Art You Can Walk On

by Jill St. George on Jan 5, 2012

Some people are just born to be artists.

Yakima’s Nancy Gabriel, 58, has loved art as long as she can remember. She grew up in Chicago, a city that surrounded her with it.

“It’s incredibly rich with architecture and museums,” she says.

Having lived near the Art Institute of Chicago, Gabriel’s family spent many hours gazing at fine art. She grew up taking traditional art classes, like painting and drawing, until she discovered “functional art” in college. Functional art is when the ideas of aesthetics and function merge. Gabriel then began making clothes, weaving baskets and growing food.

Gabriel lived in Eugene, Ore., for 35 years before moving to Yakima three years ago with her husband, Joe, 58. Joe’s work in the fruit industry brought him to Yakima. When the couple shopped for homes, Nancy had one request: It must have a studio.

“I’ve always had a studio,” says the soft-spoken Gabriel. “I can’t live without doing art.”While working for a wool supplier more than a decade ago, Gabriel learned the art of rugmaking. She has been making her own rugs for 15 years.

“It’s something I could do at home while raising my daughter,” she says.

“If it’s usable, can’t it still be art? … It doesn’t have to be hanging on the wall,” Gabriel proclaims, as she debates the difference between art and craft. “I’m painting, just using wool.”

Gabriel also found rugs to be a good medium for telling a story, often through a series of pieces inspired by nature. Her next series, “The Creek,” is based on the Cowiche Canyon, where she spends many days hiking. “What a beautiful place to reflect,” she says.

“The Creek” follows the “Wandering Plant” and “The Trail” series.

Gabriel receives thick, durable wool from New Zealand in its natural state and then uses commercial dyes to customize the colors. Nancy has a second kitchen dedicated to dying, where she bakes her wool in a turkey roaster. “I’m like a kitchen chemist with the dyes,” she says. “I put a lot of energy into playing with the colors.”

Although she spends many hours working on each piece, Gabriel considers it a labor of love. “When I make a rug, it takes so long I end up having a relationship with it,” she says. Rugs range in size but are usually no larger than 5-feet by 8-feet. “I consider them little color spots,” she says. She also makes seat cushions.

Gabriel can design anybody’s idea — she loves working with colors and trying new things. “They are all different; no one rug is the same,” she says.

And she has only one request: “Put it on the floor and walk on it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Take a Chair

by Christina McCarthy on Nov 10, 2011

“The thing about chairs is they’re always inviting you to sit awhile, to rest, or meditate, or even curl up and sleep. I think I’ve always had something of a love affair with chairs.”— LeAnne Ries

Yakima artist LeAnne Ries has a point.

Just sitting in a room — even an empty room — chairs call to us. The straight-backed dining chair tells us, “Sit, dinner is ready.” The over-stuffed armchair suggests, “Go get your book. I’ll wait for you to get back.” Even the hard wooden pews of a church remind us through their upright backs and hard seats, “Sit, but don’t get too comfortable. Pay attention.”

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Garden in Style

by Robin Salts Beckett on Sep 12, 2011

We were wowed when we spotted Justine Sinclair-Yoakum’s airbrushed shoes, so we asked the Yakima artist to embellish a pair of run-of-the-mill garden clogs for our Home & Garden edition. Sinclair-Yoakum has been airbrushing for four years, but just recently began turning her talents to footwear. “I paint everything,” she says … even canvas, bikes and cars.

Sinclair-Yoakum hopes her talent will help others too, through her new shoe line, “Wear to Care.” Inspired by her aunt who died of cancer in 2004, Sinclair-Yoakum will donate 20 percent of the proceeds from this line to those battling the disease.

Take a look at her creations at Rolo’s Boutique at 18 N. 2nd Street in Yakima.

Justine Sinclair-Yoakum, JNS Studios,
509-654-8411 • jnsstudiossite.com

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Ellensburg Film Festival

by Robin Salts Beckett on Sep 8, 2011

Ellensburg Has a Film Festival of Its Own

by Scott Klepach Jr.

Come Oct. 7, Ellensburg’s streets will be alive with the sound of film buzz. That’s when the city hosts the seventh annual Ellensburg Film Festival.

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The Ripple Effect: Liberty Bottleworks

by Robin Salts Beckett on Sep 8, 2011

By Heather Caro

What can a water bottle hold?

If it’s crafted by Liberty Bottleworks, a new manufacturing company based in Union Gap, a bottle can hold more than just 24 or 32 ounces. It can hold vision, work ethic and art.

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Bill Brennen Captures Yakima’s Beauty

by Heather Caro on Jul 8, 2011

 

 

By Melissa S. Labberton

Photos By Gordon King

When people ask Yakima’s Bill Brennen how long it takes him to paint one of his Eastern Washington landscapes, he answers with enthusiasm, “40 years!” His reply might sound like a joke, but this master painter is quite serious. He says it’s taken him 40 years to hone his artistic talent that so perfectly captures the beauty of the Yakima Valley and surrounding area.

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