Send listings two weeks in advance to visualarts@seattleweekly.com.

Lectures and Events

Artist Lecture: Mary Randlett The Seattle photographer got her start with a small Kodak as a 10-year-old kid on Orcas Island in 1937. Since then, she’s become the grand dame of Northwest photography, whether shooting misty landscapes of the Cascades or documenting artists William Ivey, Guy Anderson, and Imogen Cunningham at work in their studios. Randlett will talk about her long career and her friendships within the Northwest arts community. 2 p.m. Sat. May 21. Tacoma Art Museum, 1701 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, free with admission, 253-272-4258.

Pratt Fine Arts Center Annual Auction The annual fund-raiser auction for the Pratt includes work for sale by Gerard Tsutakawa, Julie Speidel, and many others. Free public preview: 6-9 p.m. Fri. May 20. Auction: 5-10 p.m. Sat. May 21. 1902 S. Main St., $175, 206-328-2200.

Openings

Crawl Space In a debut solo show, “From A to A,” Todd Simeone photographs stuff from his life (gameboards, furniture, and such), then erases portions digitally. Reception: 6-8 p.m. 504 E. Denny Way (#1), 206-240-6015. Noon-5 p.m. Sat.-Sun.

D’Adamo/Woltz “80 Years of New Yorker Covers” is a brief exhibition of limited-edition signed prints of, well, covers from The New Yorker. Opens Fri. May 20. 303/307 Occidental Ave. S., 206-652-4414. 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Mon.-Sat.; noon-5 p.m. Sun.

Greg Kucera I haven’t been this excited about a debut solo show for some time. Recent UW MFA graduate Drew Daly will exhibit new sculpture, and what little I’ve seen of it is fantastic. Daly takes everyday objects such as wooden chairs and performs meticulous magic with them. One Adirondack chair, for instance, is systematically sliced into fragments, then reassembled to form two ghostly remnant chairs. In Subject: Remnant, Daly spent 300 hours sanding an antique chair until nothing but the most delicate skeletal structure remained. Also on display will be a potpourri of recent acquisitions, including works by Tara Donovan, Robert Gober, Tim Hawkinson, William Kentridge, Martin Puryear and others. Reception: 6-8 p.m. Thurs. May 19. 212 Third Ave., 206-624-0770. 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

G. Gibson Fabric art isn’t limited to quilts any more. Take “Stitched,” which brings together work by longtime gallery artist Larry Calkins, who does wall sculptures made of dresses and beeswax; Ruth Marie Tomlinson’s sewn fragments of rubber inner tubes; and recent UW MFA graduate Laura Wright, whose “security blankets” include necessities for the post–9/11 era: machetes, shovels, and flasks. Opens Thurs. May 19. 300 S. Washington St., 206-587-4033. 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Wed.-Fri.; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat.

James Harris New paintings by Oakland’s Squeak Carnwath, whose quietly philosophical paintings have employed blocks of color, private iconography, and hand-scrawled slogans to inspire viewers to ask questions of themselves. Reception: 7-9 p.m. Thurs. May 19. 309A Third Ave., 206-903-6220. 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Wed.-Sat.

Solomon Fine Art New work by abstract painter Paul Shakespear. Opens Wed. May 18. 1215 First Ave., 206-297-1400. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Sat.

Suyama Space Utah artist Paul Stout installs “Second Nature,” in which huge, single blades of “grass” will grow up from assorted Victorian coffee tables. Opens Mon. May 23. Artist lecture: noon, Sat. May 21. 2324 Second Ave., 206-256-0809. 9 a.m.- 5 p.m. Mon.-Fri.

Last Chance

911 Media Arts Rosalind Schneider, an early innovator in the world of video art, installs “Wave Transformations,” in which near-abstract video of waves and oceanscapes is projected on a large weather balloon. 402 Ninth Ave., 206-682-6552. 3-7 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Frye Art Museum Seattle artist Joseph Park gets a solo show, “Moon Beam Caress.” His precise paintings draw upon Japanese animation and film to create an alternative noir world peopled with angst-ridden cartoon creatures. 704 Terry Ave., 206-622-9250. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; noon-5 p.m. Sun.; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thurs.

