AUGUST 2023 ARTBEAT

ARTBE T

WENATCHEE FIRST FRIDAYS MAP INCLUDED

JOIN US IN THE SWEET SPOT ON THE UPBEAT: SERGIO CUEVAS

next. It is precious time. It is fertile time, if we allow it to be.

Right now, the challenge for myself and to NCW Arts as an organization is to honor and pay attention to the in-between spaces — the spaces where we can see and recognize our accomplishments in the rearview mirror and the shape of things down the road without rushing too quickly to make them materialize. I believe this is where we will continue to best meet ourselves and our community and co-create the really good stuff — the stuff that lasts.

BY MEG KAPPLER

ARTS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

for me seems to be all about the dance between space (physical/ mental/emotional) and the possibilities we could fill it with.

Creativity

In my theater career, one of my favorite things was walking onto a stage between productions with nothing around but a freshly painted black floor below, lights above and a ghost light in the wings. I’d sit there for a bit and let myself daydream.

For busy theaters and performing art centers, this hiatus is a rare occurrence and sometimes only lasts a few hours between the strike of one show and load-in for the

Unbelievably, we are already halfway through the calendar year. And while there’s not yet a crisp autumn tang in the air, there’s the promise of sweater weather just around the bend. For now, NCW Arts is spending some intentional time in the sweet spot between recognizing what we’ve accomplished and fleshing out some big plans for what’s to come. It’s the perfect time to meet with us, get involved and share your own daydreams, energy and resources for the future of the Arts in our region. Volunteer information and forms are available on our website: ncwarts.org/more.

Talk with you soon!

BY KRIS LAHD

You can’t go out to enjoy music locally without hearing the name Sergio Cuevas. A local favorite, Leavenworthborn Sergio knew at the tender age of 6 that he wanted to pursue music. His earliest influence? The movie “Crossroads” starring Ralph Macchio, about a rebellious classical guitar student attending Julliard who is in love with blues music. He helps break an old blues harmonica player out of prison to try to win back his soul at the crossroads in Mississippi. You know that old tale.

Sergio ended up attending Cornish College of the Arts in music and has made his living as a musician ever since — and without having to sell his soul at the crossroads.

ON THE COVER:

Elijah Caldwell, as “Lola,” cooling off in a local landmark while taking a break from Kinky Boots rehearsals. Kinky Boots runs August 3-19 at Numerica Performing Arts

Center as part of their popular Hot August Nights series. Visit numericapac.org to get tickets (but don’t wait long, they are going fast!).

What was the application and admission process like to get into Cornish? After I applied, they asked me to do a few different things: play a Latin beat, play a jazz beat, then play whatever beat you want. Then they took me to a piano to hear some ear training and see if I could hit intervals. I gave them a CD I had just made where I was playing all the instruments, so they liked that a lot. I always had a good high school GPA, but I don’t think that came into play. I was so serious about music at that point that I knew I was getting in.

What is your advice to young musicians wanting to attend music college? My advice to an up-and-comer is to put in the work. Practice. Do the stuff that you are not good at; practice that stuff. Wait, did I say I had a good GPA (laughs)? Well, I almost failed my senior year because all I wanted to do was play guitar.

Which do you like better, playing guitar or drums?

I’m more comfortable on the drums, but I like the guitar because it’s portable. I

got sick of hauling drums around. When I was in Seattle, I had five drum sets and I would just leave them at different places. I don’t have to load in much equipment these days. I have it down.

Playing music has enabled you to tour around the globe. Where have you toured?

Canada, Europe, Japan and a lot of the I-5 corridor. I just got a call from a reggae band I toured with to play drums at the Seattle Revival Festival on Aug. 5 with Clinton Fearon, so I’m getting ready for that.

Do you prefer recording or performing?

Right now, I make a living performing. But if I could make a living recording, I would prefer that. I do like performing. It’s work, eight to nine gigs a week, and I get tired. But I find inspiration in others. And these mountains are inspiring. I feel the energy. It’s wild out here. You go up Tumwater Canyon and that river is cranking, you can feel it. It’s a creative energy boost.

Name five musicians we should be listening to:

Guthrie Trapp: Modern country and jazz Timbo in Nashville: Old-school country

Jackie Mitoo: Reggae

Dennis Brown: Reggae

Ted Green: Jazz

You can hear Sergio regularly at these Leavenworth venues. See more at his website sergiomusic.org

• Mozart’s, every Monday 6 to 8 p.m.

• Leavenworth Cider House, 5 to 7 p.m. every Friday and Saturday, and 1 to 3 p.m. every Sunday.

