Calling all artists: Create a wreath for Art Walk Edmonds

Last year, Art Walk Edmonds started a new tradition for the downtown area. Artists decorated wreaths that were placed in storefronts during the holiday season. Art Walk Edmonds is continuing the tradition this year and is in need of talented artists to design the wreaths.

Artists who are interested need to apply by Oct. 1, with a concept and description for a wreath (a sketch would be helpful). Applications are online here.

Wreaths should be festive but don’t have to be holiday-themed. They do need to be family friendly though, and without political themes. Use your creativity to come up with your own unique design; just make sure it is non-perishable.

All wreaths will be 24 inches in circumference and Art Walk Edmonds (AWE) will provide the wreath base. You can choose from a base of faux evergreen, grapevine, or straw.

The AWE jury will decide on the wreath concepts by Oct. 8. The chosen wreaths will be matched to locations in downtown Edmonds for hanging.

Each chosen artist will get a stipend of $150 to help cover the costs of the wreath. Checks will be sent once the wreath has been hung. The wreaths must be completed and hung no later than Nov. 18, and a picture will be required for the website.

The Wreath Walk will start on Nov. 18 during the November Art Walk Edmonds, and artists are encouraged to attend to talk about their wreath, their artwork and to help promote the online wreath auction. Every wreath will have a biography and contact information for the wreath’s artist, which will be hung by the wreath. A picture of the wreath, as well as its location and the artist’s biography, will be included on the Art Walk Edmonds website.

All wreaths will become the property of AWE and will be auctioned off during the month they are hanging, with all proceeds supporting Art Walk Edmonds. The Wreath Walk goes through Dec.16. Questions or suggestions should be directed to Art Walk Edmonds at info@artwalkedmonds.com.New exhibition featuring

Japanese-American modernist artist Kenjiro Nomura at Cascadia Art Museum

There is a new exhibition and publication featuring Japanese-American modernist artist Kenjiro Nomura on view at Cascadia Art Museum from Oct. 21, 2021 through Feb. 20, 2022.

This will be the first solo exhibition in over 60 years of the work of Kenjiro Nomura (1896-1956). Nomura’s modernist work ranges from Seattle’s urban environment and rural Northwest landscapes, to paintings and drawings capturing his life in World War II internment camps, to post-war abstractions.

Despite crippling challenges after the war, Nomura returned to painting and developed a new abstract artistic style.

The exhibition is accompanied by Cascadia’s latest book, Kenjiro Nomura, American Modernist: An Issei Artist’s Journey, written by art historian Barbara Johns, PhD, with a contributing chapter by Cascadia’s curator David F. Martin.

You can read more about the upcoming exhibit here.

— By Rachel Gardner

Rachel Gardner has a heartfelt appreciation for art in all forms and believes everyone is an artist, some just don’t know it yet. A dedicated and involved Edmonds resident, she can often be spotted onstage cracking jokes between sets or in the audience enjoying local live performances. She enjoys being playful with her art and finding unique ways of expression, like forming a boho-grunge-folk ukulele trio with local Edmonds moms.

—