Galleries

1506 Projects “Of Course We Know No Bounds” includes new work by Chad States, who in the past has done deadpan photos of staged narratives and now explores issues of cropping and framing in the creation of images. 1506 E. Olive Way, 206-329-5400. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat.-Sun.

Baas Art In a recent artist statement, Barbara Noah says she has a thing for the “long shot.” So that explains her digitally manipulated photos of twisted- balloon dogs orbiting Mars! Looks like interesting work, in the tradition of John Baldessari’s slapstick photo manipulation. 2703 E. Madison St., 206-324-4742. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Sat.

Ballard/Fetherston New work by Deborah Bell, who does cheery, bubbly acrylic abstractions, many of which suggest cells or constellations, all on wood panel. 818 E. Pike St., 206-322-9440. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Bluebottle In “Future Perfect,” illustrator and Web designer Julie West offers up highly stylized, sexy pictures of an assortment of characters, all influenced by skate-punk-graffiti design. 415 E. Pine St., 206-325-1592. 1-7 p.m. Tues.-Fri.; noon-6 p.m. Sat.-Sun.

Bryan Ohno In “Fragile Attachments,” Patricia Hagen’s abstract works take a turn for the minimal. On fields of blank canvas, a mixture of green leaflets, nubbins of fruit, and droplets of color float by. In other paintings, planetoids hang tentatively in space, like the friendly rock inhabited by the hero of The Little Prince. 155 S. Main St., 206-667-9572. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Carolyn Staley Recent acquisitions of ukiyo-e and Mejii-era Japanese prints are on display. 314 Occidental Ave., 206-621-1888. 10:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Cornish College Gallery Based on questions she asked the ancient Chinese I Ching divination system, Judith Kindler’s “The Journal” is a collection of mixed-media paintings and sculptures documenting the artist’s 30-year personal journal of philosophical discovery. 100 Lenora St. (seventh floor), 206-726-5011. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Mon.-Fri.

Davidson A selection of original prints by Pablo Picasso. And before you cynically dismiss this show as a summer tourist draw, give it a look and discover what a fine draftsman Picasso was. The lusty Spaniard was a prolific experimenter in prints, and even though he worked with a huge corps of printmakers, he was usually involved at some level in the printmaking process. Davidson’s collection cherry-picks from several important series throughout Picasso’s long career. Most famous is “La Suite Vollard”: Completed in the ’30s, it’s the sublime pinnacle of Picasso’s gestural line drawings inspired by Greco-Roman art, with the wounded bull and bearded god representing a particularly virile vision of creativity. The earliest print in the show dates to 1905, and the lithographs and etchings stretch into Picasso’s sloppy, heavy-handed work of the ’60s and ’70s. Some pieces are signed, in case that sort of thing is important to you—although it’s worth knowing that Picasso dished out his signature like candy. Also on display: woodcuts, lithographs, and etchings by existential Mexican artist Francisco Toledo, including an excellent series based on Kafka’s tale “A Report to the Academy.” 313 Occidental Ave. S., 206-624-7684. 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Fancy New work by Portland’s Trish Grantham, who does hip, cutesy paintings inspired by Japanese children’s products and skate-punk graphic design. 1932 Second Ave., 206-443-4621. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Francine Seders With an aesthetic informed by19th-century natural history, Kathryn Glowen’s “Lunar” features curiosity-cabinet assemblages and collages that make use of found lichen, wasp-nest papers, and scraps of dictionary pages. Also on display: landscapes by Colorado painter Nanci Erskine. 701 Greenwood Ave. N., 206-782-0355. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.- Sat.; 1-5 p.m. Sun.

Gallery 4 Culture Seattle artist Ellen Ziegler experiments with an old sign- painting technology (see visual arts spotlight, this page). 506 Second Ave., Suite 200 (Smith Tower), 206-296-7580. 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri.