• Yodelin Broth Co., 6 to 9 p.m. every Sunday.

NCW

Photo by Ron Evans

JAKE PRENDEZ: CARING FOR CULTURE THROUGH ART

By Jamie Howell

Acranky, old abuelo walks into an art gallery, slouching in behind his otherwise enthusiastic family. Clearly, grandpa would rather be just about anywhere but here.

But then the art does its work. Something connects, a memory stirs and suddenly the elder shifts from sangrón to sonriente — his scowl replaced by a broad smile.

“I thought, ‘My God, this is probably the first time in his life that he’s been to an art gallery or museum where the paintings have resonated with him,’” says Chicano artist and gallery owner Jake Prendez. “That’s why places like my gallery are so important.”

The gallery is the Nepantla Cultural Arts Gallery which Prendez owns and operates alongside his fiancé and co-director, Judy Avitia Gonzalez. Situated on the border between White Center and West Seattle, it’s the only Latino/a-centered gallery in the Pacific Northwest.

Prendez, who is making a lecture tour through Chelan County this month, is con-

vinced of art’s power to preserve cultural identities, to engage and mobilize communities, and to heal.

That belief drives him to create works like “Don’t be Self Conchas” (a pun on the Mexican sweet breads (conchas) that he used to share with his own abuelo every Saturday as a child; or the self-portrait of him and his son in luchadores (Mexican wrestlers) masks; or his oil painting entitled, “A Little Prayer For Those Who Migrate.”

“My work might not be the most subversive, in-your-face art, but it’s rife with cultural triggers,” he explains. Prendez strives to make art that elicits feelings and resonances typically unavailable to members of his Chicano/Chicana/Latinx community in traditional gallery and exhibition settings.

“Holding onto your culture is a political statement,” Prendez says, and as his voice and platform have grown as an artist, it’s a statement he feels ever more deeply compelled to make.

Prendez references Uncle Ben’s advice to young Peter Parker in Spider Man:

“With great power comes great responsibility.”

“We have a vibrant, amazing, beautiful arts scene that is virtually being ignored in Washington State,” he says. “We’re not going to let them ignore us any longer.”

Prendez and co-director Gonzalez’ ultimate goal for the Nepantla Cultural Arts Gallery is to expand it into a fully functioning arts center complete with affordable artist studios, gallery space, performance spaces, a technology lab, gift shop, coffee shop and even a plaza for markets, pop-up events and monthly arts walks. He’s seen similar efforts work in other large cities.

“We deserve a space like that,” he says.

Finding the time and motivation to push that vision while continuing to organize a host of community events and art exhibitions around Seattle, go on speaking tours, run the current gallery and still make art comes down to a mixture of love for and obligation to the Chicano/ Chicana/Latinx community.

“I’m going to continue to make art regardless, but my community needs to be taken care of.” And for Prendez, that care is best delivered in the form of art.

JAKE PRENDEZ LECTURE SCHEDULE

Monday, Aug. 14, 6 p.m. at the Jake and Edna Maguire Conference Room, Wenatchee Valley College, 1300 Fifth St., Wenatchee

Tuesday, Aug. 15, 6 p.m. at the Peshastin Community Hall, 10204 Main St., Peshastin

Wednesday, Aug. 16, 6 p.m. at the Chelan Public Library 216 N. Emerson St., Chelan

To find out more about Jake and his work, visit jakeprendez.com or check out his gallery online at nepantlaculturalarts.com

Chicano Artist Jake Prendez presents “The Art of Rebellion: Social Justice and Chicana/ Chicano Visual Arts” three times this month as part of Humanities Washington’s Speakers Bureau program in partnership with NCW Libraries.

LEFT: “A Little Prayer for Those Who Migrate” TOP CENTER: “Don’t Be Self-Conchas” BOTTOM CENTER: Jake Prendez RIGHT: “Father and Son”

7. Tumbleweed 4-7 PM Chelsea Courtney of Chromophile Art LLC, watercolors.

8. Ground Control 4–10 PM Amber Kirby, mixed-media. First Fridays After Party, 7-10 p.m.

9. Ye Olde Bookshoppe

10 AM–6 PM Junk Journals, Local Art & Jewelry

10. Pybus Art Alley 5–8 PM TRAILS Program Artists @ Tierra Village. Live music, Rylei Franks.

11. Wenatchee Valley Museum & Cultural Center 4–8 PM Coyote’s Corner

Re-opening & Mural Celebration, Artists: Lindsay Breidenthal, Heather Dappen, Ellen Bruex.

