Friday Art Events

There's really something for everyone tonight. Here's a small list of things happening tonight around Seattle.

image via Hankblog

As part of Henry Art Gallery's Shelf Life, they are hosting an acoustic recap of Songs about Books. Levi Fuller organized this Ball of Wax quarterly compilation in which The Stranger Books Editor Paul Constant gave each songwriter a book which they wrote songs about. Participating songwriters and their books are Alex Guy (Led to Sea) - Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov; Levi Fuller - Bluets by Maggie Nelson; Johanna Kunin (Bright Archer) - Set This House in Order: A Romance of Souls by Matt Ruff; and Joshua Morrison - The Last Samurai by Helen DeWitt. This performance is free with museum admission. More info here.

Stars by Yumiko Kayukawa, image via Roq La Rue Gallery

Yumiko Kayukawa will be showing at Roq La Rue Gallery. More info here.

Japanese painter Yumiko Kayukawa jokingly says "My father is Ninja, my mother is Geisha...and I was raised by wolves!" and that playful irreverence is also seen in her dynamic, rock-pop, color saturated paintings of independent women surrounded by animal totems and Japanese traditional motifs.

Image by Tessa Hulls

Ver(a)rt Gallery will be showing new work by Tessa Hulls, Charlie Spitzack, and Zach Stockman., along with live music by "This Bitch Don't Fall Off." It'll be the last time to see Tessa before she heads down to Antarctica for a while. More info here.

image via CuS

Urban Light Studios will be hosting It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, curated by Henry Ward and Xavier Lopez, Jr. All art is inspired by the beloved Mad Magazine and artists include Xavier Lopez, Jr., Augie Pagan, 179, CuS, PhotoCoyote, Strange Child plus lots more. They'll even have free tacos (Camarena Tequila Taco Truck) in the back from 7-9 (or until they run out).

"Anemone" by Larkin, image via Bherd Studios Gallery

Bherd Studios Gallery will be hosting "Askew: pushing the boundaries of realism". This group show, curated by Kate Protage and Chris Sheridan, will feature the work of Yvette Endrijautzki, Carl Faulkner, Zanetka Gawronski, Larkin, Matthew Lewis, Aaron Jasinski, Spyder Peterka, AJ Power, Jim Stoccardo, James Walker, and Andrea Wicklund.

"Realism is making a comeback. After a few years of lying low, representational art is back with a vengeance—artists are creating figurative work with passion and finesse, but now they’re adding their own unique twists. In a fitting gesture for these tumultuous times, the artists that were chosen for “Askew” create intense, layered imagery that challenges our perceptions of “normal” and makes us think twice about what’s real and what’s not."

It's opening night for Le Frenchword's Fancy Mud. Schedule and pricing here.

After a successful workshop run, absurdist trio Le Frenchword debuts the full length version of “Fancy Mud”; a collection of abstract comedy vignettes bolstered by a pastiche of movement, music and a deep and meaningful exploration of all things dumb. Directed by George Lewis, the story takes us from The Last Lame Three-Legged Dying Cow Of All Creation to the origins of the universe. With the help of cell phones, black holes, and the California Cute Cult, Le Frenchword delivers a pastel rainbow of laughter. Beware the flying bunny punch. Beware!