TUESDAY, FEB. 19 2013 >>>

1. The Academy Awards 2013 nominees for Documentary Shorts continue to screen at The Grand Cinema. You can view the five nominated shorts - King's Point, Mondays at Racine, Inocente, RedemptionandOpen Heart - at 2:15 and 6:50 p.m.

2. There is an excellent art exhibit in the gallery at The Evergreen State College from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is called An Abstract - Representational Continuum and it juxtaposes abstract art with slightly surrealistic photographs culled from the college's art collection. Included are works by well-known West Coast artists and a few nationally-recognized artists. Read Alec Clayton's full review of "An Abstract - Representational Continuum" in the Weekly Volcano's Arts section.

3. The latest show at the University of Puget Sound's Kittredge Gallery is a fascinating installation that may prove difficult to describe. It is called "Kukai," and it is a collaborative project between digital media artist Robert Campbell and ceramic sculptor Yuki Nakamura, who previously worked together for an installation called "Floating Plaster/City Motion," a multimedia installation comprising video, audio, and cast sculptures for the New Works Laboratory, a program between 911 Media Arts Center and the Henry Art Gallery at University of Washington in Seattle. The current installation is all about light and sound - mostly light. Check it out from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Read Alec Clayton's full review of "Kukai" in the Weekly Volcano Arts section.

4. Since China began flooding U.S. markets with illegally subsidized products in 2001, more than 50,000 American factories have disappeared, more than 25 million Americans can't find a decent job, and America now owes more than 3 trillion dollars to the world's largest totalitarian nation. But, what do we really know about China?  Tacoma's Fuzhou Sister City Committee selected the book Spring Moon: A Novel of China by Bette Bao Lord as a book to illuminate about China's different customs and people. Drop by King's Books at 7 p.m. to discuss the book and, well, China in general. By the way, this discussion is in conjunction with the upcoming Sister City International Film Festival taking place at Blue Mouse Theatre. Fuzhou's night is Feb. 28 with the film Last Train Home about China's country-wide migrations of people going home for their Chinese New Year celebrations.

5. Flint Culp, Mythologies and The Clacid Arkansas will rock Le Voyeur in downtown Olympia around 10 p.m.

LINK: Tuesday, Feb. 19 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

MONDAY, FEB. 18 2013 >>>

1. Guy Fieri visited Puyallup when he blasted through the South Sound in November. His show, Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, filmed at six popular locations, including Darby's Cafe and Fish Tale Brew Pub, both which have aired on Fieri's Food Network show. Tonight, Crockett's Public House receives the spotlight with the episode screening at 7 and 10 p.m. In celebration, Crockett's invites everyone to join them for happy hour from 9 p.m. to close and watch Fieri discuss their awesome meatballs.

2. It's Kids 'n' Critters day at Northwest Trek. From 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. special nature-themed arts and crafts and trailside encounters will hit the massive animal park. Tram seating is limited to the first 1,500 visitors.

3. The Tacoma Art Museum and Washington State History Museum are opening their doors from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. to celebrate President's Day. To honor servicemen and servicewomen, the museums are offering free admission to all active-duty military members and their immediate families. Tacoma Art Museum will be offering hands-on art activities as well as a family photo booth. The Washington State History Museum is featuring Let's Ride! Motorcycling the Northwest, which explores a century of motorcycling.

4. Monday is typically a black hole for nightlife. Sure, if you run a sports bar, you'll do well during the World Series or football season, but for most eating and drinking establishments, it's just dead, dead, dead. There's a darn good reason why so many bars are empty on Mondays. So how do those that remain open find ways to fill barstools on this, the most dreadful evening of the workweek? The folks at The Swiss seem to have found a solution and, oddly enough, it's one that has been the bane of many other venues: live music. Since the beginning of time, The Swiss has hosted live blues every Monday at 8 p.m. Tonight, Palmer JCT will fill the Swiss with blues featuring three singers, dual lead guitars and a righteous rhythm section.

