Portland to Seattle

DRIVE TO SEATTLE FROM PORTLAND VIA OLYMPIA



Portland



leaving Portland



entering Washington



A. Paul & I set out today for Seattle.  We knew that there was a storm slamming the northwest coast so we opted to head directly up Highway 5 via Olympia to our destination.   As we set out, the rain was already falling in Portland,  still we took a last spin around the city before heading out. 

The rain stayed with us most of the drive giving us a few glorious respites with teasers of blue sky once we passed over the interstate bridge spanning the Columbia River.  An occasional cascading waterfall added to the vistas along the highway.

Just outside of Olympia, the rain came full strength accompanied by hail then cleared just long enough for us to stop for lunch and make a quick tour of the state capitol square. 

State Capitol Olympia, WA



Seattle Skyline



As we rolled into Seattle, the skyscapers illuminated the skyline against a clear sky.  Once we settled in, A. Paul & I took a stroll down to the waterfront, enjoying the lights of the city.  Tomorrow, we head out to Pikes Market and explore the galleries in historic Pioneer Square.

Portland Art Museum & the Pearl District

ART IN PORTLAND



"Autumn" Gustave Courbet

 Though there are several museums throughout Portland, the Portland Art Museum, founded in 1842,  is the oldest in the Pacific Northwest and offers an extensive collection to its visitors.  The museum's 42,000 objects, 90% being part of the museum's permanent collection, are housed in two connected multi-storied buildings that comprise over 100,000 feet of exhibit space; one building being fully dedicated to contemporary and modern art.  In addition to the main center for the arts, the museum is connected to the Gilkey Center for Graphic Arts and the Northwest Film Center.

In the main gallery, there are four floors offering special exhibits, Asian Arts, 19th-20thc European & American Art, and  strong holdings in Northwest and Native American Art.   In the adjoining Jubitz Center, the four levels consist of NY & Paris schools, Impressionism, Minimalism, Post-1960s and Contemporary Arts.  It is an impressive museum and very well curated. http://www.portlandartmuseum.org/   A slideshow of several works from the museum's collection are included in this evening's blog's slideshow.



L-R: Herschel McGraw, Susan Hodge, & Kerry
in front of D. Slader's work at Gallery 903



After several hours of viewing works at the museum, A. Paul & I drove to several of Portland's neighborhoods, stopping to take in galleries in the Pearl District.    It is here that we met gallery owners Susan Hodge and Herschel McGraw at Gallery 903.  The gallery is part of a collaborative space, shared by three businesses related to the arts.  The work on exhibit at Gallery 903 is diverse; reflecting a strong urban influence.  There are several emerging artists among the gallery's stable of well established artists.  The painting by David Slader in this image is an artist of special note according to Susan .  The artist is a proclaimed,"Digestive Expressionist"  The owners at the gallery would be more than happy to explain this to you.   To see more of this artist's works and those of Gallery 903's other artists, visit http://www.gallery903.com/ . Thank you Susan & Herschel for your time and hospitality.

Following our visit through the Pearl District, home to one of the nation's premier art & crafts festivals on Labor Day Weekend,   http://www.artinthepearl.com/   A. Paul & I traveled across one of Portland's nine steel bridges spanning the Williamette River to the "more colorful" Hawthorne District.  Upon our return back across the bridge, dusk was approaching, creating a phenomenal reflection on the river surface and backdrop to the cool steel bridges.  The effect was incredible and beckoned to be captured in images,and are included in the slideshow.

For anyone who has interest to travel this area, Portland lives up to its reputation of being a city with a small town feel.  Its mass transportation and one way streets make it easily navigable for visitors and the city has so much to offer.  Though we leave tomorrow for Seattle to try to beat the "new" storm, we know there is so much more to visit here (the World Forestry Center, Classic Chinese Gardens, Rose Gardens, and more);  we will have to come back to spend more time on a future trip. 

We bid you all a safe day tomorrow if you are under the winter attack and will catch up  once we settle in Seattle.  Until then, please enjoy the art and city images.

Lincoln City to Portland, Oregon

LINCOLN CITY to PORTLAND


Lincoln City, OR



The strong gale winds throughout the night gave way this morning to tumultuous waves crashing along the coastline in Lincoln City, Oregon.   As A. Paul and I pulled away from Lincoln City,  the gray somber sky and rain followed us the entire drive up the northwest coast to Cannon Beach.  At times the rain drenched landscapes were eerily moody and other times serene.

