Seattle Twist

The Swedish Housewife Presents the first annual Seafarer Follies! An aquatic cabaret to make Flo Ziegfeld fall off his boat. Just like in the olden days when “The Aqua Follies” rocked Greenlake, the Seafarer Follies! is the perfect Seafair antidote to loud boats, loud planes and suburban parades.

For our first commemorative year, Captain Bloodbeard aka performance artist Bradford Scobie (NYC) will be at the helm. With acts by Moisture Festival favorites: Trixie Little and The Evil Hate “Sea”-Monkey (Baltimore) and Seattle debut of  Bambi The Mermaid (Coney Island), Seattle all stars Waxie Moon as King Neptune, The Shanghai Pearl, The Swedish Housewife!!! Of course, a Real Live Band with Bandleader Michael Musburger will be rockin’ the boat!

Come dressed to the nine fathoms in your most outrageous nautical, aquatic, flyboy, flygirl, sailor, sea captain, mermaid, merman, or “you make it up” costume to win prizes and the prestigious year long title of The Royal Sea Urchin!

That’s right, more flotsam and jetsum than you can shake a stick at… more crustaceans than you can put in a pot! You can’t throw a catfish on this stage and not hit a mermaid! Packed full of Sardines and Sailors!!! Blue Angels, Red Devils, and not your average Chicken of the Sea!

Guaranteed to be Off The Hook!

The First Annual Seafarer Follies

August 6 & 7

Show: at  11PM

Door: at 10PM Friday and 10:30 PM Saturday

Tickets: $22 Advance/ $25 Day of
21+
Box Office: 206-838-4333

The Triple Door
216 Union Street
Seattle WA

July 7, 2010 – Seattle, WA. Multifaceted cartoonist, musician, performance artist, fortune teller and neo-Victorian culture maven appears at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery on July 10 to celebrate the publication of MEAT CAKE, a collection of stories from the first decade of her popular comic book series of the same name. The event features an exhibition of Dame Darcy’s original comic art and other creations, an enchanting music recital and a fortune telling session with each book signed.

MEAT CAKE is like a peek into an imaginative, deranged dollhouse filled with fractured fairy tales. An expanded version of the long out-of-print hardcover book, this new paperback assembles the very best of Darcy’s work from the first 11 issues of the beloved comic (including “Hungry Is the Heart,” the legendary collaboration with Watchmen creator Alan Moore). According to the New York Times, “Darcy’s comics are aesthetic manifestos… Darcy is a star. Meat Cake will prevail, as luxury takes over America. And the world beyond.” The Los Angeles Times observes, “[Darcy] has created a childlike, otherworldly realm, a land that hovers in the twilight space between the whimsical and the macabre. Ghosts and goblins, foul-tempered stepmothers, lovesick mermaids and charmed forests are all rendered in Darcy’s distinctive hand, loose and flowing lines reminiscent of the work of Edward Gorey.”

Dame Darcy’s appearance on Saturday, July 10 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM coincides with the colorful Georgetown Second Saturday Art Attack featuring challenging visual and performing arts presentations throughout the historic industrial arts corridor. Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S. Vale Street (at Airport way S.) only minutes south of downtown Seattle. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone 206.658.0110.

June 29, 2010 – Seattle, WA. Summer celebrations continue in Georgetown with the Second Saturday Art Attack on July 10 and the annual Georgetown Garden Walk on Sunday, July 11. These colorful activities accentuate the unique character of Georgetown’s historic business corridor and creative residential neighborhood.

