The Journal of the San Juan Islands | SanJuanJournal.com
Wednesday, May 29, 2013 — 9
The Journal
island scene
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All bets on Baroque in Salish Sea Early Music Festival season finale page 10
What’s Happening! Wednesday, May 29 TREC After School , 3-5:30 p.m., FHHS Tech Building, free. Ages 7th-12 grades; drop-in recreation. Tiedying featured activity. Info, 378-4953, www. islandrec.org.
Thursday, May 30 Lavendera Thursdays: ‘Legal Security’ with Andrea Rose, 6:30 p.m., Lavendera Massage, 285 Spring St. free. Local artist, entrepreneur Andrea Rose discusses ways to access affordable theft protection, legal coverage for individual and community empowerment. Info, 378-3637, www.lavenderadayspa. com.
Friday, May 31 Elementary School Art Program Fundraiser, San Juan Community Theatre, 7 p.m. Renowned Electric Violinist Geoffrey Castle performs in a benefit for FHES art program; $15 adults, $5 students. Info, 378-3210, www.sjctheatre.org.
Saturday, June 1 San Juan Island Celebrity Golf Classic, 10 a.m. San Juan Golf & Country Club. Sponsored by Islanders Bank, charitable event features 18-hole scramble, salmon barbecue, live/silent auctions, FHHS Jazz Band. Proceeds to benefit local non-profits. Info, registration, dinner tickets, 360-298-0458. Artists Studio Tour, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., free. Self-guided tour with 15 studios, 41 artists. Door prizes, demonstration at studios at various island locations. Info, tour map, www.sanjuanislandartists.com (Tour repeats Sunday). Farmer’s Market Arts & Crafts, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., See Calendar, Page 12
By Scott Rasmussen
Journal editor
G
et a small group of talented artists together and something creative is bound to spring up. Need proof? Then look no further than the Annual San Juan Island Artists Studio Tour. It’s May 31 and June 1. The tour, now in its 22nd year, has long served as a weekend-long showcase for a vast array of intriguing island-created endeavors of all shape, size, dimension and medium. You’ll no doubt find that to be the case by stopping in at any, or all, of the 15 studios on display as part of this year’s safari of island art, which will feature the work of 41 separate artists. But it’s more than just about the finished product. The essence of the tour, as first conceived by a handful of local artists two decades ago, is right there in its name: studio. “Back in the beginning the whole idea for having the studio tour was to be able to show people how and where art is made, rather than just where its shown,” recalls Mary Sly, who’s been designing hand-drawn and handpainted silk garments for more than 30 years, and whose participation in the tour, both as an artist and featured studio, dates back to the square one (Sly’s Sunrise Ridge Road studio is No. 2 on the tour brochure). Tour co-founder and encaustic artist Yvonne Bujis-Mancuso says part of the original idea was to demystify the creative process. Opening the doors of the creative workshop offers the tour-goer a gateway into the
At a glance What: 22nd Annual Artists Studio Tour n Where: 15 separate studios, 41 artists n When: May 31 & June 1, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. n Admission: free n Highlight: Demonstrations by artists at work n
everyday life of an artist and a good look at the surroundings in which an artist creates, and at the place where inspiration turns into art. The tour is intended to be as much about education as it is about art itself, she said. “People get to see the art and how it’s made, where we live, the creative process in action and where we get our inspiration,” said Bujis-Mancuso (Studio No. 13). “It’s more than just about the art.” Demonstrations, watching an artist in action, has evolved into one of tour’s hallmarks. Paula West of Paula West Pottery estimates anywhere between 150-200 people drop by her studio over the course of the weekend. This year is the fifth that her studio (Studio No. 12) will be featured, and she expects interest will run high in watching the five artists her studio will host, including herself, in action. “People get excited see what’s new, I get a lot are returnees,” West said. “And they like to see the process. I try to have something going on for a demonstration but sometimes it gets a little too busy.” And busy is precisely what many of the studio-artists have been to make sure all is prepared for the weekend ahead. “It takes a lot of energy to get ready for it, when you know you’ll be sharing your space,” says Laurie Burns, nationally renowned for her glass artwork. Burns (Studio No. 10) says she spends a good deal of time making sure that her studio, home, yard and garden are all ship shape. It appears to pay off. “I think it’s interesting that people get to see such an intimate space. For a lot of artists it’s almost a sacred space they’ve put together so they can create. People are very gracious about the amount of work that goes into this.” See Tour, Page 11