dedication of intention that keeps her colorful and imaginative paintings fresh and new.

Each painting invites a story, so if you want to stimulate your imagination, be sure to stop by the library during the month of April, to meet -- and join -- the delightful characters who comprise Jennifer's "Company for Dinner."

Credits: BCB host: John Fossett; audio tech: Chris Walker; audio editor and social media publisher, Diane Walker.

Looking to celebrate Women's History month? Get inspired by local artist Suzette Ruys' portraits of 15 "Persistent Women," opening Friday, March 2 from 6-9 pm at the Bainbridge Public Library.

The paintings feature fifteen tenacious women, each of whom took a stand against injustice. Their work falls into a variety of arenas, including politics, environmental defense, women’s rights, labor organizing, civil rights, and more.

“There were so many great women to pick from that I could have painted for years,” says Ruys, a local artist and designer who studied at the Rhode Island School of Design. “Researching these paintings was fascinating. Some of the women are well-known, others less so, but each story about their lives made them very real and impressive. There is always a need for people to speak up when they see inequality," adds Ruys. "These women did it with the grit and grace that makes them heroes.”

Listen here as Ruys explains some of her decisions, talks about her intriguing process, and shares some of the stories of the women in her paintings. And be sure to stop by the library in March to see these Persistent Women!

Credits: BCB host: John Fossett; audio tech: Chris Walker; audio editor and social media publisher, Diane Walker.

In this informative podcast, Women in Photography co-curators Greg Robinson and photographer Linda Wolf provide fascinating insight into the development of photography over the 70-year span between the ages of the photographers in this dynamic show.

Evident in the show’s breadth are the changes in photography techniques, processes, types of cameras, and printing materials used by the 10 diverse women from the Puget Sound region chosen for the exhibition:

   •Megumi Shauna Arai

   •Ashley Armitage

   •Marsha Burns

   •C. Davida Ingram

   •Marilyn Montufar

   •Janet Neuhauser

   •Mary Randlett

   •Meghann Riepenhoff

   •Heather Boose Weiss

   •Linda Wolf

Explaining why they decided to focus this photography exhibit on women, Linda makes the point that “Exhibiting women’s photographs not only educates and empowers girls and women, it gives us all much to think about and include in our world-views regardless of gender.

"Advancing and honoring women’s perspectives, women’s imaginations and voices creates new cultural norms and behaviors, and furthers both women’s and men’s enlightenment about the necessity of changing the paradigm from power-over, which is destroying us, to power-with and partnering. The story of women in photography has much to teach us.”

She also tells the story behind the exhibit's signature photograph, shown above, which she took 40 years ago in France.

Credits: BCB host: Channie Peters; BCB audio editor: Diane Walker; social media publisher: Diane Walker.

In this Arts and Artists podcast, you can listen to a lively conversation with sculptor Christine Clark who created the beautiful metal Tribute Baskets at Waypoint, Bill Baran-Mickle, of the Public Arts Committee, and Bruce Weiland, who coordinated the community effort to bring Waypoint Park into being.

Bruce tells the story of how Waypoint Park came into being, and how the community worked together to transform an ugly chain-link fenced-in property to a thing of beauty at the corner of 305 and Winslow Way.  

The Waypoint Park sculpture is the first new public art since the Public Arts Committee (and funding) were restored in 2014. Bill Baran-Mickle tells us how the restoration of the Public Arts program and its funding brought Christine Clarks’s large metal sculptures here to grace Waypoint as the culmination of its place in this community.  

... and Christine describes the inspiration and significance of the four large metal baskets, what the motifs represent, and how they honor BI’s cultural heritage.

Credits: BCB host: Channie Peters; BCB audio editor and social media publisher: Diane Walker.

In February 2016, the Bainbridge Island Arts and Humanities Council conferred one of the two 2016 Island Treasure Awards on Denise Harris.

Growing up with a big family in the Pacific Palisades, the multi-talented Denise Harris and her five siblings were encouraged to pursue whatever interested them in arts and music. At one point Denise even decided she'd learn to play every instrument in the orchestra! But after mastering several instruments she began branching out, expanding her artistic scope to become a sculptor, set designer, singer, actress, and much, much more.

Nothing seems to be beyond her: from her Gypsy Wagon at the annual Harvest Fair to her iconic signs at Lynwood Center (for island institutions such as Heyday Farm, Village Music, Pane d’Amore, O’Connor Architects, and the Treehouse Cafe) to her acting, her singing, and the fabulous sets she's designed for Bainbridge Performing Arts, Denise's range of talents and their impact on our community have proved to be extraordinary.

As a featured artist at Bainbridge Arts & Crafts, Denise is known for her enchantingly detailed miniature sculptures, several of which have become part of the permanent collection at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art. She also sings with a musical group on Saturdays and with the choral group Amabile, and she has performed in numerous plays at BPA. Clearly Denise's childhood freedom to explore has stood her in good stead; if she determines to create or do it, she does. Even building a ukelele and a concertina with scrap wood were not beyond her perseverance and tenacity.