Among the highlights of the July 10 Georgetown Art Attack: Seattle Teen Printmakers (STP) display work from recent workshops at Georgetown Arts and Cultural Center together with Amy Pleasant’s “Family Album” exhibition and open studios with resident artists; “Meat Cake” book launch party featuring original comic art exhibition, book signing and performance by Portland-based artist Dame Darcy at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery; a collection of handcrafted traditional Caribbean masks from Trinidad & Tobago, Puerto Rico, St. Lucia, Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Jamaica by Alyssa Johnson at Calamity Jane’s; the debut of “Seattle Hop” tee shirt and other works designed by Seattle home brewer and digital artist Laura Fletcher at Full Throttle Bottles; “Just Before the Leap” paintings by Mark LaFalce, “Encaustics: the Wave of Wax” by Deborah Stachowic, and “Clay, Baby” works by Pamela Hathaway at 5626 Airport Way S. studios; an exhibition at Indiro artist studio, 5050 First S., featuring Dave Alton, Nicole Appell, Catherine Bailey, Jolie Bergman, Felice Dunn, Darren Emmens, Becky Fitterer, Meredith Jenkins, Brian Kuntz, Gay Seydlitz, Reecca Thayer and Carrie Whitney. Also included in both the Art Attack and Garden Walk is a “Trailer Park Market of Curiosities” featuring local art, vintage clothing, collectibles and more at the newly minted Georgetown Trailer Park Mall.

For Trailer Park Mall information visit: www.georgetowntrailerpark.com. Maps of the Georgetown Garden Walk can be found at the Bank of America parking lot at 1112 S. Bailey St. on Sunday, July 11. For a map of Art Attack participants see: www.georgetownartattack.com

Don’t miss the Hazard Factory’s fantastic Power Tool Races this Saturday, June 26 -part of the fabulous Artopia arts extravaganza and Georgetown Music Festival from 2:00 to 10:00 PM.

Fantagraphics Bookstore curator Larry Reid created a demonic chainsaw-powered racer fashioned from an autographed 1991 Daniel Clowes-designed Corey O’Brian Santa Cruz skateboard.


Come cheer for racers (just don’t get too close), see dozens of bands (featuring Fantagraphics favorites the Tom Price Desert Classic right outside the bookstore), art exhibitions (including Megan Kelso’s wonderful new work inside the store), carnival games, aerial acts, food, drinks, and a special appearance by demented actor/comedian/filmmaker Bobcat Goldthwait. It’s all FREE!

More info here on the official ARTOPIA site.

“I felt like I was Huck Finn attending his own funeral or Jimmy Stewart in that movie where the angel walks him back through his life. I was braced for a lampooning, and I didn’t expect to be so touched” -Joni Mitchell

John Kelly brought down the house at The Triple Door in 2008 and we expect no less from him this year! Ever since John appeared as Joni Mitchell at the very first Wigstock in the Fabulous 80’s, he has cast a spell of illusion that has continued to captivate audiences, including the subject matter herself, Joni Mitchell the poet, painter and singer.

In this loving homage John Kelly the renowned two time Obie Award winning actor and extremely gifted performance artist inhabits the persona of Joni in a very intimate 90-minute journey through song and reflections on life. “And it ain’t no Drag” –Steve Weicking

“People used to say nobody can sing my songs but me — they’re too personal,” Joni Mitchell explained recently in a rare interview with Matt Diehl for the LA Times. “Apparently, nobody told John Kelly not to try adapting her songs.”

The Triple Door- 216 Union Street, SEA WA 98101

Door at 6:00PM

Show at 8:00PM

BUY Tickets-  $22 advance / $25 day of show , 206- 838-4333

This event is All Ages

Brought to you by The Swedish Housewife

The Georgetown Second Saturday Art Attack welcomes several exciting new participants to our colorful celebration of challenging contemporary art. The June 12 installment promises to maintain the ingenuity and creative diversity that has characterized the Art Attack since its inception.

Newly minted enterprises debuting on June 12 include: The grand opening of the Georgetown Trailer Park Mall – a cluster of vintage travel trailers housing galleries, eateries, and boutiques – beginning with the Frida Folk Art Trailer exhibiting Tim Fowler’s paintings of childhood obsessions, bugs and cars, together with a “Trunk Show” by Georgetown metal workers of Steel Toe Studios; the premiere of Yvette Endrijautzki and Jethaniel Peterka’s studio/gallery the Nautilus, featuring an exhibition in the “Steam Room” by the resident artists; the open air Georgetown Marketplace, which in June begins its weekly Saturday appearance, including farm-fresh food, local and imported crafts, antiques, eats and more from over 40 vendors.

