WEDNESDAY, JAN. 22 2014 >>>

1. It's winter, and you're hankerin' for some good old-fashioned outdoor fun, but all you can do is sit by the fireplace and watch Aunt Tilly do the mendin'. Never fear, the Washington Sportsmen's Show is here, with all the fish catching, bow hunting and turkey calling seminars you can cram in to five days. Worried that your flies look like small curious animals? Check out a fly tying demonstration. Worried your kids will destroy exhibits with their new Legend of Hercules moves?  Drop them off at the kid's trout pond. Also expect one-of-a-kind indoor Steelhead River, more than 153 hours of free "how to" seminars, camp cooking demonstrations, Head & Horns competition, Cowboy Fast Draw show, wilderness survival and outdoor safety expert Peter Kummerfeldt and much more. The show opens today from noon to 8 p.m. at the Washington State Fair Events Center.

2. Artists from The Gallery at TCC's current "Global Perspectives" exhibit discuss issues related to the exhibit, moderated by TCC Instructor Wendi Fein at 4 p.m.

3. An opening reception for "I Like Rocks!" - an exhibition of recent work by UPS assistant professor of ceramics Chad Gunderson - will be held 5-7 p.m. in Kittredge Gallery.

4. Pour at Four hosts a Big Winter Reds tasting featuring big, bold and rich reds displaying beautiful fullness and finesse from 5:30-8 p.m.

5. Lyon Pride continues its Hempfest Tryouts Wednesday night series at Jazzbones with bands Insiege, Tyranny Theory, Sick Either Way, BlackBeatBlue and others at 7:30 p.m.

LINK: Wednesday, Jan. 22 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

Last week Weekly Volcano art critic Alec Clayton reviewed the "Global Perspectives" show at The Gallery at Tacoma Community College. Clayton wrote:

The latest show at The Gallery at Tacoma Community College is outstanding. It provides a look into the art and cultures - and most particularly the lives of working class people throughout the world as seen through the eyes of local artists. Included are paintings, drawings, sculpture and photography by regional artists who are also world travelers, and in some instances art from other cultures collected by these regional artists.

You may read the full review here.

TCC released the list of "gallery talks" associated with the exhibit:

• Bill Colby, Jan. 23, 1:30 - 2 p.m.
• William Mitchell, Jan. 28, 11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
• Fuminko Kimura, Jan. 30, 1:30 - 2 p.m.
• Sarah Waldo, Feb. 6, 1:30 - 2 p.m.
• Becky Frehse, Feb. 11, 11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
• Lavonne Hoikik, March 4, 11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.

Plan accordingly.

"GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES," noon to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday, through March 21, reception Jan. 13, 4-7 p.m., panel discussion Jan. 22, 4-5:30 p.m., The Gallery at Tacoma Community College, Building 5A, entrance off South 12th Street between Pearl and Mildred, Tacoma, 253.566.5000

Weekly Volcano art critic Alec Clayton's review of Carla Paine's portraits and still-lifes has sparked a debate on Facebook. Clayton praises her talent, and recommends readers see the show at Olyphant Art Supply in Olympia.

That said, Clayton questions why the paintings were created.

The paintings are impressive, but they make me wonder why. Why would a 21st century painter make pictures that look like they came out of an Italian Renaissance studio? It has all been done before, and just as well if not better. Van Eyck did marvelous things compositionally, and he pictured every day reality in an honest if staged manner. Paine's paintings are definitely staged, warm and comforting, but beyond technical showmanship and nostalgia for a time she could never have known I question the reason for these paintings.

Is Clayton spot on or out of his gourd? If you have thoughts on Clayton's criticism, visit his Facebook and chime in.

Peace, love, unity, having fun and knowledge may not be the first characteristics the general population find synonymous with hip-hop, but just to raise eyebrows - the aforementioned are in fact the founding principles of hip-hop, as established by Afrika Bambaataa and the Universal Zulu Nation in 1973. These are principles that are much needed in The 25360 (Tacoma/Olympia) area. Thankfully, the Z53 Zulu formed in Tacoma.