In this interview, Denise describes those early years with her family, and speaks fondly of her enduring close connection with her five siblings, most of whom now live on Bainbridge Island. Raised to delve into whatever caught her fancy, she continues to expand her artistic repertoire with the same joyful anticipation and fearless abandon she experienced as a child -- and we can't wait to see what she tackles next! Though she admits to being surprised and honored by the 2016 Island Treasure Award, it's no surprise to the rest of us: clearly this award is richly deserved!

Credits: BCB host: Channie Peters; BCB audio editor: Barry Peters; BCB social media publishers: Diane Walker and Barry Peters.

In February 2016, the Bainbridge Island Arts and Humanities Association conferred one of its two 2016 Island Treasure Awards on Cameron Snow.

Since she picked up her first camcorder in 2000, painter, sculptor, world traveler and now filmmaker Cameron Snow has produced over a dozen films documenting the life and environment of Bainbridge Island. 

Newly designated as one of this year's Island Treasures, Cameron and her diplomat husband, Chris Snow, have lived in many interesting countries, but it wasn't until they chose to retire on Bainbridge Island that she turned her artistic eye as a painter and sculptor to filmmaking.  In the 16 years since she began filming, she has honed her creative talents by producing and directing over a dozen films about the island, including Return of the Plankton, Forest in the City, The Geological Formation of Bainbridge Island, BIMA, Here we go!, Offerings (Exhibition at BIMA), Inner Zoo Outer Orbit (Exhibition at BIMA), the Sakai Family of Bainbridge Island, Leaving our Island Forum Day, and Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra Performs Peter & the Wolf.

Listen here as Cameron describes how she first became interested in filmmaking and gives us some insight into the complex process of turning an idea into a full-length film (or three, in the case of the Geological Formation of Bainbridge Island).  

Like her first full-length film, Return of the Plankton, and her current work on geological formation, many of her films have contributed to our understanding of our local ecology, and have been used by educators and researchers to study our environment. But she's also made several films about artists and music on Bainbridge Island, sharing her appreciation of this island community’s richness in the arts.

Despite her new career as a filmmaker, Cameron continues to find time for her painting and sculpture -- and she doesn't see her filmmaking as a departure from the other art forms that have long been part of her life. As she says, everything we've ever done informs whatever we do next.  Fortunately for us on Bainbridge Island, Cameron’s curiosity about the environment around her and her artistic skill in representing what she learns will continue to inform, educate and entertain this community for generations.

Credits: BCB host and audio tech: Channie Peters; audio editor: Tim Bird; BCB social media publisher: Diane Walker.

In this insightful interview of sculptor David Eisenhour by Bainbridge Island Museum of Art executive director and curator Greg Robinson, we gain a sense of the artist’s development and evolution.

Over the decades, as Eisenhour relished the process of bronze sculpting, he also nurtured his love of nature and a continual discovery of the minute intricacies in the natural world.

In their conversation, Greg talks with David about what has driven his sculpting - process and subject matter.  And we learn how David’s growing concern about climate change’s effects on our natural world has moved him to focus our attention on the changes he sees in the oceans, including seawater acidification and the unprecedented increase in species such as jellyfish.

In particular, David talks about his intriguing jellyfish exhibit in the front windows of the art museum, facing the sidewalk along Winslow Way. David describes the significance of these jellyfish, the inspiration for them, and the captivating way they are exhibited, hanging from motorized gears that simulates how they might float in the ocean.

This is a delightful conversation that opens a fascinating window into the world of a thoughtful, sensitive sculptor.

Credits: BCB hosts: Channie Peters and Greg Robinson; BCB audio editor: Tim Bird; BCB social media publisher: Barry Peters.

Artist's book teacher Susan Callan talks with BCB host Channie Peters about the skill and craft of creating artist's books.

Although Susan loves to create artist's books, her passion is teaching others the basic skills to make their own, and then to watch their individual creativity blossom.

Susan became captivated by this art form at the time of early retirement about 20 years ago, took many classes to learn the craft and refine her skills, and then began teaching locally. Her initial teaching was done at a former creativity center on Bainbridge.  More recently, among many other places, she has taught classes at Bainbridge, Poulsbo and Kingston Public Libraries.

She suggests that members of the public might want to inquire about the possibility of classes being offered in the next year or so at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art (BIMA), the Seattle Book Arts Group, and the Bainbridge Artisans Resource Network (BARN).

Susan teaches basic skills and techniques, including changing one’s orientation from 2-dimensional to 3-dimensional, with technique builders such as origami.

This podcast also includes Susan’s favorite places to see artist’s book collections (including our own Bainbridge Island Museum of Art).

Credits: BCB host: Channie Peters; BCB audio editor and social media publisher: Barry Peters.