Among the regular Art Attack participants: Megan Kelso’s “Artichoke Tales” book launch party and art exhibition at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery; new paintings by Rafael E. Caraballo and Ed Craggs at Calamity Jane’s; figurative paintings by Amy Pleasant at Georgetown Art & Cultural Center; students of the Georgetown Atelier present their work at the “End of the Year Show”; Mark Tedin, Kyle Abernethy and Julie Baroh at Krab Jab Studio; Full Throttle Bottles hosts a display of the Hazard Factory’s legendary Power Tool Racers, one of the feature attractions at Georgetown’s Artopia arts festival on June 26.

For a map and additional information visit: www.georgetownartattack.com

The Swedish Housewife Presents

“Night, Sleep, Death and The Stars” (thank you Walt Whitman), An evening with Nick Garrison

Darkly comic and sweetly heartbreaking, an evening with Seattle chanteur and performance artist Nick Garrison will take you on a rocking musical journey that mixes original songs, classic covers (from Weimar-era cabaret tunes about plucky whores to stadium sized Rock Anthems about gender warriors), and horrifying, hilarious true stories to create a truly mind-bending and deeply entertaining musical extravaganza. Featuring the talents of Chris Jeffries on piano, Branden Romans on guitar and special drop in surprise guests.

About the Talent:

Nick Garrison- perhaps best known to Seattle audiences from “Hedwig and the Angry Inch”, is an actor, writer and singer who has performed his work to acclaim around the country and abroad for the past 16 years. His original cabaret shows include “Randee Sparks: Semi-Precious” and “What You Sing Might Save You” and he plays music all around Seattle in his bands Sissyfist and The Love Markets.

Chris Jeffries-  (Stranger Genius Award winner) is an acclaimed composer/lyricist whose works include “Vera Wilde”, “The Fatty Arbuckle Spookhouse Revue”, “I See London, I See France” and “The Glory Booty Club”.

Branden Romans – is an accomplished musician, actor and singer who last appeared with Nick Garrison in “What You Sing Might Save You”.

Saturday June 5th

West Hall- 915 East Pike Street, SEA WA 98122

Door & Cocktail Hour at 9:00PM

Show at 10:00PM

Tickets $15 advance / $20 day of show/ This event is 21+

BUY TICKETS online or call 1-800-838-3006

The second show in a series of five for “Thee Wild Herring Cabaret  – a Smorgasbord of the Avant-garde“

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery welcomes visionary cartoonist Jim Woodring on Saturday, May 22 from 7:00 to 8:00 PM. He will give a slide presentation focusing on his latest work WEATHERCRAFT and sign copies of the book, which debuts at the event.

Jim Woodring’s idiosyncratic aesthetic has earned him an international following as both a cartoonist and visual artist. He was a recipient of the prestigious United States Artist Fellowship in 2006 (with frequent collaborator Bill Frisell) and was an Artist Trust-Washington State Artist fellow in 2008. His work is published and exhibited worldwide, finding him traveling to exhibitions in France and Australia last year, a residency in Alaska last month, and to Sweden next month.

Though Fantagraphics Books has published several wonderful Woodring comic book series and collections, WEATHERCRAFT represent his first full-length graphic novel. Employing mystical motifs and enigmatic characters, the book continues the artist’s tradition of imaginative narratives allowing subjective responses from the reader. In a recent review in Vice magazine, Nick Gazin observes, “There’s not much point in trying to sum up the story of this comic. There’s no text, the art is beautiful, and you’re totally consumed by the world he’s created and you exist inside it while you’re reading it.”

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S. Vale Street, minutes south of downtown Seattle in the center of the historic Georgetown arts community. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone 206.658.0110.

No Joke. Show up. Get cash.

Resident genius Scratchmaster Joe recruited diverse personalities to guest DJ on Sundays at his International Lounge at the Grey Gallery on Capital Hill. This Sunday, May 16 from 7:00 to 11:00 PM it’s me – counterculture maven and pinball impresario Larry Reid. I’ll be spinning retro industrial, no wave, Goth and garage. Maybe even pull out my U-Men platters. Noise like that.