Gallery 110 This tribute to the late Seattle artist and teacher Maxi Power, who passed away last summer, features Power’s exuberant glass vessels painted with a carnival of characters. It’s all a bit breezy and naive in a Chagall sort of way, but there’s some wry humor here, including a set of Adam and Eve martini glasses complete with tempting serpents and apples. Thirty percent of the show’s proceeds will be donated to Pilchuck Glass School. 110 S. Washington St., 206-624-9336. Noon-5 p.m. Wed.-Sat.

Garde Rail New work by brothers Clint and Scott Griffin. Clint creates world maps and other images by scraping away at layers of collage, while Scott arc-welds mysterious figures to old metal boxes and other found metal. 110 Third Ave. S., 206-621-1055. 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Wed.-Fri.; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat.

Glo’s New comic art by local David Lasky, created in his recent role as mentor to the young artists in the FineComix collective. 1621 East Olive Way, 206-783-3426. 7 a.m.-4 p.m. daily.

Grover/Thurston Austin, Texas–based artist Lance Letscher creates intricate and finely crafted collages from eviscerated books, letters, and other commercial paper. The resulting tightly focused compositions are well conceived: pinwheels, squares, and ovals of color dance and repeat in rewarding patterns. We’ll forgive him for destroying all those books, since the results are so lovely. 309 Occidental Ave. S., 206-223-0816. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Howard House Seattle artist Gretchen Bennett’s “Landscape Flair” offers clever experiments in stickers, buttons, and other forms usually associated with street art. The result is nature art twisted into an ironic context: fake wood contact paper becomes a fawn in its dying moments—or a clear-cut forest. Another very clever composition offers a collage of individual buttons printed with tree branches that collectively form a wooded landscape. One nice touch is that many of the individual buttons have hints of peace signs and anarchy symbols—a nod to classic button-rebellion emblems. Some of Bennett’s art is meant to reach beyond the gallery: for two bucks, you can purchase your very own Bennett button emblazoned with a solitary tree. Also on display: glib paintings of superheroes committing atrocities and such by Jon Haddock. 604 Second Ave., 206-256-6399. 10:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Jack Straw New Media Gallery Kristin Tollefson’s installation “Organic Plan” is inspired by the landscape and folk art of Iceland. Central to the exhibit is a large, suspended ringlike sculpture that pays homage to baldrying, a traditional Icelandic embroidery technique. 4261 Roosevelt Way N.E., 206-634-0919. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Fri.

Joe Bar Seattle artist and illustrator Jere Smith’s paintings pay tribute to the comic book characters who’ve inspired him. 810 E. Roy St., 206-324-0407. 7:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri.; 8:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Sat.-Sun.

Karpeles Manuscript Library In conjunction with Tacoma’s Tall Ships Festival, Karpeles shows an assortment of original maps, diaries, and nautical charts from early explorations of the Northwest coast. 407 South G Street (Tacoma), 253-383-2575. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tues.-Sun.

Kirkland Arts Center “Drawn In” showcases four local artists expanding the notion of drawing: Buddy Bunting, Diem Chau, Samantha Scherer, and Thuy-Van Vu. 620 Market St., 425-822-7161. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Fri.; 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat. Every third Thurs. open until 8 p.m.

Linda Hodges Semi-abstract landscapes by Eastern Washington’s Heidi Oberheide and realist paintings of places such as Seattle’s Thornton Creek by local Roger Jones. 316 First Ave. S., 206-624-3034. 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Tues.-Sat.

Lisa Harris Realist landscapes by Northern California painter John McCormick. 1922 Pike Pl., 206-443-3315. 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Mon.-Sat.; 11 a.m.- 4 p.m. Sun.

M. Rosetta Hunter Art Gallery A collection of painting, photography, digital media, and ceramics by artists in VSA Arts of Washington, a nonprofit providing arts opportunities to people with disabilities. 801 E. Pine St. (Seattle Central Community College), 206-344-4379. 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri., plus 5-7 p.m. Tues.-Wed.

Photographic Center Northwest Japanese photographer Hiroshe Watanabe’s serene but intense images of Kabuki theater performers (many of them children), traditional Bunraku puppets, and assorted cityscapes. 900 12th Ave., 206-720-7222. Noon-9:30 p.m. Mon.; 9 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Tues.-Fri.; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat.; noon-5 p.m. Sun.

