West Seattle Art Walk

Holiday festivities were in full swing at last night’s December 14 Art Walk! With Art of Music, The Silver Belles, Better As Brass, and a showcase of Seattle’s local artists out on display alongside a few Santa sightings there was plenty of joy to go around.  

In Morgan Junction Alki Arts, a new addition to the West Seattle art scene, featured prominent local photographer Patrick Robinson’s work alongside ‘Confluence’ a group show by seven talented local artists. At The Building, an artist collective, studios were full of lively discussion and energy, with a wide array of mediums and artistic styles on display by local artists. Inner Space Designs featured Reverie by Hailey Lindsay with three-dimensional mountain peaks arising from the walls.  Zeeks Pizza hosted Art of Music with musician Matt Cecil on Renaissance lute, in costume, accompanied for part of each set by his band members. Long-time friends, artist Alizah Naomi Olivas and Pine Lake Cellars owner Rob McCall were enjoying the fun and festive atmosphere of the crowd at the local tasting room.

Further up California in Alaska Junction, The Holiday Art Walk was a spirited scene! The Silver Belles were singing merry melodies on the streets. The Better As Brass band, decked in golden finery, drew a crowd and raised spirits. Santa Claus strolled and posed for photos, always in fine fettle. ArtsWest held a lively artist’s reception with Thoa Nguyen’s show Common Thread.

Windermere hosted an artist reception on one side and a pop-up holiday market on the other, and both sides were busy all night. The many empty wine bottles bore witness to the festive spirit of the evening! T Frick’s abstract and landscape paintings captivated many art lovers. Easy Street held a hopping pop-up market for the hip shopper. Storied Seattle entertainment photographer Karen Mason Blair took center stage as she recounted first-hand tales of the 90s music scene. Nearby, deejay Justin was spinning tunes at Jet City Labs while the pop-up market vendors did brisk business and featured Art Walk artist Maggie charmed the crowd. The Great American Diner and Bar featured Art of Music with quartet Rik Wright’s Fundamental Forces, with the tagline “like jazz, but not.”

Art Walk wished a warm welcome to Space Gallery on Fauntleroy, a new start-up with 10-plus artists. The gallery features a wide variety of art from ceramics and wood carvings to watercolor postcards, acrylics, paintings, and more, we highly recommend checking it out! Lars Gesing Gallery was a warm spot on a cool balmy night. Spending time with Lars and his guests brought us to the sunshine that exudes from each of his photos. Over at Vain, the energy was buzzing, and we enjoyed the ambiance of beauty and service that highlighted the West Seattle-made and inspired scents of The Phoenix and the Fool.

Verity was bright and cheerful with the works of Shelly Irish. Bold and vibrant works of both nature and land and moonscapes. The guests gathered to enjoy and soak up each piece’s energies. John L Scott had a hardy, holiday cheery vibe with the bold and vibrant works of Charell Williams, AI artist and Designer. His smile welcomed all who were there to explore the technical and visual gifts he brought to the gallery.

Florence Weintraub’s stunning photographic art at Discovery Shop is not to be missed. Weintraub’s work asks you to pause and look at nature and daily sights in a new and vivid way. Each image asks you to look a bit longer to see what is revealed. Gain inspiration from this seasoned artist’s path and what she has seen. Diving into the cosmos? Yes, you can if you get up close and personal to Megan Skinner’s Tarot Couture collages at Swan Dive as we did at December Art Walk. Skinner’s simultaneously contemporary and classical images lead the viewer into pondering the inner voice. Connect with these divine images when you visit Swan Dive to check out their always-worth-a-visit finds.

Capers Home, fondly known as simply “Capers”, is a West Seattle institution you don’t want to miss on Art Walk Night. Curated artists’ work is showcased among beautiful home and design goods- a double whammy for ideas on creating your best at-home environment. Artists Leon Lowman and Melissa Misoda, mixed media and glass respectively, were happy to share information about their creative process. How fortunate is West Seattle to have such skilled artists sharing their work? The rhythm, musicality, and joy of both Lowman’s mixed media and Misoda’s glassworks will enliven you.

Up in Admiral district West Seattle Grounds was bustling with activities of all sorts for the final Art Walk of 2023. Guests sipped hot cocoa, coffee, and wine while enjoying the always fantastic music of local legend Sue Quigley as part of Art of Music. Brittany Noelle’s photographs of our resident orcas filled the space with friendly faces (and tails, and fins!) while we all tried our own hands at an artistic endeavor to craft holiday ornaments.

At Wend, artist Kristi Nakata’s macraweave continued to captivate during the lively holiday atmosphere. Nicole Pepper’s ceramics pop-up was also a popular stop for late-night shopping in the Admiral neighborhood. Next door at Soiree, the party was in full swing as guests enjoyed mocktails while donning their best ugly holiday sweaters. Chandra Sandoval’s collection “La Dolce Vita” brought us all to the warm Italian seaside while guests grazed, noshed, and sipped on some of Soiree’s many treats.

Santa was the man of the hour at West Seattle Realty, decked in all the colorful holiday splendor. Kevin and the team at West Seattle Realty closed out their first year as an Art Walk partner with a cozy night of merriment and cheer.

Our team of volunteer Art Walk photographers did a wonderful job of capturing the ambiance of the evening as well as the art and artists. Thank you, Audrey, Carole, Helen, Jill, John, Meagan, Mia, Michelle, and Pam. We couldn’t do this without you! If you weren’t able to come out, we hope you take a moment to check out photos of the receptions below or on social media. Or, better yet, come see the shows yourself. Most of the artwork featured will be up all month long, so do find time to visit these venues.

We want to thank all our generous partners for the support they bring to the West Seattle Art Walk – Northwest Art and Frame, Verity Credit Union, Canna West Seattle, Quail Park, Easy Street Records, West Seattle Realty, Southpaw Barbershop, our media partner West Seattle Blog and our printing partner Sky Printing.

Did you take any photos? Tag us on Instagram (wsartwalk) or use our hashtag #westseattleartwalk on your photos. Please like or follow us to stay up to date!

[Featured photo: Patrick Robinson at Alki Arts]