Here’s the good part: I’m getting paid $30. Because of my luxurious salary from Fantagraphics, I don’t need the dough. So I’m giving it away. At some random point in the evening, I’ll split the money evenly among those in attendance. Assuming you’re the only person there, you get a whopping 30 dollars! If you bring a pal, that’s 15 apiece. In the unlikely event there’s 10 people – 3 bucks each. How can you go wrong? What the hell else are you going to do on Sunday night?

If you haven’t been to the Grey Gallery it’s right next to John Bigley’s joint Barca on 11th between Pike & Pine. Cool gallery space with drinks and music. See you then.

Joey Arias (Legendary performer and star of Cirque du Soliel’s Zumanity) and Sherry Vine (International drag darling and founding member of Theatre Couture) present their newest cabaret collaboration – Looking Back At The Future!  The dynamic duo of drag have performed their other smash show; SINsation and StarLust, all over the world; including Berlin, Vienna, Manchester, Helsinki, Tallinn, Amsterdam, Los Angeles, Miami, Seattle, Montreal and New York City.  Looking Back At The Future is sexy and funny with songs from The Andrew Sisters, Guns and Roses, Billie Holiday, Lady GaGa and more.

May 5th

West Hall- 915 East Pike Street, SEA WA 98122

Door at 9:15PM, Show at 10:00PM

Tickets $20 advance / $25 day of show

BUY TICKETS HERE

This event is 21+

For information about the entire series please click here! Thee Wild Herring Cabaret

Pulcinella Vendicato; A Baroque Marionette Opera from Naples

by Carter Family Marionettes with live musical ensemble and professional opera singers

April 23 – May 2, 2010

Giovanni Paisiello, the greatest composer in 18th century Naples, created this opera buffa to delight the revelers at Carnival of 1770.   And after decades of delegation as a beloved side-kick in a vast array of the Carter Family’s performances, Pulcinella has finally demanded a starring role in the Northwest Puppet Center’s 11th marionette opera, Pulcinella Vendicato!  When Pulcinella’s girlfriend is swept away by the charms of a visiting nobleman, he stumbles upon a magic genie in a bottle and begins to plot revenge. Imps swoop through the air! Mayhem erupts at the fish market! But nothing will prepare you for a steamy scene atop Mount Vesuvius!

Now this wild spectacle of Italian baroque music and zany commedia dell’arte clowning is brought to audiences with two weekends of performances only at Northwest Puppet Center. Hand-crafted cast of  wooden actors by Carter Family Marionettes. World-class ensemble of baroque musicians and professional opera singers lead by Music Director Margriet Tindemans.

This marks the NW Puppet Center’s 11th operatic production.  Don’t miss this rare opportunity to witness this cast of marionettes in comical scenes of magical genies, transformations, wild antics, and ultimate true love!

Directors: Christine and Stephen Carter
Music Director: Margriet Tindemans

For advance tickets, click here or call:
1(800)838-3006

SHOWTIMES:
Fridays at 8pm
Saturdays at 2pm & 8pm
Sundays at 2pm

TICKET PRICES:
$28 adult
$25 senior
$25 youth
(please note: not intended for young children and not part of season subscription)

Northwest Puppet Center is located in the Maple Leaf neighborhood at
9123 – 15th Ave. NE
Seattle, WA 98115-3111
(206) 523-2579
Please call or email for more details or if you have any questions.
info@nwpuppet.org

Don’t miss the action this Saturday, April 17 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery. Two brilliant cartoonists – Peter Bagge and James Sturm – celebrate the publication of 3 new books.

Peter Bagge will sign fresh copies of HATE ANNUUAL #8. The latest installment of his signature series has Lisa rockin’ out and right into trouble. It’s everything we love about Hate – silly, sexy, and outrageous, but with a disquieting air of familiarity. The signing will mark the world premiere of OTHER LIVES on D C’s Vertigo imprint. We haven’t seen it yet. (It won’t be officially released until next week.) Peter takes on the socially awkward high tech crowd, and he assures us it’s a laff riot.

James Sturm returns to Seattle where he co-founded alternative weekly The Stranger in the early 90s. He went on to co-found the Center for Cartoon Studies in Vermont and continues his career as a cartoonist. He’ll give a brief slide presentation on his early days at The Stranger and sign copies of MARKET DAY, his first full graphic novel in a decade.