Z53 focuses on the greater Tacoma/Pierce County area code and, as a provisional chapter in the Universal Zulu Nation - an international organization representing the best of hip-hop culture - the group commits to engage and improve its community, such as sponsoring and promoting this Saturday's All Elements Jam.

The All Elements Jam will showcase all, er, elements of hip-hop - B-Boy/Girl, MC, DJ, graffiti and knowledge - at The D.A.S.H. Center.

Come and witness true hip-hop.

ALL ELEMENTS ZULU JAM, 7-11 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 18, all ages, The D.A.S.H. Center, 1102 A St., Tacoma, $5 with proceeds benefitting The D.A.S.H. Center's youth programs

THURSDAY, JAN. 16 2014 >>>

1. Dr. Jamie Brooks grew up in Lakewood, graduating from Bellarmine and later from the University of Washington, first in dental hygiene, and later from the school of dentistry. She practiced in Gig Harbor and then in Olympia before deciding with her husband to create a new practice in downtown Tacoma, Brooks Dental Studio, in 2008. Inspired by her aunt, Lisa Kinoshita, Brooks included exhibition space in her sleek, modern office. Today, another artist’s works will grace the space. An open house will be held for Chandler O’Leary's "You’ll Like Tacoma" show from 5-7 p.m.

2. Stanley and Seafort's (115 E. 34th St., Tacoma) offers a three-course meal deal with its popular prime rib in the spotlight accompanied by soup or salad and dessert for $35.95 through the month of January.

3. We can scarcely imagine hiking all day long, day in and day out, for six months. Or four months. Or even a month. This is what "thru-hikers" on the Pacific Crest Trail do, year after year, and have been doing since the trail was conceived by Clinton Churchill Clarke in 1932. They train, plan, pack, practice, and finally hike all 2,663 miles of this trail that extends from California's border with Mexico to the U.S.-Canada border on the edge of Manning Park in British Columbia. Tahoma Audubon Society's first program of the year will be a free presentation by Gus and Elena Wimberger about their adventures while hiking the length of the Pacific Crest Trail this past year at 7 p.m. in the Tacoma Nature Center.

4. "Tell It Like It Tiz!" is an anthology of comics and stories created by elders at the Marie Smith Center (MSC), an adult day center in North Portland, Oregon that serves seniors who are functionally or cognitively impaired. Portland writers and illustrators Nicole J. Georges and Marc Parker will read from and talk about the book at the Olympia Timberland Library from 7:30 to 8:45 p.m.

5. Every Thursday night at Puget Sound Pizza, the Volcano's music critic Rev. Adam McKinney hosts a karaoke session showcasing a Tarantino-like mix of downtown denizens seriously singing Bill Withers and glasses-wearing gals squawking out punk rawk, plus appearances by local rock stars, beginning at 9 p.m.

LINK: Thursday, Jan. 16 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 14 2014 >>>

1. At the age of 22, violinist Benjamin Beilman has made a name for himself, winning several major prizes, including first prize at 2010 Montreal International Musical Competition. He is the recipient of both a 2012 Avery Fisher Career Grant and a 2012 London Music Masters Award. His numerous accolades have thrust him onto stages across North America and Europe as a soloist with the Edmonton Symphony, L'Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal; and the Kansas City Symphony as well as the Tonhalle Orchestra in Switzerland. See the phenom perform at 7:30 p.m. in the Washington Center.

2. The "Bohemian Boudoir" opens today at the Museum of Glass. Highlighting more than 40 glass crystal perfume bottles and bedroom accessories, hand-crafted in the Bohemia region of Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic) in the 1920s and 1930s - home to more than 600 companies creating glass items for the boudoir. Objects in the exhibition exemplify the creativity and technical prowess of Czech craftsmen. Doors open at 10 a.m.

3. This second free lecture in a series of symposia focuses on the role of leadership and the importance of international political perspectives in shaping relations between the United States and the Asia-Pacific will go down from 4-6 p.m. at Philip Hall on the University of Washington-Tacoma campus.

4. Charles Goodrich - author of three books of poetry including A Scripture of Crows - will be the feature reader at Olympia Poetry Network's gathering at 6:30 p.m. in Traditions Café. An open mic will precede the featured reader.

