Visual Arts Tour kicks off a month of arts-related events in Spokane

Spokane’s bi-annual Visual Arts Tour kicks off this weekend, pumping up an already super-charged October First Friday. The added bonus with the self-guided Visual Arts Tour is that the fun doesn’t end on Friday night, but continues throughout the weekend, with many venues keeping their doors open both Saturday and Sunday.

And the fun is spread out all over town. There are oil and mixed media paintings embracing multiculturalism by Leslie Barlow at the Lied Center at Whitworth University, Travis Chapman’s “Northwest Pop Culture” paintings at Decorum, and the Spokane Art School’s public art and murals exhibit in the Garland District, where patrons will be given the chance to join Todd and Cain Benson in a hands-on experience painting a new mural.

The Liberty Gallery is open all weekend, exhibiting the works of more than 20 local artists. Saranac Art Projects has a show as well, as does the Trackside Studio Ceramic Art Gallery, Little Dog Art Gallery and the Richmond Art Gallery. With many more wineries, tattoo shops, museums and breweries all joining the tour, the possibilities are endless. For a full list of participating locations, see the calendar attached to this story or visit www.spokanearts.org.

But wait, there’s more. Spokane Arts organization’s third annual Create Spokane Arts Month is also in full swing. Spokane Arts’ interim executive director Ellen Picken encouraged the public to take advantage of the Spokane area’s lively fall season of plays, dance, readings and concerts.

“It’s hard to remember to make time to do the enjoyable things in life, and to support your friends and neighbors, and the vibrant activities happening in your city,” Picken said. “Create Spokane Arts Month is a way to get it on your calendar, go out, be seen, and try something new that you’ve never experienced before.”

Picken believes that all great cities deserve a thriving arts scene that reflects the needs and diverse voices of their regions. To illustrate the way that art can speak to different communities and generations, she likes to compare two of the shows that are happening now during this Spokane Arts Month – Terrain and the exhibition of the works of the late Pauline Haas at the Chase Gallery.

“There is Terrain, which is showcasing emerging artists, young artists, people who are just getting their bearings about what they are saying as an artist, and it’s incredible to witness the incubation of the next generation,” Picken said. “Then at the Chase Gallery, there is an amazing show, jam-packed with paintings and drawings and notebooks of an artist named Pauline Haas who was a significant influence and instructor at Whitworth for 20 years, who inspired the creative lives of so many people.”

“These two shows are kind of capstones of what is all happening in this city, and I really think people should try to make it to both,” Picken said.

And of course everything in between.

Go to Spokane Arts’ website for a roundup of all the arts disciplines happening this month, from community and professional theater to classical instrumentalists and traveling rock bands. There are poetry readings and dance performances; workshops and classes, and activities for the kids. More information at www.spokanearts.org