Michael Tieman & Kerry at
Haystack Gallery
http://www.haystackgallery.com/

When we pulled into Cannon Beach, we visited with bronze artist Michael Tieman at the Haystack Gallery, who gently suggested that we might want to continue on our drive as early as possible if we were heading to Portland as the tunnel over the pass was scheduled to close early and there was an expected snowstorm on its way. 

M. Tieman bronze

We took a quick look in the gallery and took Michael's advice and moved on, as it turned out just in the nick of time.  As we began heading east, the trees became cloaked in mist and then the snow began and it didn't stop until we were just outside of Portland, where the snow finally changed over to rain.  It was a slow but visual journey but we are both glad that we are tucked in safely in Portland.  Tomorrow, we head to the Portland Museum of Art and to explore the diverse districts of the city.

As an aside note, we definitely would place Cannon Beach on a future visit list as the town is exceptionally quaint and ideally located along the coast.  The town strongly supports its art venues, with most of the galleries being members of the Cannon Beach Gallery Group.  You can view these galleries and events calendar at  http://www.cbgallerygroup.com/

A quick congratulatory note to our Cortile Gallery artists who have been hard at work in our absence.  Several of our gallery artists were selected in the juried member show and the white line print exhibit  currently showing at the PAAM Museum.  http://www.paam.org/   Congratulations to you all.

DRIVE LINCOLN CITY to PORTLAND

Coos Bay to Lincoln City, Oregon

ARTS ALONG THE OREGON COAST

BROOKINGS-HARBOR to COOS BAY

Kerry (L) & Sandy Bonney (R) discussing
fish rubbings at the Signatures Gallery

"Albert Handell" pastel by
Sandy Bonney

In addition to the scenic drive along Oregon's coastline,  A. Paul & I have visited several art venues.  Crossing over from California, the first town along Oregon's coast  is Brookings-Harbor. It is in Brookings that we met artist & gallery co-owner Sandy Bonney at the Signatures Gallery. The gallery features a number of artists, some with well recognized and or acclaimed names in pastel work and production work.  Sandy's own  pastel work, "Albert Handell", a tribute to the acclaimed pastel master, was recently featured in the Artist Magazine , earned recognition in the Pastel Journal Magazine's juried competition, and will be featured in its April 2011 issue. Alongside Sandy's work, there were a number of limited prints of  Drew Struzan's personal work.  Struzan is most known for his poster creations of Indiana Jones & Star Wars  but his private work is a distinct genre of great appeal. http://www.signaturegallery.com/  

The town of Brookings also offers an artwalk every Saturday and has an active art center, the Manley Art Center & Gallery, which offers accredited workshops in various mediums. www.wildriverscoastart.com/ 

Along the way to Coos Bay, we noticed several local artist studios and galleries that were closed at this time of the year. Most of the venues appeared to represent ceramics and wood scultpures interspersed with glass studios.

COOS BAY to LINCOLN CITY

Before leaving Coos Bay this morning, we attempted to visit the Coos Art Museum, Oregon's third oldest museum, http://www.coosart.org/  but found it closed so we continued our journey along the scenic coastline, taking in the subdued views of the rainy day.  On this portion of the coastline, there were numerous expansion bridges crossing over pastel hued landscapes.  Around each bend were clusters of rain drenched birch, cypress, and pines that gave way to crashing waves over rock formations. In short, the drive was stunning and awe inspiring.

As we approached Gardiner, Oregon, we were enticed by the bronze sculptures outside the Tsunami Gallery.  We simply could not resist stopping to find out about the work and name.   Gallery owner and bronze sculptor Mack Holman stated that the name Tsunami Gallery was derived not by a castastrophic natural event (last one hitting that area was in the 1700s) but rather by the process of which he acquired and restored a 100 year old crumbling building. 

bronze by Mack Hokman

The exhibit space of the gallery was filled with mostly local artwork along with Mack's bronze works.  Interestingly, Mack confirmed a story that was also related to us by Sandy Bonney in Brookings about the showing of figurative works.  Both artists/gallery owners stated that figurative works have only recently begun to be accepted for public viewings.  That the showing of figure work, in the past,  would often be accompanied by protestors.  Over time, however,there has been greater public acceptance of the showing figurative work. 

