Category Archive Art

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Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Plot Points

Rep 4 of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s 2021-2022 season is Plot Points, a mixed rep program of four pieces that play with the concept of storytelling. I’m a little late to the party because I attended on the second weekend. There’s a world premiere and a PNB premiere by choreographers who are already well-loved by PNB audiences. The (almost) title piece, Plot Point, is already an audience favorite.

Pacific Northwest Ballet company dancers in Crystal Pite’s Plot Point. Photo © Angela Sterling. c/o PNB
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Don’t Be Afraid of the Blue Opera

Kenneth Kellogg as The Father. Photo credit: Sunny Martini. c/o Seattle Opera

I have a confession to make. I was a little bit afraid to watch “Blue” at Seattle Opera. Often described as “the race opera,” “Blue” tells the story of a Harlem family losing their son to police violence. It sounded pretty heavy during a time when the more escapist aspect of opera has a lot of appeal. But I know that the ability to tune out racial violence is a privilege, so I went anyway. And there was nothing to be afraid of.

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Carry-On Only

On my very first trip to Iceland, I noticed how often they decorated with words there, and of course that was part of why I fell in love with the place. Seven years ago, a different message resonated with me, but Keflavik Airport is full of such wise decor.

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Abstract Mural

Please enjoy this painting of an eagle that appears abstract from this distance.

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Inspired by Asmundur

My family spent spring break in Iceland in 2017. My youngest child was particularly impressed by the sculptures of Asmundur Sveinsson that were dotted around Reykjavik. Unfortunately we did not make it out to the museum bearing his name, but in the Reykjavik Art Museum, there was a little corner near one of his sculptures dedicated to letting kids create their own art. My 8-year-old translated one of his sculptures to two dimensions.