Approximately 250 visitors from the Puget Sound area experienced the Fine Arts Center of Edmonds (FACE) First Annual Art of our Mothers Exhibit this past Saturday, May 8. The event was held at the Edmonds Conference Center (“Floral Center”) and sponsored by Edmonds Community College. The Art of our Mothers Exhibit displayed works of art by 35 artists, and mothers, from the Puget Sound area and across the country. But more than the art was on display — the artists’ children were asked to describe their mothers as artists in 250 words or less. Descriptions ranged from the insightful to the charming, with the son of Edmonds City Councilwoman, Mauri Moore, proclaiming, “It is a three-part masterpiece. It should be in the Louvre.”
Visitors to the exhibit selected two pieces to receive one of two awards presented that day: the Kids’ Choice and Adults’ Choice awards. Children selected an untitled 3-D Recycled Mixed Media piece by Kim Groff-Harrington, a local Edmonds artist. Both of her teenage sons, Alex and Zach, described the challenges of having an artist-mother. “Having a mom as an artist is both a blessing and a curse,” explained Alex, but “everything about equals out in the end, so dealing with the curse portion isn’t too much trouble to reach that blessing part.” Janet Still received the Adults’ Choice honor for “First Born,” a glazed clay piece created to portray, according to Still, “love for our children. There is no stronger love.”
A highlight of the day was a portrait group of four artists who provided their own interpretations of Edmonds own First Lady, Dolly Haakenson. Tracy Kay Fraker, Judy Hedden, Sonia Lloyd, and Carolyn Scheldrup each took two hours to draw, paint, or sketch a likeness of the very patient model, who was herself an exibiting artist. Other artists-in-action included Denise Cole, an Edmonds artist and co-owner of Aria Studio Gallery, bringing a watercolor to life; Pat Brier, a local artist who described how she created a homage to her mother and grandmother with photos, scanned images, and computer graphics; and Brooke Lynn, a wire and jewelry artist.
FACE is an Artists-in-Action facility planned on the Edmonds waterfront to provide a venue for visitors and students alike to enjoy art exhibits and observe artists as they work. FACE will feature a gallery, sculpture gardens, classroom and conference space. For more information or to volunteer, visit www.supportface.org.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