Though there was not a website for the Tsunami Gallery, one can reach Mack at mackfoundry@aol.com for information about his bronzework and foundry.

Kerry (L) with Ken Hartwell (R)
President of the Yaquina Art Association

A. Paul (L) with Solveig Leslie (R)
at Yaquina Art Center

The afternoon was coming to a close but we made one more stop before buckling down in Lincoln City.  In the historic downtown section of Nye Beach at Newport, A. Paul & I discovered a little treasure trove of artists and their works at the Yaquina Art Center & Gallery.  We were fortunate to meet up with Ken Tarwell, President of the Yaquina Art Association, who provided us the background of the Association and introduced us to several of the artists who were working  upstairs.  The Association is a non for profit organization who through fundraising events, such as the sale of artworks by its member artists, offer classes and workshops to the community.  Ken is very active in teaching children the arts through various mediums in addition to creating his own watercolor artwork.   Upstairs, artists were actively busy creating textile works and several were working with a process loosely based on encaustic principles whereby the artist uses crayons on special paper placed on a warming table.  One of the artists, Lila Passarelli, introduced the techinique at the Association and Ken has incorporated its use in his work with kids attending the association workshops.  With little encouragement, A. Paul sat with artist Solveig Leslie and created a small painting which he left to her. 

A. Paul with Solveig Leslie

The energy of the group was so positive that we simply could not leave without first taking an image of the entire group of artists. Lto R:  front row  Charter member Jeannie Cloe, Charlotte Carter, Elinor de Sosa, Lila Passarelle, Solveig Leslie, and Alma Leon.  Back row R-L: Jill Keck, President Ken Hartwell, Mary Young, Shirley Steinhauer, & Ann Nicholson.  Thanks everyone for your hospitalility and great energy. Keep on being creative.  http://yaquinaart.org/  



We popped in to to see the Association's gallery neighboring the art center before heading off to Lincoln City, our final destination of the day.  Tomorrow, we continue our drive along the coast diverting to Portland for a day or two then back out to the coast.  I leave you with images of the soft hues of this beautiful gray rainy day.

Arcata, CA to Coos Bay, OR

DRIVE FROM ARCATA, CA to COOS BAY, OR



Arcata Fire Arts Center
ceramics

A. Paul & I arrived safely to Coos Bay, Oregon, without encountering any weather related difficulties.  The drive from Arcata to Coos Bay  definitely tops our list of one of the most scenic drives we have driven thus far.  The sun filtered through the redwood groves  and cast glorious light across the ocean scenes that seemed to appear around each bend of the road.  Along the way, we took opportunities to stretch our legs and necks to see the great expanses of sand, rock formations, and wildlife.  It was all so breathtakingly beautiful.

We did have the opportunity to stop in a few of the local art venues along the way but I will write about our discoveries in tomorrow evening's blog. For tonight, I leave you with a very scenic journey that ends with a beautiful sunset over west Coos Bay.

TWO DAYS: Napa to Mendocino to Arcata

DAY ONE: NAPA to MENDOCINO

Downtown Napa

A. Paul & I finally encountered our first cell-less, wireless stay in Mendocino, so tonight's blog will catch up on our art tour over the past two days.

We landed in Napa Valley on Wednesday night and awoke to an overcast day as we set out to explore the wine country.  Our first excursion was to the old historic town of Napa founded in 1847. Prior to the business of the vineyards, Napa's economy, much like the economy of other small towns of Northern California, was tied to cattle, timber and mining-both gold and silver.  The shifts in the economy brought new migrants to the area and, among those, creative individuals who attempted  to capture the landscape and activities of the valley which continues in the contemporary artwork of today.    

Not unlike our previous finds in other communities, there were many storefronts lining the downtown that sat empty. Some of these, galleries that were not able to weather the economic woes felt by so many across the nation.  A. Paul & I headed north to see how other communities in the wine country were faring. 