Platform “Between Before and After” features new drawings by Toronto-based experimental artist Stephen Andrews, whose recent work reproduces images of the war in Iraq using a unique color- separation process that involves crayons and window screens. 114 Third Ave. S., 206-323-2808. 11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Thurs.-Sat.

Richard Hugo House In “Let’s Get Out of the Romance: Exhibition Station,” Rich Jensen and Phil Elverum, two Seattle music-industry insiders, will somehow create the layouts for an upcoming book about artistic utopias on the walls of Hugo House. 1634 11th Ave., 206-322-7030. 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Mon.-Fri.; noon-5 p.m. Sat.

Roq La Rue “The Mod Squad” consists of four painters purveying canvasloads of hipness. Andrew Brandou (aka Howdy Partner) puts Golden Book children’s characters to work in pursuit of world revolution, while Keith Weesner, Ryan Heshka, Dale Sizer paint variations on pulp-fiction covers, hot-rod pinups, and tiki-lounge kitsch. 2316 Second Ave., 206-374-8977. 2-6 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; noon-4 p.m. Sun.

Seattle Art Museum Rental/Sales Gallery SAM Rental/Sales continues its series showcasing local galleries with selections from Davidson Galleries, including Kathleen Rabel, Liza von Rosenstiel, and Dion Zwirner. 1220 Third Ave., 206-343-1101. 10:30 a.m.- 5 p.m. Mon.-Sat.

Seattle LGBT Community Center Gallery Maternity photographer Jennifer Loomis’ images of gay and lesbian parents with their children. 1115 E. Pike St., 206-323-5428. 10 a.m.- 9 p.m. Mon.-Sat.; 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Sun.

Seattle Municipal Tower Photographs of Seattle by Ford Gilbreath, Tod Gangler, et al. 700 Fifth Ave., third floor, 206-684-7171. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Fri.

Shift Cara Jaye’s solo show, “Dulce,” includes pigmented digital prints and a video housed inside a traditional Mexican street vendor’s cart, all inspired by the artist’s recent residency at the University of Guanjuato. 306 S. Washington St. (No. 105), 360-650-3436. Noon-5 p.m. Sat. (or by appointment)

SOIL “Perspect” is a new installation from Portland artist Laura Fritz, known for her creepy, laboratory-like settings. Also on display: abstract paintings incorporating symbols from the world’s mystic traditions, as well as geometric Op Art, by Dallas-based artist Noah Simblist. 112 Third Ave. S., 206-264-8061. Noon- 5 p.m. Thurs.-Sun.

Souvenir Seattle artist Eve Cohen’s mutant, toothy creatures made from paper, seeds, wire, cloth, and wood are part of “Kinderkunst” at this new Ballard gallery. 5325 Ballard Ave. N.W., 206-297-7116. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; noon- 5 p.m. Sun.

Square Room Quirky paintings of houses by local Graham Fracha, plus jewelry by L.A.’s Gabriela Artigas and metal dresses by Julia Peerson. 1316 E. Pike St., 206-267-7120. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; noon- 6 p.m. Sun.

Vain New work by Peekaboo Monster and OneSevenNine, two Seattle-based urban artists and designers known for street murals, skateboard illustrations, and the ubiquitous GermBot. 2018 First Ave., 206-441-3441. Noon-7 p.m. Sun.-Tues.; 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Wed.-Thurs.; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Fri.-Sat.

Vera Project In “3 Punks,” photographers William Anthony, Bradley Hanson, and Ryan Schierling shot a variety of live performances by Seattle punk bands on one night in February of 2005. 1122 E. Pike St. (#849), 206-956-8372. 2-6 p.m. Tues.-Thurs.; 2-5 p.m. Fri.-Sat.

Viveza Edie Nadelhaft’s colorful cow portraits, Michelle Salazar’s erotic cowboys, and Doug Smithenry’s fractured paintings, including . . . underwear-clad cowboys? Yee haw. 2604 Western Ave., 206-956-3584. Noon-5 p.m. Wed.-Sun.