6. Owl Soda Fountain & Gifts 5–8 PM 10% off a Specialty Sundae of your choice when you mention First Friday

7. Epoch 3 PM $2 off all House Cocktails

8. Norwood Wine Bar 5 PM $2 off glass pours

1. MAC Gallery 5–7 PM “Deer Hearts”, Carly Feddersen, indigenous art pieces using silver, glass, elk ivory, bone and stone.

2. LynnArt Gardens 1–7 PM Ted & Arena King, sculptures. Free food and beverages.

3. Visit Wenatchee Visitor’s Center & Tasting Room 5–7 PM Mystic North, handcrafted jewelry. Corban Welter, musician.

4. Two Rivers Art Gallery 5–8 PM Annie Jones, pastels. Mike Bills, guitar.

5. Lemolo Café 4–6 PM Portraits, Terry Valdez, paintings.

6. Café Mela 5–8 PM Pierce Alexander Marks, photography.

1. Horan Estates Winery 5 PM $2 off glass pours

2. Crayelle Cellars 5PM $2 off glass pours

3. Atlas Fare 4:30 PM $2 off glass pours

4. Stones Gastropub 5 PM $10 Specialty Cocktails

5. Watermill Winery On The Ave 5 PM $5 tasting on regular flights, complimentary when

ANNIE JONES AT TWO RIVERS GALLERY

ARTBIZ ARTISTIC LICENSE? HUH?

DO ARTISTS REALLY NEED LICENSES?

Annie Jones has deep roots in Leavenworth (born and graduated) and often returns to visit family and friends there from her home in Belfair, Washington. She’s also an active member of Wenatchee’s Two Rivers Art Gallery, where her latest exhibit of pastels will be featured throughout the month of August.

A constant learner but not a devotee of one medium, since her first art class at age 20 Annie has worked alternately in oils, acrylics, charcoal and watercolor. But two decades ago, after Annie took one short class in pastels, she was hooked.

“I found immediate gratification. It is really easy when you’re just starting out to feel encouraged by the results,” she said. “And pastels are so forgiving.” Though they became her favorite, they still share her big home studio with oil painting supplies.

Annie is an art instructor and a member of both the Pastel Society of America and Plein Air Washington. In May she was a featured artist at Collective Visions Gallery in Bremerton, exhibiting oil paintings of unique doors and windows from her European travels.

See the work of Annie Jones at her reception at First Fridays Arts Walk, from 5 to 8 p.m., Aug. 4, at Two Rivers Art Gallery, 102 North Columbia Avenue in Wenatchee. You can meet the artist while enjoying local wines and music by guitarist Mike Bills.

By Jamie Howell

QUESTION: I’m a passionate artist, in love with the creative process and just trying to make some positive contribution to the world around me. Surely, I don’t need a license to do that. Or do I?

Oh, my starry-eyed creatives, you are free and clear to strum your guitars, dip your brushes, mold your clay, push your pixels or polish your stanzas without any government interference right up until the moment you think, “Hey, maybe I could make some moolah doing this.”

The second that thought enters your mind, the government’s ears officially perk up. The Feds will generally leave you alone. They’ll get their cut when you file your income taxes in April (or October, if you’re like me and just can’t pass up a good extension).

The State of Washington, on the other hand, wants all your info in the giant database the second you go retail. No matter how much (or little) you make, if you sell a piece of art in Washington State, you’re supposed to collect sales tax on it and hand it over. To do that, you need a business license.

But let’s say you don’t do retail. You’re a musician without any merch, a street-corner tap dancer with a fedora out for tips or a party mime carting around a large invisible box. (Did I just give you a new career idea?) You can stay under the radar for a little while, but as soon as your art-making activities generate more than $12,000 in a single year, you’ve got to go legal.

So, either keep it down to $11,999.99 this year, or go get that business license.

QUESTION: Ugh, okay, how do I get a license?

The fun starts online at dor.wa.gov

The very first option on the drop-down menu is, “Open a Business.” Clear enough.

Click that. Next you’ll find the “Business Licensing Wizard” which would be way more fun if it were a real wizard but, sadly, is just a collection of hyperlinks running you through a series of questions.

You have now entered the rabbit hole. Keep filling in the blanks, wading through the acronym soup, paying fees and reminding yourself that it’s all going into state coffers, so at least your money won’t be funding international cluster-bomb giveaways. It’ll cost you $50 to file this application.

Then there are the city endorsements to consider. They’re different everywhere you go. Chelan wants fifty more bucks, while Wenatchee thinks it’s a $75 value. Proudest of all is Leavenworth at 115 bones, while Waterville is a screaming deal at $5.