Saturday, April 17 is also national Record Store Day at neighboring Georgetown Records. Created 3 years ago by our good pal Eric at Criminal Records in Atlanta, Record Store Day draws attention to the cultural value of these essential enterprises. Not to mention lots of great swag. Support your local record store.

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S. Vale at Airport Way S., mere minutes from downtown Seattle. We’re open every day 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone 206.658.0110.

STUDIES IN MONK, MOMPOU & MELANCHOLY
18 artists undertake Studies in Melancholy (performance, dance, butoh, textiles, collage, text and voice) while pianist Kristine Thomas, recreates the melancholic landscapes of Monk, Mompou & others.

Multiple studies take place simultaneously during this 3.5-hour event, some lasting 10-minutes, others the duration of the event.
The viewer is invited to move in close or relax on pillows. There’s even an opportunity to sit beneath the baby grand! This is an open door, come & go, event.

Saturday April 10th at 1-4:30pm
Fremont Abbey Arts Center | Great Hall
4272 Fremont Ave N, Seattle http://www.fremontabbey.org/
No registration required / Donation requested $5-15
For more information Contact: mimiallin@gmail.com.

There’s even an opportunity to sit beneath the baby grand! photo by Denae Clark

WHY MELANCHOLY?
“I can now add another threat, perhaps as dangerous as the most apocalyptic of concerns. We are possibly not far away from eradicating a major cultural force, a serious inspiration to invention, the muse behind much art and poetry and music. We are wantonly hankering to rid the world of numerous ideas and visions, multitudinous innovations and meditations. We are right at this moment annihilating melancholia.” –Eric G. Wilson, from Against Happiness: In Praise of Melancholy (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

Studies in Everything

Studies in Monk, Mompou & Melancholy is part of a larger project called Studies in Everything which began in January 2010 with Studies in White. Studies will continue to present quarterly events in public and private venues across the Pacific NW. Our aim is to collect artists and present unique studies that, taken together, explore select topics, moods, colors, places and ideas. A study is not an endeavor in a finished, choreographed piece. It is about the artist’s process. It is a preparation for something else.
Artists should not spend vast amounts of time preparing for a study, but should spend time undergoing the study. everywhere to envision and set into place parameters for studies and to spend time exploring their study publicly.

melancholy Mimi

This is an endeavor in exploration, the artist’s process, the artist community and the artist’s connection to the world.

Learn more about the poetess and her evocative adventures: http://thepoetessatgreenlake.blogspot.com/

March 27, 2010 – Seattle, WA. The wildly entertaining Georgetown Second Saturday Art Attack gets rowdy on April 10 with the inclusion of Honk Fest West. In addition to countless art exhibitions, open art studios, performances, workshops and demonstrations, the Art Attack welcomes more than 20 eccentric marching bands from all over the country. The cacophonous Honk Fest West features free performances at several locations throughout the historic industrial arts quarter.

The diverse Art Attack programming on April 10 includes: Arun Sharma’s “(de)composition” autobiographical sculpture and film installations at Georgetown Arts and Cultural Center; open salons at Equinox Studios including a blacksmithing demonstration by Lisa Geertsen and studio sale at Firelight Forge; Dano Quinn at Full Throttle Bottles creating custom switch plate covers out of tall boy beer cans on site; “Home,” a themed exhibition of children’s photography at proletariArt; “Fly by Night,” new mixed media works by Joe Wackerman at FRIDA/Georgetown Tile Works; “High Soft Lisp” comics exhibition by Gilbert Hernandez with experimental music by Zinjanthropus and Ardent Vein at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery and Georgetown Records; a student show at the new Miller School of Art; “Circus Art” from members of the Twilight Artist Collective at the Stables; Angielena Chamberlain’s large oil paintings at All City Coffee with a miniature scale version of the exhibition on buttons at the adjacent Button Makers storefront; Honk Fest West performances at the Mix, Georgetown Music Store and other locations.

The Georgetown Second Saturday Art Attack is a monthly production of the Georgetown Merchants Association. For more information and a map visit: www.georgetownartattack.com. For additional information on Honk Fest West see: http://honkfestwest.com.