5. Beginning at 9 p.m. every Monday Jazzbones is packed to the brim with college kids. Party types. The type that wear tight shirts and trucker hats. Throngs of Chad Fratguys and Sarah Sororitysisters swarm the bar, line up for the bathroom and dance to the Rockaraoke - live band karaoke. The Rockaraoke band is skilled, too. Expect $2 PBR drafts, $3 Sinfire shots and $4 Smirnoff flavor vodka bombs.

LINK: Monday, Feb. 18 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

SUNDAY, FEB. 17 2013  >>>

1. "Numero By Northwest" is an unusual DJ showcase at The Brotherhood Lounge at 9 p.m. And by unusual, we mean rare - but we also mean weird, which in Olympia, equates to awesome. The Numero Group's Ken Shipley, Justin Trosper from Unwound/Survival Knife and DJ Wildman James will spin soul, garage and other obscure gems in the comfort of a lounge where a wall of carpet JFKs and gigantic hanging guitars make it feel like your best friend's living room. Dancers and wallflowers welcome.

2. Something unique will happen in the Museum of Glass Hot Shop. An artist will return for the second of two back-to-back residencies, a rare occurrence to be sure. Said artist is Raven Skyriver, maker of intriguingly real-looking marine creatures large and small. He scored two residencies in a row by winning two separate awards at the Red Hot Party & Auction last September. He won both the People's Choice and Artists' Choice awards, each came with a hot shop residency, which ends today from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

3. Next to Normal ends its run at the Capital Playhouse with a 2 p.m. staging. In the play we find Diana Goodman waiting up for her teen-aged son while her insomniac daughter Natalie does calculus homework. As her husband Dan sings the next morning, it's "Just Another Day" in workaday suburbia. What we haven't figured out is why Diana's so distracted. She has a better idea than we do, but even her shrink, the ironically named Dr. Madden, can't get a handle on her dysfunction, prescribing one cocktail after another of happy pills. Because yeah: this musical goes there. Diana's mentally ill, and it's unclear whether trauma some years ago brought on these troubles or they already existed, depriving her of the ability to cope. Read Christian Carvajal's full review of Next to Normal in the Weekly Volcano's Arts section.

4. The Progressive Dinner Tour presented by Studio 6 Ballroom hits Sixth Avenue at 4, 5 and 6 p.m. This month's Progressive Dinner Tour has a Valentine's Day spin. Studio 6 says you can join a group of singles or a group of couples. Also, the event has been titled "6 ways to Stimulate your Sense on 6^th Ave," although we counted only four ways - meals at Six Olives, Gateway to India, Cork! Wine Bar with dessert back at Studio 6. Maybe number five is Maia Santell & House Blend filling Studio 6 with blues and jazz for dancing. Maybe the sixth way to stimulate your senses is a surprise. All your questions may be answered at 253.905.5301.

5. The Albert Square makes peppy pop-punk that calls to mind other practitioners of grinning, clever alt-rock, like They Might Be Giants, the Dead Milkmen and Cake - not to mention Barenaked Ladies, Blink 182 and Ben Kweller. You get the idea. But no matter how clever you are, you'd be dead in the water without some serious, smart hooks, and the Albert Square has those in spades. Joining the Albert Square for a free show at 9 p.m. inside Wingman Brewers are fellow indie rocker Brooklyn Pool, Trees and Timber, and the up-and-coming awesomeness of Shogun Barbie.

LINK: Sunday, Feb. 17 arts and entertainemtn events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Cloudy, hi 53, lo 43

Saturday: periods of annoying rain, hi 47, lo 37

Sunday: Some rain here and there, hi 46, lo 35

>>> FRIDAY, FEB. 15-SUNDAY, FEB. 17: OLD-TIME MUSIC FESTIVAL

The Fifth Annual Olympia Old-Time Music Festival is in full swing. Through Sunday the event takes over the Olympia Ballroom and The First Christian Church with workshops - such as Appalachian basketry, waltzing and beginning mandolin - and of course, musicians! A full schedule of performers include Grizzle Grazzle Tune Snugglers, the Gold Diggers and Kendl Winter. The Oly Old Timers mission statement is to "... spread a love of traditional Appalachian music and create a good excuse to interact with real, live, people, through music and dance and pie-eating." - Nikki McCoy