At the end of all this, you’ll be issued your very own nine-digit UBI number (Unified Business Identifier), which means you are an official business owner and can look forward to a mailbox stuffed with form letters from all the other state agencies that now want in on your info. Condolences!

On the bright side, an underused benefit of your new UBI number is that it allows you to make sales tax-free purchases of materials, supplies, etc. - anything that goes into making an artwork you plan to sell later. It also gets you in the door with wholesalers who sell for less but who can’t sell to the general public.

I know you’d rather be making art, but the few hours you spend reading through the web pages, setting up your usernames and passwords, filling out the online forms and sending off your hard-earned dough might one day be the difference between you making art and you making prison art. Now, back to making stuff.

Got questions about the nuts and bolts of being an artist in business? Submit them to arts@ncwarts.org and we’ll try to bring you some answers in upcoming issues.

“Snow in Shadows”

Annie Jones

MAKERS MARKET MAKES PROGRESS OMAK STAMPEDE ART SHOW KICKS OFF

Since 1981, the Omak Stampede and Suicide Race has featured a cool indoor counterpoint to the knock ‘em sock ‘em action in the rodeo arena. This year’s Okanogan County Artists Western and Native Art Show will exhibit paintings and drawings from 23 artists, most from Okanogan or its bordering counties.

art and craft items, plus food and music to boot. Above is a colorful sample of whimsically decorated pots, heaps of knitted and hand-sewn items and nicely nurtured plants.

Entiat Valley Makers Market has found a formula for success with a professional manager (retired but fully energized), a handful of community-minded organizers and a local business base willing to fund the future, all in a region replete with artists and craftspeople.

On the first Saturday of each month, June through October, you’ll find up to 30 booths full of handmade crafts and delectables from watercolors and yard art to honey, hunting knives, pottery and potpourri lined up on a grassy lawn right in the center of Entiat. Food, music and games add flavor to the mix.

The Entiat Valley Chamber of Commerce project is now in its third year. The market’s steering committee is Renee Swearingen, Tina Stucky, Sara Stenberg, Susan Kidd and Sophie Campbell, and they have met their first goal of showcasing the creative talents of Entiat Valley artisans and craftspeople.

But something else happened on the way, and it’s all good. “For a few artists here in the Entiat Valley, having a booth at the market has been just a starting point,” coordinator Denise Carlson explained. “They produced art, they found a following, they built brand awareness online –

QUIZ: R.U. ART SMART?

Who are these local artists? Initials are given, see answers on page 8.

1. (M.L.) Besides being a symphony musician, he’s the brains and brawn behind the exciting lighting and sound effects we experience in the PAC theater.

2. (A.W.) Her belief in the power of public art and her love of the beauty of bronze motivated Art on the Avenues, which now features 85 sculptures.

3. (B.B.) Also a practicing architect, this Wenatchee artist not only designs struc-

then they moved on, and we discovered we have room for more new artists.” How to fill the spaces?

The answer was simple. Rather than exclusively featuring local artists – though there are still plenty – they reached out regionally and welcomed participants from Waterville, East Wenatchee and Wenatchee. They’ll do the same when they promote the annual Christmas bazaar held late November in the Entiat High School gymnasium.

Denise has lived in town since 2018 in a home she and her husband built on a ridge above Entiat High School. Her longtime art form, crocheting, also has grown from a pastime to the online enterprise DC’s Treasure Box. But it’s now her administrative duties that keep her occupied. She said, “I’m so busy all summer with the market that I don’t have time put up a booth.”

You can enjoy this month’s Entiat Valley Makers Market from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday Aug. 5, at the Kiwanis Park (an easy turn off Highway 97A). Guitarist Mike Bills of Wenatchee will provide lively music, and the food truck du jour is Nomad, from the Chelan restaurant County Line. (For application information, email market@entiatchamber.org.)

tures but creates realistic oil paintings of many of the region’s well-loved natural features.

4. (S.B.) This poet stays busy organizing open mics, educating and writing, publishing Shrub Steppe Poetry Journal and even writing her own good stuff.

5. (J.T.) Retired from a career in podiatry, this musician taught himself classical guitar to complement the folk and pop tunes he often plays with the Saddle Rockers.

3. (D.T.) She’s an active member of the board of Music Theater of Wenatchee and has acted in and directed dozens of productions on local stages.

The event’s chairperson, artist and art teacher Tina Reeve Tharp, explained that awards are given for the Best Western work (generally ranching, wildlife or landscapes) and Best Native work (culturally informed scenes often with teepees, horses and artifacts).