March 24, 2010 – Seattle. WA. The Northwest’s premier pinball emporium, Shorty’s, in association with Pabst Blue Ribbon, proudly presents the first annual “Tommy Tournament” on Thursday, April 1, 2010.

Each November, Shorty’s prestigious open tournament attracts many of the world’s most accomplished pinball players. At the April Fools Day “Tommy Tournament” the playing field will be leveled (so to speak). In keeping with The Who’s vision-impaired protagonist, contestants will compete BLINDFOLDED! Anything can happen as teams of two – one blindfolded player and a directing “coach” – alternate games in a best 2 out of 3 format. Players are encouraged to dress as twins in what promises to be a wildly entertaining spectacle.

Admission and participation in the tournament is free, restricted only to amateur pinball players 21 years and over. Valuable prizes will be awarded in a number of categories, many unrelated to finishing order. The competition will be presided over by longtime local pinball impresario Larry Reid. Registration commences at 7:00 PM, with the competition at 8:00 PM. Given the circumstances, the action will be hilariously furious. Don’t miss the fabulous April Fools festivities.

Shorty’s is located at 2222 2nd Avenue in the heart of Seattle’s colorful Belltown neighborhood. For additional information visit: www.shortydog.com/

It’s time to get your (naked) geek on!

Naked Girls, Reading or Girls Reading, Naked will be taking on

Science Fiction, 7pm Sunday, March 7th

West Hall in the Oddfellows Building

This month’s salon features nude nerds from near and far, reading selections from their favorite works of Science Fiction!  From Octavia Butler to Ray Bradbury to Isaac Asimov, these ladies will take you with them on a fantastic (naked) journey wearing antennae, Starfleet Communicator badges, and little else!

March’s readers will include regular readers Polly Wood, Jesse Belle-Jones, Heidi Von Haught, special Seattle guest  Violet Tendencies and welcomes back from San Francisco none other than Vienna La Rouge!!

Naked Girls Reading pictured are Polly Wood, Heidi Von Haught, Michelle L'Amour and Jesse Belle Jone

Naked Girls Reading has started a Book Drive, so bring new or slightly used books to donate to the Seattle Public Library! You can also bring a check to make a monetary donation.

Purchase a general admission seat for the price of $15 advance/$18 at the door, or a seat at one of the front tables for $20 advance/$24 at the door. Tables seat up to 4 people.

Doors open at 6:30, show runs 7-9pm.
West Hall, Oddfellows Bldg, 10th and E Pine
West Hall is Wheelchair accessible. Please email “ngrseattle at gmail” for accessibility needs or wheelchair seating.

Please be aware that all readers are fully nude! If you are uncomfortable with this, please reconsider purchasing. No one under 18 will be admitted, and we will ID at the door.

http://nakedgirlsreading.com/

NOTE: No one under 18 years old will be admitted.

The Northwest Puppet Center is an internationally renowned and presents performances by Carter Family Marionettes and esteemed guest artists. In addition, it features a museum, archive and library focused on the puppetry arts. Programs are also brought to communities near and far with touring performances and educational outreach.

March 3, 2010 – Seattle, WA. The colorful Georgetown Second Saturday Art Attack enters its third year resolved to draw attention to the historic industrial arts district in an effort to generate public sentiment towards preservation of this enchanting civic asset. As many of Seattle’s formerly artist-friendly neighborhoods fell victim to frenzied gentrification over the past decade, Georgetown remains the last bastion of a cohesive creative community in the city. We believe activities like the monthly Art Attack will advance our preservation efforts.

Among the highlights of the March 13 Art Attack: The grand opening of the Miller School of Art with a show of student work, painting demonstrations and more; “Circus Series” at Bella Vitale Studio featuring original paintings, prints, textile designs and punk pock dog clothing by Angielena Chamberlain; “Into the Briny Deep”, new paintings by Mary Louise Silva at Frida / Georgetown Tile Works; “High Soft Lisp” art exhibition and book signing by influential Los Angeles cartoonist Gilbert Hernandez at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery; “Wackalope: The Paintings of Dan’l Linehan” at Helmet Head, where the lovely staff will be applying make-up and styling hair for Art Attack patrons; the Helle salon opens their spacious new facility and the Mix re-opens its recently remodeled nightclub; Mark Tedin, Kyle Abernethy and Julie Baroh at KrabJab Studios; Georgetown Atelier open studio tours with founder Mark Tedin; and the usual mayhem and merriment we’ve come to associate with this diverse and festive cultural event.