• Olympia Ballroom and First Christian Church, hours vary, $12, weekend pass $25, Olympia, www.olyoldtime.org

>>> FRIDAY, FEB. 15: BLACK PANTHER AARON DIXON

King's Books is undeniably the literary epicenter of Tacoma these days. So it's not surprising to see Aaron Dixon, one of the co-founders of the Seattle chapter of the Black Panther Party, is at King's Friday to discuss his new memoir, My people Are Rising: Memoir of a Black Panther Party Captain. - Weekly Volcano

• King's Books, 7 p.m., free, 218 St. Helens Ave., Tacoma, 253.272.8801, kingsbookstore.com

>>> FRIDAY, FEB. 15-SUNDAY, FEB. 17: ARTIST RAVEN SKYRIVER

Something unique will happen in the Museum of Glass Hot Shop. An artist will return for the second of two back-to-back residencies, a rare occurrence to be sure. Said artist is Raven Skyriver, maker of intriguingly real-looking marine creatures large and small. He scored two residencies in a row by winning two separate awards at the Red Hot Party & Auction last September. He won both the People's Choice and Artists' Choice awards, each came with a hot shop residency. - Kristin Kendle

• Museum of Glass, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., $5-$12, 1801 Dock St., Tacoma, 866.468.7386

>>> SATURDAY, FEB. 16: ST. MARTIN'S PANCAKE FEED BREAKFAST

You're damn right we love pancakes. Like, we Ron-Swanson love pancakes. It's an almost unsettling level of obsession. But whatever. We'd eat pancakes for almost any reason or cause, making Saturday's pancake breakfast at Saint Martin's University benefiting the Campus Ministry's annual mission service a total no-brainer. According to the press release, this year 16 students will travel to Yakima Vallery to work with Migrant Farm Workers and Catholic Charities Housing. Eat pancakes AND make Yakima a better place! It's a win-win! The $5 ticket, which can be purchased prior to the event at the Campus Ministry office, includes pancakes, sausage, fresh fruit and beverages.

• Saint Martin's - Norman Worthington Conference Center, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., $5, 5300 Pacific Ave. SE, Lacey, stmartin.edu

>>> SATURDAY, FEB. 15: BIG BEER FESTIVAL

The Big Beer Festival this Saturday in Tacoma will feature 60 hand crafted beers with big character and big flavor. This first annual event has two time slots available, noon to 4 p.m. and 4:30-8:30 p.m., and features 5.5-ounce commemorative taster glasses plus six tasting tokens. Additional 5.5-ounce pours can be purchased for $1.50. Plus, there will be great food. But hurry, it looks like the Big Beer Fest is getting a big response and is almost sold out! Well done, Tacoma. Check Tacoma Craft Beer's Facebook page for updates and where to purchase tickets.

• Foss Waterway Seaport, noon - 8:30 p.m., $20/adv, $25/door, 705 Dock Street, Tacoma

>>> SUNDAY, FEB 17: NUMERO BY NORTHWEST

"Numero By Northwest" is an unusual DJ showcase at The Brotherhood Lounge Sunday. And by unusual, I mean rare - but I also mean weird, which in Olympia, equates to awesome. The Numero Group's Ken Shipley, Justin Trosper from Unwound/Survival Knife and DJ Wildman James will spin soul, garage and other obscure gems in the comfort of a lounge where a wall of carpet JFKs and gigantic hanging guitars make it feel like your best friend's living room. Dancers and wallflowers welcome. - NM

• The Brotherhood Lounge, 9 p.m., no cover, 119 Capitol Way, Olympia, 360.352.4153

WHAT SOME OF OUR STAFF MEMBERS ARE UP TO

CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL Theater Critic
It's Valentine's Day weekend, I'm a happily married man, and I'd prefer to stay that way. Ergo, I'm creating a bed and breakfast in our home by adding cozy touches and cooking Amanda breakfast in bed. She may also get dinner and a movie out of the deal. Mr. Romance, that's me.

