As Valentine's Day draws ever-nigh, Tacoma's resident Valentine's grumps plot to overthrow the day of love. Kendra Breeden and Stuart M. Dempster of Treefish Studio like to frame their "Tacomapocalypse" as an art show at Amocat Cafe, but the truth is each year this dynamic duo strives to fill Tacoma with zombies and other great evils, to make us all pay for their distaste of V-Day.
"We do find Valentine's Day to be a wretched and detestable excuse for a holiday," says Dempster. "In our society, being alone on this most artificial and saccharin of Holy days truly can feel like the End of the World. Singles are made to feel diseased and inferior, utterly inadequate as human beings. Even as couples, we are judged against the classical romantic ideal; and being human, we invariably fall short. Perhaps Zombie St. Valentine will return for revenge during our opening event."
"Tacomapocalypse" is now in its third year, morphing just a tad with each incarnation. The first "Tacomapocalypse" focused on zombies and destruction. The second took a tongue-in-cheek look at the end of the world. "Tacomapocalypse III" in turn is centered on what has lived through the end of days and what that recovery might look like.
"We're going for darkly positive, instead of positively dark, you might say," says Dempster.
Read Kristin Kendle's full feature on "Tacomapocalypse" in the Weekly Volcano's Arts section.
AMOCAT CAFÉ, "TACOMAPOCALYPSE III," THROUGH FEB. 28, 625 SAINT HELENS AVE., TACOMA, 253.242.3370