Submitted by Browsers Bookshop
Olympia-based artists Nikki McClure, Arrington De Dionysos, Aisha Harrison, Evan Horback and Madeline Waits collaborate on a group show entitled ‘A Paper Narrative.’ The show highlights work on paper and is hosted by Browsers Bookshop owner, Andrea Griffith.
Like much of the Puget Sound area, Olympia is experiencing urban development and a surge of population growth. The impact on downtown small businesses is complex and visual artists are experiencing this through the shifting availability of exhibition spaces. Gallery owner Susan Christian of Salon Refu, recently decided it was time to lease her popular downtown storefront to an expanding architectural firm. ”Generally the people who were regulars at the gallery haven’t been the art buyers. I’ve always seen new faces at our openings but our market has been even more unpredictable lately. I had to make a pragmatic decision.” Jean Mandeberg, an artist, Evergreen Emeritus Faculty and current Olympia Artspace Alliance board member, looks at the development from a constructive lens. “There’s a lot of change going on downtown and I happen to think, as somebody who’s lived here for a long time, that a lot of that change is really exciting and encouraging, especially if artists and designers influence it and let their needs be known.”
Art advocacy groups in Olympia are working with developers and city officials to create new opportunities downtown. In the meantime, artists are also advocating for themselves. A pair of local artists, both Artist Trust grant recipients, reached out directly to the bookshop. “Nikki McClure & Evan Horback both expressed interest in exhibiting in our upstairs community room,” states store owner Andrea Griffith. “It’s a renovated space that we have basically used for author readings and book clubs. Until now, the walls have been left vacant.” Since the artists were both working within the category of ‘book arts,’ we designed an exhibition theme around the idea of the ‘visual narrative’ and then expanded the group to include 3 more Olympia artists in order to diversify the artistic accounts.
Browser Bookshop’s first group art exhibition ‘A Paper Narrative,’ is an exploration of five artists’ stories and how they navigate their own community advocacy. The opening reception is August 12 at 6:00 p.m. on the second floor of Browser’s Bookshop. The show will close on September 24.