REV. ADAM MCKINNEY Music Writer
This weekend, if I have any brain at all, I'll take it easy and just stay inside. But, if I do go out, I'll probably hit up the Saucy Yoda show at The New Frontier, or maybe The Albert Square show at the Wingmen Brewery, which I've never been to.

ALEC CLAYTON Arts Critic
It's my birthday. Party time.

NIKKI MCCOY Feature Writer
How about a bubble bath while the servants, I mean children, clean the cat box and fold the laundry? How about a full body massage with lavender and jojoba oil while my husband serenades me on the guitar? How about a luxury shopping trip with girlfriends and martinis while a team of top-rate gardeners prepare my yard for spring? Oh, sorry, what was that? My weekend plans? Nursing a cold and scrubbing toilets while the tyrants, I mean children, fight over Legos and complain about dinner.

JOSH RIZEBERG Music Columnist
Fiday, Beanz & Rize are performing at the Central Ave Pub in Kent for Nuvo Tha1's birthday party. Saturday, I'll be teaching my spoken word/poetry class at D.A.S.H. - then that night I'm going to celebrate the 9th Anniversary of the 206 Zulu Nation chapter. Sunday, I'm going to try to get down to the Graffiti Garage M.C. Cyphers.

JACKIE FENDER Food Writer
Friday will include art bus pow wowing, checking out a certain local community kitchen and topped off with a Wrist poetry reading and open poetry slam at Bluebeard. Saturday will start with convincing others to start their day with a moonshine mary and more Peace Out fundraising planning. Sunday is committed to work and sleep.

JOANN VARNELL Theater Critic
The husband and I will be taking the toddler to the mountains for some legit sledding on Friday. Saturday, I will set my alarm so I can make it to a friends house for 3 and 1/2 hours of writing before hopping on the train for a family weekend in Portland. While there, I'm hoping to sleep but most likely I'll just end up at Powell's. Probably more than once per day.

TIMOTHY GRISHAM Music Writer
Friday is the day after hallmark gift card day,the amazing BLACK MARBLE is playing, Broken Water is playing and Happy Noose is playing. Hey, that's me!

JENNI PRANGE-BORAN Features Writer
Trying, trying, trying to catch up on Oscar-nominated movies. Look for me at The Grand!

NIC LEONARD Music Writer
Friday night I will be tossing pizzas at I.talia Pizzeria on the westside of Olympia. Afterward, I plan to relax and watch the movie Flight. Saturday, I will be spending a good portion of the day hitting up various Goodwill and Value Villages around the South Sound area followed by a relaxing evening at home with a bottle of whiskey.

ROCKFORD ROWLEY All-Ages Music Columnist
This weekend I will be leaving my beloved city of destiny for another destination: San Francisco. I am traveling there to see one of my favorite bands, The Vaccines, play at The Fillmore. I'm also looking forward to taking in the SF culture, and visiting some places I've never been to before. And of course, I'll be sure to wear some flowers in my hair.

LINK: Even more local events that we recommend

LINK: Comprehensive South Sound Arts & Entertainment Calendar

DISPOSABLE HEROES >>>

When you think of fighting pollution and harmful waste, the images that come to mind are often of oil spills; nuclear meltdowns and bottlenose dolphins caught in tuna nets. Typically, you don't think of bowling pins, magnets, beanbags and tops.

The Andersons do.

Ms. Darcy and RR Anderson, wife and husband, want to help the planet, but they also wanted to encourage art. The couple found a way to do both. With their new venture Tinkertopia, they want to repurpose junk for potential art projects.

Tinkertopia will be a destination unlike any other in the South Sound. Once it finds and sets up a storefront, it will be a hub for cheap and locally sourced repurposed items, ideal for use in artwork, home renovations or whatever floats your boat.

"Our mission is to divert as much reusable artsy/crafty materials from the waste stream as possible and the response so far has been very positive," says R.R. Anderson. "They have these stores in Vancouver B.C., Portlandia and Lynnwood, but not in Tacoma."

Tinkertopia is searching for a storefront, both in partnership with Spaceworks and on its own. Anderson is banking on the word of a live psychic phone network that the store will be open in the next month or so.