As the weather heats up, so does the action at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery, with a series of exhibitions, signings and performances featuring some of our favorite artists.

On Saturday, March 13, from 6:00 to 9:00 PM, Fantagraphics Bookstore welcomes illustrious LOVE & ROCKETS co-creator Gilbert Hernandez on the occasion of the release of his latest masterpiece HIGH SOFT LISP. This exhibition of his amazing original art and book signing doubles as the official after-party for the Emerald City Comicon. Expect to socialize with a diverse array of unannounced special guests at this festive annual event.

Rock on Saturday, April 10 with our crew of musical savants from the warehouse and friends for an evening of dissonant performance. Improvisational quartet Zinjanthropus features maestro Martin Bland reuniting with his mate Ren from the awesome Australian combo Lubricated Goat and his Monkeywrench axe man Tom Price of the legendary U-Men. Joining them is former Gas Huffer front man Matt Wright. Our beloved Ajax makes lovely noise as Ardent Vein. Georgetown will be filled with melodious mayhem all night as the cacophonous Honk Fest West marching band carnival takes over the streets. Un-freaking-believable, this one.

On Saturday, April 17 from 6:00 – 8:00 PM we host a signing and publication party for James Sturm and Peter Bagge. Sturm returns to Seattle where he co-founded the Stranger and created his popular comic Cereal Killings for Fantagraphics Books. He since co-founded the Center for Cartoon Studies in Vermont and continued a successful career as a cartoonist. He’ll be signing his recent graphic novel MARKET DAY. Also appearing will be the architect of the alternative comics movement Peter Bagge signing the highly anticipated HATE ANNUAL #8. Catch up on the latest shenanigans of Buddy Bradley and the gang.

Look for these and other activities throughout the Spring at Fantagraphics Bookstore, located at 1201 S. Vale Street only minutes sought of downtown Seattle. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone 206.658.0110. See you all soon.

February 1, 2010 – Seattle, WA. The Georgetown Second Saturday Art Attack celebrates is second anniversary on February 13, just in time for Valentine’s Day. What better place for art mavens of all ages to observe this romantic occasion than in the enchanting industrial arts quarter of Georgetown? In the short span of two years the Georgetown Art Attack has gained a reputation as one of the region’s most provocative and colorful cultural outings. The public is invited to experience the excitement on Saturday, February 13 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM as dozens of nightclubs, cafes and creative enterprises present a vast array of visual and performing arts.

Among the highlights: “Show Some Heart” by Georgetown artist and blacksmith Lisa Geertsen at FRIDA & Georgetown Tile Works; Pop art pet paintings by Shai Steiner at A Dog’s Dream; make your own shrinky art with Shrinkmaster Malice together with paintings by Kris Kirwan and Michelle Robles at ProletariArt in the old Rainier Bottling Plant; new works by M. C. Corley and wine charms by Erika Tedin, as well as a huge assortment of fine wines and boutique beers at Full Throttle Bottles; paintings and prints by Mark Tedin, Kyle Abernethy and Julie Baroh at KrabJab Studio; legendary macabre cartoonist Gahan Wilson celebrates 50 years of Playboy cartoons at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery with the debut of a monumental new sculpture by Michael Leavitt; Annalisa Cristine Barelli’s “Into the Dream” at the captivating Engine Room at Georgetown Studios; open house tours with Georgetown Atelier School of Drawing and Painting founder Tenaya Sims; informal music jam with guest musicians at Georgetown Music; diverse dining and drinking at Calamity Jane’s, Jules Maes Saloon, Georgetown Liquor Company, 9 Lb. Hammer, Smarty Pants; Stellars Pizza & Ale; All City Coffee; Squid & Ink; Via Tribunali and more.

For map see: www.georgetownartattack.com.