5. Lyon Pride will host Hempfest tryouts featuring Amanda Hardy, Twang Junkies, Dumbpop and Under Sin at 8 p.m. in Jazzbones.

LINK: Wednesday, Jan. 14 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

MONDAY, JAN. 13 2014 >>>

1. Sadly, it appears that e-mail has killed the art of the postcard (Good Lord! we sound more like our grandfathers with each passing day). It appears that we'll need to get our postcard fix elsewhere. Just in time to satisfy this itch, South Puget Sound Community College's annual "Fine Art Postcard Exhibition" returns, opening today with the theme, "It's the Water." The exhibit features 76 artists who submitted nearly 300 pieces (which means somebody had a lot of friends), using a vast range of materials.

2. The Evergreen State College Gallery kicks off the New Year with Selected Druckworks, a multi-media survey of the work of Johanna Drucker, renowned artist, writer, typographic poet, scholar and critic. This exhibit focuses on book art, a field which Drucker pioneers, showcasing typographic, literary, and visual art through a series of intricate, hand-made books. See it from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

3. Mayor Stephen Buxbaum, Comcast and the Washington State Historical Society will welcome C-SPAN to Olympia at 3 p.m. in the Washington State Historical Society's State Capital Museum Lord Mansion. C-SPAN is in Olympia to record and feature the city's history and literary life. C-SPAN representatives will reveal the stories and segments that will be explored by the national network during their week-long stay. The event will also feature a traditional Native American blessing ceremony. 

4. Dean Reichert's soulful voice carries in it the history of American popular music: There's the down-home rhythm and testifying punch of gospel-based R&B, the snarl of the blues, the mournful rumination of honky-tonk, sultry jazz and the up-front sexuality of funk. Oh, and he's a talent guitar player, too. Reichert heads to The Swiss at 8 p.m. for the Tacoma joint's longstanding blues night.

5. Want to feel like a rock star without all the pain and annoyance of having to be a  fire-breathing demon that bleeds from the mouth? Then hit Jazzbones at 9 p.m. for Rockaraoke, where you can belt out songs such as Whitesnake's "Here I Go Again," Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me," Joan Jett's "I Hate Myself For Loving You" and enough INXS tunes to make you feel like you're on a reality show, and other hits from the days when you made mixtapes by recording the radio, all backed by a live band.

LINK: Monday, Jan. 13 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

SATURDAY, JAN. 11 2014 >>>

1. More weed has been smoked, more babies have been conceived, and more fun has been had in the Volkswagen Bus than perhaps any vehicle ever made. When people see the Bus, it's almost impossible not to smile. It brings them back to a simpler time of no-worries partying. Lemay - America's Car Museum's cool and groovy "Vee Dub: Bohemian Beauties" exhibit opens today. Beginning at 10 a.m., you may gawk at classic bohemian beauties and, no doubt, hear an endless stream of VW stories from fellow museumgoers.

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FRIDAY, JAN. 10 2014 >>>

1. The Echo Echo Echoes are a Seattle band, far from the sunny beaches that they love to evoke. Though they call themselves a surf-pop band, and they have a song nostalgically titled "Surfer Girl," they are very quick to joke that wearing wetsuits and catching waves is something very far from their own experiences. Read Rev. Adam McKinney's full feature on Echo Echo Echoes in the Music & Culture section, then catch the band with Retrospector and Battersea at 9 p.m. in The New Frontier Lounge.

Read more...

THURSDAY, JAN. 2 2014 >>>

1. Every Thursday night at Puget Sound Pizza, the Volcano's music critic Rev. Adam McKinney hosts a karaoke session showcasing a Tarantino-like mix of downtown denizens seriously singing Bill Withers and glasses-wearing gals squawking out punk rawk, plus appearances by local rock stars. McKinney, always looking dapper in his sportcoat, has a mellifluous singing voice, perfect for "Disco 2000" by Pulp, "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" by Tom Lehrer, "Little Green Bag" by the George Baker Selection, "Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)" by Squeeze and his standard closing song, "Bottle of Wine" by the Fireballs. Get in on the party beginning at 9 p.m.

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