On the flip side, if you have old stuff that you really feel could have a future in someone else's project, the Tinkermobile is there for you. Call 253.778.6539, email rerun@tinkertopia.com or tweet @RerunTinkerCrab to schedule a pick up. The Tinkermobile will arrive, decked out in what Anderson likes to call "unbridled cartooning skills."

A full list of types of materials accepted is on Tinkertopia's website.

FRIDAY, FEB. 15 2013 >>>

1. On any given morning, after eating her daily oatmeal, and feeding her several dogs, legendary musician Roberta Flack gets busy in her New York City home - busy rehearsing, busy planning, busy listening to or writing music. "I'm a busy person. I have a busy personality," Flack says over the phone. "I have ongoing commitments constantly. ... And now with the Internet slapping you in the face, there's really no excuse. You gotta be motivated to move and make something." All this gusto from a woman who has enchanted the jazz, soul and R&B scene with her singing, songwriting and piano skills since the late '60s, earning two consecutive Grammy awards in '73 and '74 with chart-toppers, "The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face" and "Killing Me Softly with His Song," respectively. See her perform at 7:30 p.m. inside the Pantages Theater. Read Nikki McCoy's interview with Roberta Flack in the Weekly Volcano's Music section.

2. After six long years of closure due to safety issues, the Murray Morgan Bridge saw the dawn of a new era Friday, Feb. 1. The bridge reopened to car traffic - as well as bicycle and foot traffic via new pathways - just in time for its 100th birthday celebration today. This past week downtown businesses offered discounts and Harmon Brewery distributed Eleventh Street IPA in celebration of the old steel bridge over the Thea Foss Waterway reconnecting the Port of Tacoma with downtown Tacoma. An official dedication ceremony with local dignitaries will be held at 10 a.m. The event will take place near the bridge at the intersection of 11th and A streets.

3. Stroll through the W.W. Seymour Conservatory sipping on wine or champagne and indulge on handmade chocolates or chocolate covered strawberries from French Hen Bistro while Andy Carlson fills the space with melodies from 5:30-7 p.m. Be present at 6:30 for a drawing of a Hilltop Artist's glass piece.

4. These are digital days, and they're thick with artists - artists who push the technological boundaries of expression further with every bend of a circuit, every twitch of a knob, every densely packed recontextualization of what's come before. The cartoonland of Mark Monlux; the extremes of Ryan Loiselle's weird humor; the virtual tablet painting of John Carlton: This is not some graying curator's business as usual. This is not the sort of art, of creative industry, that's regularly encompassed by a city's more old-school contingent of galleries and exhibitions. You want to bust these ghosts out of the machine, so to speak? Who you gonna call? Lynn di Nino and her monthly TRIPOD Slide Show. See three slideshows on digital art and how these three artists make it from 7-8:30 p.m. at Madera Furniture Company a couple blocks from El Gaucho.

5. Drag show troupe New Queens on the Block has produced shows at the Urban Onion since September, dropping a themed show on Olympia every third Friday of the month. In December, the New Queens added holiday flair to its fabulous affair. In March, the show will geek out to a Comicon theme. Tonight at 9 p.m., Valentine's Day is front an dcenter with "The Lupanara: A Burlesque Themed Drag Variety Show" at the Onion. Read Nikki McCoy's full feature on New Queens on the Block.

LINK: Friday, Feb. 14 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

FAST-PACED AWESOMENESS >>>

Whoever said scientists consist solely of freaks and geeks who can mentally compute the velocity of their own pee is a big fat liar. Believe it or not, next Thursday's quest for art will lead you directly to the steps of science. That's right, the University of Puget Sound and Tacoma Art Museum have teamed up to present an Art+Science Salon - an evening of 10 artists and scientists delivering 10-minute presentations - Pecha Kucha style - Thursday, Feb. 21 the Tacoma Art Museum.

Let's read a press release:

TACOMA, Wash. - Artists and scientists tend to live and work in very different worlds. But in major cities across three continents the question is being asked: "Is there something to be gained in our understanding of humankind by encouraging scientists and artists to share their ideas?"

