USING THE TERM "BIRDHOUSES" LOOSELY >>>

While driving past Childhood's End Gallery too quickly to get a good look through the window, I spotted some house-shaped boxes on the wall that were very colorful. My first thought was, "OK, birdhouses -cute and kind of trite, but at least they're brightly colored."

First impressions of art are often misleading. When I went back the next day to take a closer look (which I wouldn't have done if something hadn't grabbed my attention), I was surprised to see the birdhouses were mixed-media constructions with oil painting on panels by Susan Aurand, a longtime arts faculty member at the Evergreen State College. These pieces are much different than anything I've previously seen by Aurand, and they are much better art than I first suspected. In fact, they may be the most inventive art I've seen from her.

I counted 11 birdhouses (I use the term lightly; they're wall-hanging sculptures that look like bird houses to me). Each is approximately 18-to-20 inches tall and about a foot wide. They are relatively flat wall hangings shaped like houses with paintings and objects attached.

To read Alec Clayton's full review click here.

[Childhood's End Gallery, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m., Sunday, through May 29, 222 Fourth Ave. W, Olympia, 360.943.3724]