L-R: Thomas, Kerry, & Chistopher
standing in front of Jeremy Mann artwork

 Our next stop was in St. Helena where we met up with gallery owner Christopher Hill and his associate Thomas Paul Smith at the Christopher Hill Gallery.   Within minutes, A. Paul & I felt at home in this gallery.  Both Christopher & Thomas gave us a warm welcome, answering our many questions about the gallery, its artists, and the area.  We were fortunate to see several of Jeremy Mann's works currently on display along with some exceptional, evocative pieces by international artists, who make up the bulk of the gallery artists.   The goal of much of the nontraditional work at the gallery, according to Christopher Hill, is to "engage the viewer and entice him or her to look beyond the norm of what is comfortable."   To this end, Hill has carefully selected represented work that reflects less of the environmental landscape of the wine country and more urban, abstract, and expressionist pieces.  The Christopher Hill Gallery has been successfully in business about 10 years with a stable of approximately 20 represented artists http://www.chgallery.com/   Thank you Christopher and Thomas for taking the time to speak with us and for the wonderful gift as we departed.  We hope to see you in Provincetown to return the hospitality.

As we walked the rest of St. Helena's small but quaint downtown, A. Paul & I noticed that the town seemed to be surviving the national economic crisis more favorably than its neighboring communities. The shops lining the streets were open for business with few to none vacant buildings. 

Following a quick lunch and stop in Calistoga ,where we visited a couple additional galleries including the Lee Youngman galleries http://www.leeyoungmangalleries.com/ , we began our trek westward across the rolling mountains that separate the wine country and the seaside town of Mendocino.  The rain did catch up with us throughout the day but it made for a reflective drive through the hills as seen in the images.  We landed just in time to settle in at the historic 19th c. Mendocino Hotel situated across from the Pacific Ocean.  Unfortunately, the dark of the evening settled in quickly so we had to wait until daylight to take in the breathtaking views Mendocino has to offer, which completely offset the inconvenience of not having cell or wireless access.

Slideshow:  Napa to Mendocino   (Day Two follows the slideshow)

Main Street Mendocino

DAY TWO:  MENDOCINO to ARCATA

When morning came, the sky had cleared and the seaside village of Mendocino could not have been more picturesque. Its location along the Pacific Ocean and proximity to San Francisco, has made Mendocino a haven for vacationers and artists alike. Though the off season year round population is less than 1000 residents, the town's stores and galleries were open for our visit.  Of the handful of shops that line the one-sided Main St, (the other side a scenic lookout over the ocean) the majority of shops are art related.  Even the watertower houses an artist.  Pastel artist Suzi Long rented the watertower for a short term rental years ago and never left.  Today, Long operates a gallery on the lower level, resides on the second level and has her studio on the third level, where she also teaches workshops.  http://www.suzilong.com/

 At the Highlight Gallery, A. Paul & I were captivated by the exquisite wood furniture and raku ceramics. http://www.thehighlightgallery.com/.  We were also impressed with the creative glasswork seen throughout town. We ended our early afternoon excursion at the Mendocino Art Center which consists of three gallery spaces, workshops, an iron forge, a bronze casting foundry and a Performing Arts Theater.   The MAC offers artist in residency programs as well as a number of choice art workshops and is open year round.  http://www.mendocinoartcenter.org/   

Reluctant to leave this little hamlet along the ocean, A. Paul & I knew there were still unexplored scenic views to discover en route to Arcata, CA.  What we discovered was far more beautiful than words can convey.  Each turn of the road offered one incredible view of the Pacific after another.  The ocean gave way to wooded canopies dappled with light only to give way to ocean again.  It was not until we passed Fort Bragg and entered into the forest pass that we hit the expected snowstorm.  The ess curves of the road were harrowingly beautiful with the snowlaced trees.  The sun broke through just as we entered the flat lands along the ocean again outside Eureka, only to drop hail, blowing snow,rain and back to clear skies with incredible cumulus clouds.  Words are simply not sufficient to express the absolute beauty we encountered in the pictures nature painted for us today,  so I hope the images will convey the journey more fully. Tomorrow, we travel to the Redwood Forest and onto Crescent City along the border of California and Oregon.  

Until tomorrow, we hope you enjoy the today's travel.

SLIDESHOW:  DRIVE FROM MENDOCINO TO ARCATA, CA

San Francisco and drive to Napa

SAN FRANCISCO

Historic Ferry Building

View of the Bay  Bridge

Given this was our last day in San Francisco, A. Paul and I set out to explore as many faces of San Francisco as possible before departing to Napa.  We set out eastward towards the 105 year old historic Ferry terminal which currently operates as a culturally diverse marketplace.  As we approached the terminal, the spire of the building appeared surreal as viewed between the tall skyscrapers on Market Street.  Inside, the aromas of organic goods mingled with the culinary delights of some of the greater chefs in the city.  In the back of the terminal, ferries motored into the bay as cars traveled across the span of the Bay Bridge, connecting  San Francisco to its surrounding neighbors. http://www.ferrybuildingmarketplace.com/