Siddharth Ramakrishnan, the new Jennie M. Caruthers Chair in Neuroscience at University of Puget Sound, asked this question several years ago. He began sharing his scientific inspirations with artists and together they created new ways of looking at things. When the Columbia University researcher arrived in Tacoma this year, he found there are many here keen to do the same.

On Thursday, Feb. 21, University of Puget Sound and Tacoma Art Museum will present the first Art+Science Salon, running 6-8 p.m. at Tacoma Art Museum, in the Art Resource Center on the third floor. Everyone is welcome to the free event, which runs on the museum's regular Third Thursday free admission day.

The evening will include five-minute presentations by 10 artists and scientists in what is known as Pecha Kucha style: a fast-paced series of presentations that encourage the synthesizing of ideas.

"It's all about getting some connections happening between artists and scientists," Ramakrishnan said. "We're hopeful that people will be inspired by others' work and decide to go out for a coffee and talk about working together."

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WEDNESDAY, FEB. 13 2013 >>>

1. C-Money is a trumpeter best known for his work with stoner-reggae outfit Slightly Stoopid. Backed by the Players Inc., his style can still be described as stoney, but skews less toward the sounds of Jamaica and more toward the R&B rhythms of the States. C-Money and the Players Inc perform at 8 p.m. with Agent 22, Mightly High and The Syndicate at Jazzbones.

2. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., something unique will happen in the Museum of Glass Hot Shop. An artist will return for the second of two back-to-back residencies, a rare occurrence to be sure. Said artist is Raven Skyriver, maker of intriguingly real-looking marine creatures large and small. He scored two residencies in a row by winning two separate awards at the Red Hot Party & Auction last September. He won both the People's Choice and Artists' Choice awards, each came with a hot shop residency.

3. Since its introduction in 1894, the motorcycle has spawned a variety of cultures and uses. As basic transportation, as leisure activity or as a die-hard lifestyle, millions of people have a love affair with Choppers, Crotch Rockets, Thumpers and all things two-wheeled. The action-packed exhibit "Let's Ride! Motocycling The Northwest at the Washington State History Museum is a celebration of the region's never-waning motorcycle culture - will include interactive exhibits, videos and impressive displays of machines from 1906 to the 21st century. Check it out from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

4. Many associate the banjo with The Beverly Hillbillies - or rather, bluegrass pioneer Earl Scruggs strumming its theme song. Vince Brown certainly knows his way around a bluegrass banjo, but he also explores jazz with his banjo, which isn't a big leap from progressive bluegrass. Blending bluegrass, folk, jazz, and other genres, Brown is considered one of the South Sound's foremost banjo virtuosos. The upbeat Brown - who adds his talent to Hot Club Sandwich, Tune Stranglers, Greta Jane Quartet, and plays and teaches guitar, banjo and ukulele in Olympia - strums everything every Wednesday from 6-8 p.m. inside the Swing Wine Bar & Café. 

5. Saxophonist Kareem Kandi's sound is virtually unrelated to the roomy traditions of soul saxes, honking saxes or deep-chested boudoir ballad saxes. It derives from the classic, free, often enthusiastic tradition of Joshua Redman as filtered through Dexter Gordon and Sonny Stitt, all of whose shadows can be traced-Redman in Kandi's funky organicism, Gordon in his dynamic harmonics, Stitt in the intensity that coats his every note with a Gritty City finish. Kandi has been hanging with organist Delvon Lamarr and drummer Adam Kessler, which has added groovy innovation to Kandi's sound. The Kareem Kandi Band heads back to The Swiss at 7 p.m. for another Wednesday open jam session.

LINK: Wednesday, Feb. 13 arts and entertainment calendar in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

Who are the important artists today? Someone posed that question on Facebook (Actually she said painters, not artists, but I don't follow instructions well).