William Traver Local painter Alan Fulle’s warm-toned stripe and dot paintings employ incredibly thick layers of varnish, giving the appearance of depth, as if the patches of color were preserved in amber. Also on display: Seattle Opera set builder Rick Araluce’s mysterious miniature doll-house assemblages, and David Ruth’s massive glass panels that function as overly pretty 3-D abstract paintings. 110 Union St. (Second Floor), 206-587-6501. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Fri.; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat.; noon-5 p.m. Sun.

Zeitgeist In Joan Engelmeyer’s earnest paintings, collected as “Tribute to Francis Eberhart,” the artist examines the life of her uncle, a World War II veteran who struggled with lifelong mental illness. 171 S. Jackson St., 206-583-0497. 6 a.m.-7 p.m. Mon.-Fri.; 8 a.m.-7 p.m. Sat.-Sun.

Museums

Frye Art Museum “The Retrofuturistic World of NSK” collects 20 years’ worth of painting, prints, and other media by Slovenia’s Neue Slowenische Kunst art movement. Challenging ideas of authorship, nationality, and avant-garde, NSK’s artists create theater, music, and visual art that appropriates Communist and capitalist kitsch in an effort to subvert authority. 704 Terry Ave., 206-622-9250. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; noon- 5 p.m. Sun.; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thurs.

Henry Art Gallery Doug Aitken’s three-screen video installation Interiors is a majestic meditation on the search for meaning amid the stress and alienation of 21st-century urban life. Sprawling throughout an entire gallery, four separate story lines play out on a vast box of screens, allowing you to view three of the videos simultaneously as a sculptural whole from many different angles. The nearly wordless stories arch from the contemplative (a young family with a new baby stands in a junkyard as a Brian Eno–like soundtrack throbs underneath) to the mysterious (a man sands a helicopter in a sterile factory cleanroom) and even the frenetic (hip-hop artist André Benjamin gushes a verbal storm while a woman smashes a handball and an Asian businessman twitches in a sweaty convulsion of stress). The collective vignettes pack a surprising emotional wallop, considering the stories are stripped to their most simple visual and sonic elements. “Playtime” pairs whimsical art made from toys with Peter Fischli and David Wells’ amazing 30-minute video of pyrotechnic installation, and a collection of minimalist works by locals offer disturbing mixes of childhood simplicity and adult emotional turmoil (including Claire Cowie’s excellent Panorama Drawing). UW campus, 206-543-2280. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sun.; 11 a.m.- 8 p.m. Thurs.

Museum of Northwest Art “Stewards of the Northwest Vision” offers selections from two private collections, featuring works by Tobey, Graves, Anderson, Michael Spafford, Elizabeth Sandvig, William Cumming, Gerard Tstutakawa, and others. 121 S. First St. (La Conner), 360-466-4446. 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. Tues.-Sun.

Seattle Art Museum “Africa in America” is a varied and complex exploration of slavery, displacement, and ethnic culture as portrayed in African-American art of the late 20th century, including work by James W. Washington, Jr., Kara Walker, Ellen Gallagher, Oliver Jackson, and Marita Dingus. Also on display: a sampling of works in SAM’s collection of 19th-century French artists, including Bouguereau, Monet, and Berthe Morisot. 100 University St., 206-654-3100. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sun.; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thurs.

Seattle Asian Art Museum “Mountain Dreams” collects contemporary ceramics incised with Buddhist text by Korean artist Yoon Kwang-cho. Volunteer Park, 1400 E. Prospect Ave., 206-625-8900. 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. Wed.-Sun.; 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Thurs.

Tacoma Art Museum Jewelry doesn’t have to make the diamond barons at DeBeers rich. Case in point: “Zero Karat,” a touring collection of jewelry made from such nonprecious materials as aluminum and Chinese newspapers. “A Decade of Excellence” displays Northwest artists who’ve been awarded the Behnke Foundation’s “Neddy” Artist Fellowship since the program began 10 years ago, including work by Michael Spafford, Juan Alonso, Claire Cowie, Susan Dory, and Mark Takamichi Miller. 1701 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253-272-4258. Every third Thursday free and open until 8 p.m. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tues.-Sat.; noon-5 p.m. Sun.