  

Mural along Balmy Alley



Next, we traveled along the oldest street in San Francisco, Mission Street,   that originally connected the Bay to the Spanish Mission Dolores.  Within the few blocks of what is known as the Mission District, over 600 artistic murals cover the walls of the district's buildings.  Two of the more recognized mural projects can be found along the Balmy Alley, developed in the 1970s as an expression of the current social/politcal climate of its residents, and later along the Clarion corridor.  A recent find seven years ago uncovered a 200+year old hidden mural in the Mission Dolores initiating a new project to seek funding to recreate the mural along Bartlett Street in the Mission District.  

Not far from the Mission District is the historic section of town known as the Castro District, once known as Eureka Valley and part of a large ranch owned by a Mexican land Baron, Jose de Jesus Noe.  By the 1880s, German, Irish and Scandinavian immigrants settled in the Valley, building Victorian houses which are still existent in the area. In 1920s the Valley was renamed the Castro District with its own landmark Castro theater.

With the addition of cable cars to the area, the Castro grew into a vibrant working class neighborhood until WWII when much of the population moved to the suburbs.  By the 1970s-80s,  the gay population increased in the district strengthed by its resident shop owner, Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in San Francisco who was assassinated in 1978.  Today, the streets are lined with symbolic rainbow flags and the intersection of  Market, Castro, and 17th street has been renamed Harvey Milk Plaza.

We followed our route southwest on Market and past the highest point in San Francisco, the Twin Peaks, towards the Sunset district, home to the surfers and Pacific Ocean beaches.  The gently rolling waves offered a break from the beat of the city and concrete & glass highrises.



de Young Museum

The long stretch of Pacific Ocean and dunes were a great backdrop to the entrance into Golden Gate Park, one of San Francisco's largest green spaces.  The GG Park encompasses over 1000 acres of woods, ponds, and wildlife and is home to the Academy of Sciences, Conservatory of Flowers, the De Young Museum of Art, Japanese Tea Garden, Strawberry Hill,  Arboretum,  Buffalo Paddock and more.  In addition to these venues, the park setting offers exensive trails for running, walking, or hiking for visitors and local residents alike. http://www.golden-gate-park.com/

Just outside of the park is the infamous Haight-Ashbury district.  A walk down Haight Street conveys that the population of the street still enjoys a  "Summer of Love" existence.  Home to names such as the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, and Jefferson Airplane, the Haight evokes and retains its own sense of identity in San Fransciso.

Along Haight Street

After a cup of java in a bohemian style cafe, we headed north towards the Marina district and onto Fort Mason to visit the SFMOMA Artists Alley.  Fort Mason has has been a part of San Francisco since 1776 when it served as a fortified Spanish  military base.  Since then, its history has had ties to the Civil War, 1906 earthquake, military embarkation from 1909-1962, Panama Canal, and WWII.  By 1960, the port was decommissioned for military use but opened as a  non for profit center in the 1970s to serve its community.   Several buildings at Fort Mason serve as workspace for SFMOMA artists with an exhibit space where visitors may view works. http://www.fortmason.org/ The current show during our visit represented the works of three female artists-Mirang Wonne, Jean Shifflet, and Kathyrn St Clair. 

SFMOMA Artists Gallery

Though we were enjoying our self guided tour of the city, we knew that we still had a drive ahead of us to Napa.  We headed back towards the Marina and took a few photographic opportunities of the Golden Gate Bridge from the northwest corner of Chrissy Field before passing over the suspension bridge.  For those interested, the name Golden Gate denotes not its color but it symbolism, derived from the Greek term Chrysopylae, meaning Golden Gate, and christened by Captain John Fremont upon entering the strait.  The bridge was completed and open to pedestrians in 1937 after a lengthy proposition and battle to build the bridge. http://goldengatebridge.org/research/dates.php 

The drive over the bridge was picturesque as we took in the last sights of the marble city skyline across the bay.  The drive into the wine countryside guided us through gently rolling hills of vineyards and rural landscapes.  We settled for the night in Napa. Tomorrow, we will explore the historic downtown of Napa, St. Helena and travel on to Mendocino, keeping our fingers crossed to skirt the oncoming late winter storm.  We leave you with our final images of our day in San Francisco and drive to Napa.