Hardy anybody responded and those who did said things like nobody younger than 60 is important. One person listed a whole bunch of people who are dead and gone. The most frequent names put forth were Gerhardt Richter, who is 81, and British graffiti artists Banksy, who is the only artist of any international importance I can think of who is younger than 40. The only other artists I can think of offhand who is still doing important work is sculptor Richard Serra, another old dude - born in 1939. Oh, and Martin Puryear, born in '41 but a late bloomer who did not come into prominence until the '90s.

And I guess we have to include Jeff Koons and Damien Hirst, two young artists who will undoubtedly go down in history as important figures. I have my doubts about Hirst but have to admit I do not know his work well enough to make an informed judgment. Koons, on the other hand, I find fascinating even though he's done little if anything that Warhol and Duchamp didn't do long before him.

Either there's a dirge of exciting young artists at work today or I am totally out of touch with what's happening.

It's not an exciting time in art. It's not like when I was in college. That was an exciting time (about the time Damien Hirst was born). Pop Art was in its heyday. There was minimalism, hard edge abstraction, happenings and environmental art. There was something new almost every day. I still think the most important artists of the modern and post-modern era were the Abstract Expressionists and Pop artists. Everyone since has just recycled what de Kooning and Pollock and Warhol and Frank Stella did with some comic art thrown into the mix.

But then the question - who is important begs another question: What is meant by important? I think to be truly important an artist needs to affect change in the world or in the history of art. Picasso and Braque certainly shaped the history of modern art with the invention of Cubism. Kandinsky has to be considered important as the first abstract painter. And Pollock, ironically, not so much for his paintings - which are marvelous - but for opening the doors to multi-media happenings and performance art. By painting on unstretched canvases on the floor and famously walking around and literally being in his painting he turned the art of painting into something larger that metaphorically and, in some cases literally, became something larger than life or something that obscured the boundaries between art and life - the act of painting became as important as the painting that resulted, which was just a kind of archival record of the act.

Throughout the history of modern art many people have declared painting dead. Perhaps Pollock killed it, but if he did, out of the ashes rose the phoenix of a new kind of art loosely termed post-modernist, which now encompasses everything that has come since. To extend the irony of Pollock, in the last years of his life he begin to make paintings that gave hints he might be reverting back to traditional easel painting. Since he died so tragically and so young we will never know.

Painting is dead; long live painting.

LINK: Alec Clayton's Visual Edge column

THERE BE WHALES IN THE HOT SHOP! >>>

Beginning Wednesday, Feb. 13, something unique will happen in the Museum of Glass Hot Shop. An artist will return for the second of two back-to-back residencies, a rare occurrence to be sure. Said artist is Raven Skyriver, maker of intriguingly real-looking marine creatures large and small. He scored two residencies in a row by winning two separate awards at the Red Hot Party & Auction last September. He won both the People's Choice and Artists' Choice awards, each came with a hot shop residency.

His first residency was from Jan. 30-Feb. 3. On that last day, Skyriver gave a talk to the public about his journey to glassblowing, which started when he was just 16 and growing up in the San Juans. Rather than following the traditional high school track, Skyriver went into a tradesman program and asked a Lopez Island glassblower, Lark Dalton, if he could be his apprentice. Skyriver later worked with William Morris as well. The talk was accompanied by slides of Skyriver's work and travels.

When Skyriver's second coming kicks off Wednesday - and running through Feb. 17 - he will continue in the same vein as the first residency, but has some plans for bigger and better things - namely, bigger sea life.

"I think for Saturday, I'm going to make a giant blue whale," he says. "I have a couple other whales I'm going to do, maybe a walrus, a sea lion or seal, and then a couple other things that I don't know if I'll get to - maybe a narwhal."

His usual pieces range from 30 to 40 inches in length, but the large whale he plans to try on Saturday may be as long as 50 inches. Attendees can expect to see a team of about four glassblowers, all creating different parts - a fin here, a tail there.

Skyriver will be in the hot shop from about 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during his residency.

MUSEUM OF GLASS, RAVEN SKYRIVER ARIST IN RESIDENCE, 9 A.M. TO 5 P.M. WEDNESDAY, FEB. 13-SUNDAY, FEB. 17, $5-$12, 1801 DOCK ST., TACOMA, 866.468.7386