A. Jeffrey Zigulis toiled in California’s Silicon Valley. After three years, the factory job was a drag.
“I saw old guys, like 35,” he said. “I didn’t want to fall into the trap of getting a five-year pin.”
Hoping to break free of the rat race, Zigulis put his artistic talents to good use.
Today he owns a gorgeous Camano Island spread complete with a detached artist’s studio where deer peek through expansive windows.
He makes and sells “Dream Mask” wall hangings, with penetrating eyes and fish lips — oh, those lips — with protruding puckers.
Entering the studio, I felt like the masks, and the artist, just shared a joke. The Zigulis mask family is one of mirth, with crazy wire hair, exuding oodles of personality.
It’s not the sort of artwork one might hang on a wall and never look at again.
Dare I say a Zigulis mask becomes a part of the family?
Growing up in California, the eldest child of a U.S. Marine, his teen trauma revolved around juggling being a jock, dating and getting razzed for hanging around the art room.
“I want to say I was a Renaissance man,” he said. “But really, a chameleon.”
By college, Zigulis said, it was all about throwing ceramic pots, smoking pot, then establishing his own studio. He lectured around the country, and sold ceramic designs around the world.
“My pots started off as functional pottery and evolved into sculptural forms,” Zigulis said. “Interesting forms, vases embellished with drawings and airbrushed color fired to appear ancient.”
The surfer dabbled in representational pieces with a political slant, or deep seated family baggage, called his “Doll Head Series.”
For his son and his friends, who had night terrors, the former basketball coach made each a Dream Mask for Christmas or Hanukkah presents, guaranteed to ward off nightmares.
That started his adventure fashioning masked of all sorts. Masks may be seen at Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood. Owner Gayle Picken said each tells a story.
“It’s so much fun to see the reactions from people,” Picken said. “The masks are intriguing, vibrant, unique and make a statement.”
Married in California to Nancy Darang (“A fine Filipino goddess”), Zigulis said they raised son Matthew in Prunedale and Sebastopol. His son received a soccer scholarship to Western Washington University in Bellingham and all eyes pointed north.
They sold their place in California in 2006 during the real estate boom. After extensive research, they found a gorgeous home encapsulated by trees and brush.
His artist’s eye saw potential. They pinpointed just the right trees to come down, revealing a spectacular view of Whidbey Island. The expansive landscaping includes a pergola and a pagoda. They built the studio on back acreage, and they tacked up his license-plate collection on one wall.
His wife is a supervisor at Rite-Aid in Stanwood.
In his career, Zigulis, who loves to fish in his spare time, continues to paint and bring new inspiration to his mask family, now in a “Totem” phase.
“This style opened additional avenues to research and explore,” he said. “The low surface gave me more space to implement my interest in graphic shapes and the juxtaposition of colors. I am always thinking of color. My color sense is my own. I have developed and fine-tuned it for years.”
Each mask evolves at its own pace, Zigulis said.
“I’m a maker,” he said. “I make stuff. I like making stuff with color.”
And a sense of comedy.
Columnist Kristi O’Harran: 425-339-3451 or oharran@heraldnet.com.
See masks online
For more information about A. Jeffrey Zigulis’ Dream Masks, go to jeffzigulismasks.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
