“Barn Rave, 2011” by Tori Wheeler

ON VIEW
JULY 27 2023 – OCTOBER 12 2023

Tufted, and interactive artwork, Barn Rave, 2011 encapsulates the frenetic, feral exchange of energy found in a packed dance floor. The modular work recalls a night in a remote barn outside of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Its tessellated pieces intertwine, forming a hazy, abstracted scene of kids drenched in sweat, a barn filled with fog, hay, pulsating music, and a mix of suspicious substances. This ephemeral experience imprints neural pathways.

The puzzle-like components and imagery pay homage to a transformative and hedonistic celebration of youthful exuberance. The liberated sensuality and sometimes-brainlessness of infectious bassy beats become the unyielding desires to relinquish the burdens and constraints of adolescence in small town surroundings. The pieces move and connect, at times surpassing a perfect fit. Capturing the raw energy of dancing amidst others. Capturing unbridled energy. Their arrangement allows for infinite reconfigurations—a reflection of the ever-shifting nature of the dance floor.

Tori Wheeler is an artist, designer, and dancer whose work is influenced by ecstatic human exchange, touch and tactility, music-and-nature-induced-trance-states, and a dash of trickster humor. Their creative practice mirrors that of a desire path.

Tori holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Design from the Kansas City Art Institute and works as a textile artist, gold leaf gilder, and fairweather graphic designer.

Curated by Nikki Cormaci

DIY Screenprinting with Azenath Lizárraga and Ian Greer

This class is currently full.

Screenprinting is a hands-on medium that allows students to reproduce any artwork they want in multiple colours and on many mediums. Our workshop, aimed at beginner students, will show how to undergo the entire printing process using a combination of recycled, homemade and a few purchased tools.

Students will leave with the handmade screens and prints they made in the workshop, a booklet of historical art and propaganda prints from our collection, and inspiration and understanding to help them start screenprinting on their own.

Asenath Lizárraga is a multidisciplinary artist currently living in Olympia, Washington. Their colorful, emotional works draw from personal experience, dream worlds, and family history, expressed as drawings, paintings, prints, fiber arts, and music. Asenath is also a compassionate and experienced teacher who believes in the transformative power of community art-making, and who aspires to one day help create a community arts space of their own. Asenath is @asleepingmemory on instagram.

Ian Greer is a multidisciplinary artist currently living in Olympia, Washington. They are an experienced illustrator and tattoo artist, and have also worked as a journalist, poet and editor in the United States, Canada, and Ecuador. Their work is detailed and expressive, focusing on sociopolitical issues, nature, and magic. Visit iyanstattoo.com for more info.

$55

Blair Borax: Presented by Sou’wester Arts

Blair Borax is a singer-songwriter who writes tender folk-pop songs to make you feel less alone. 

With vocal stylings reminiscent of 1920s jazz, songwriting that is unafraid to tackle the taboo, and pop melodies that stay with you for days, Blair Borax has something special to offer. She conjures a vocal charm somewhere in between Regina Spektor and First Aid Kit, wordsmithing inspired by folk songwriting greats like John Prine, and moody vulnerability like Haley Heynderickx and Big Thief’s Adrienne Lenker.

After releasing her first EP ‘everything is light work’ in May of 2021, Blair released her debut album “Keep Walking” in June 2022.  “Keep Walking” will take you on an emotional rollercoaster, through the stages of anger, grief, and joy beyond trauma and heartache. It is the perfect companion to help you keep walking too.  She is working on her sophomore record, “Tender Lately” this year.

Intro to Handbuilding with Clay IV with Mariam Matheson (FULL)

Learn handbuilding techniques and create an object. This half day workshop includes all materials and tools needed to create a piece of handbuilt pottery. Pieces will be glazed fired and can be shipped to attendees. Can be taken as a series or independently of other Intro to Handbuilding classes.

Mariam Matheson has been a potter since 2018 and an artist her entire life. Mariam is the ceramics studio manager at Ilwaco Art Works. She lives in Seaview, WA with her husband and dog.  

QUADRAPHONIC + ACUPUNCTURE + SOUND BATH 

AUGUST 31 • 7PM

Featuring Sonic Ceremonies with Dr. Kade Rose (they/them) of Celestial Window Restorative Arts.

Harmonize your body with the healing waves of a sound bath combined with the flow of intuitive acupuncture.

• $88 WITH ACUPUNCTURE
• $44 SOUND BATH ONLY

Join us along with certified acupuncturist, Kade Rose, here at the Sou’wester Thursday August 31st for a unique wellness experience. This event will be held in our spacious Pavilion on the grounds of the beautiful Sou’wester and will be open to 15 participants. 8 reservations will be for a sound bath and acupuncture combination where Kade will be performing intuitive acupuncture while the sounds of her polyphonic analogue synthesizer offer deep relaxation and realignment. The remaining 7 reservations are for sound bath only where you can lay in a state of deep relaxation while the sound waves wash over you. 

The event will be an hour and a half long and we request you bring your yoga mats, blankets, pillows or anything that will make you more comfortable laying on the floor for an extended period of time. We are very excited to welcome you all to join us in wellness.

 

All About Sauerkraut Workshop:

How to make it, eat it, and why it rules

w/ Sash Sunday $68

Sash will briefly explain what sauerkraut is and the science of lacto-fermentation. You’ll get to help make a batch of sauerkraut and get some to take home to ferment. Then she’ll demonstrate a few recipes that incorporate raw ferments that will help you get more probiotics into your diet and more razzle-dazzle into your cooking.

Spektrum Tea Service with Nick Jaina

MUSIC, STORIES, TEA & COLOR IMMERSION

Nick Jaina hosts a special hour of conversation, tea, color immersion, music, and reading from his new book SPEKTRUM. Every session is different because the guests bring their own excitement and hesitation, and the color for each hour is determined by a randomly selected card. If you are interested in giving a scrub to every cell of your body, rearranging your mindset, and connecting to humanity, this is the place you need to be.

The Sou’Wester sessions will take place in a vintage trailer and will be limited to 7 guests per session.

Advance tickets only. $25/person. Available sessions are:

• Oct 11th: 7p-8p or 9p-10p
• Oct 12th: 7p-8p or 9p-10p
• Oct 13th: 7p-8p or 9p-10p

Tea services start promptly on time, so please arrive ten minutes early.

TICKETS