The Heritage Award goes to depictions of Okanogan County sites or antique items.

And for the Best of Show and the People’s Choice Award? The judges are serious about choosing the former, but Tina joked that the latter could be a measure of how big a family the artist has.

See the Okanogan County Artists Western and Native Art Show from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Aug. 10-12 and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Aug 13 at the Elks Lodge, 110 South Ash Street, Omak.

Entiat Valley Makers Market features

Last year’s poster contest winner by Colville tribe member Cheryl Grunlose automatically became this 2023 promotional poster for the Okanogan County Artists Western and Native Art Show

OPPORTUNITIES:

GUILD SEEKS NEW DIRECTOR

The Grunewald Guild is seeking a new Executive Director, “a passionate leader to build on our established programs, articulate our vision, and promote our mission and core values,” says the website.

The Guild, a nonprofit arts education retreat center in Plain, offers year-round

UPCOMING EXHIBITIONS ON STAGE

12-4PM SATURDAYS

AUGUST 5-26

“JUICY TOKUL”

A MULTIMEDIA GROUP EXHIBITION FROM MEMBERS OF SOIL, AN ARTIST-RUN COLLECTIVE BASED IN SEATTLE.

SEPTEMBER 2-30

“BARNSTORM”

AN INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION JURIED BY JOANNA GARNER, SENIOR STORY CREATIVE DIRECTOR AT MEOW WOLF.

AUGUST 5

12-2PM • THE WAVESONS

THOUGHTFUL ALTERNATIVE ROCK

2-4PM • OBO MARTIN

PSYCHEDELIC FOLK SONGS, STORYTELLING AND COMEDY

AUGUST 12

2-4PM • KILLDEER STRING BAND CELTIC, GYPSY, BLUEGRASS

AUGUST 19

2-4PM • JAN JAFFE’S STRUM-ALONG

AUGUST 26

4-6 PM • DJ BANSHEE

6-8PM • THE LOW HUMS

PSYCHEDELIC ROCK AND ROLL

SEPTEMBER 2

2-4PM • THE APPLE VALLEY WRANGLERS WESTERN SWING

SEPTEMBER 9

2-4PM • SAINT SEPTEMBER ACOUSTIC ROOTS, STRINGS AND HARMONIES

SEPTEMBER 16

2-4PM • BITTERBRUSH CLASSIC RAWK AND ROWL

WWW.PUNCHPROJECTS.ORG 10630 N. THORP HWY

PUNCHGALLERY

SEPTEMBER 23

2-4PM • RILEY & NICOLE POPULAR FEEL-GOOD, WITH A TWIST

SEPTEMBER 30

4-6 PM • DJ BANSHEE

6-8PM • SETH GARRIDO OUTLAW SOUL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY KITTITAS COUNTY LODGING TAX FUNDS

workshops, classes and seminars grounded in ecumenical spirituality, as well as private retreat accommodations.

Applications for the director’s position will be accepted until the end of August. See grunewaldguild.org for requirements, expectations and compensation.

CALL TO ARTISTS: PUNCH PROJECTS PRESENTS ‘BARNSTORM 2023’

This September the original Thorp, Washington, fire station will be transformed into a series of pop-up galleries of wall projections and digital prints. Instead of submitting original visual art pieces or installations, artists will provide a highresolution digital image or video file of their work.

Submitting artists should consider, says the Punch website, “the dialogue between urban and rural sensibilities, as well as images and videos that might operate in a non-traditional exhibition space.”

Entry deadline for the “Barnstorm” exhibition is Aug. 6. There is an entry fee and $1,500 in cash awards.

See punchprojects.org for details.

MARKETING TIPS FOR ARTISTS

Led by Artist Trust program manager Grace Nakahara, this interactive Zoom workshop is open to 35 artists at any level, in any discipline. The four main topics in the 90-minute class will be Identifying Your Audience, Developing a Brand, Networking & Pitching Your Work, and Creating a Plan for Success.

Since its founding in 1986, Artist Trust has invested $10 million in grant programs for individual artists, encouraging them to enrich community life throughout Washington State.

The workshop date is Tuesday, Aug 22. See artisttrust.org for details and to register.

SEE MORE OPPORTUNITIES AT NCWARTS.ORG

R.U. ARTSMART ANSWERS

FIRST

FRIDAYS AFTER PARTY!

Hosted by Ground Control, Wenatchee’s newest bottle shop and taproom!

QUIZ:

1. Mike Locke 2. Adele Wolford 3. Brad Brisbine 4. Susan Blair 5. Jac Tiechner

6. Daina Toevs