Editor 
VISUAL ARTS REVIEW by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Lucy Gentry Meltzer’s Biophilia Collection at Salon Refu is a selection of small voodoo dolls and sculptural figures on dress mannequins, standing on the floor and floating from a natural wood frame just below the gallery ceiling. Figuratively, they’re wood sprites, fairies, medieval warriors and goddesses, …
by Christian Carvajal for OLY ARTS “Who can take a sunrise / Sprinkle it in dew?” We suspect any child of the 1970s, or of any decade since for that matter, could immediately answer that musical question. It’s “The Candy Man,” of course—in this case, a very specific candy man, the mischievous (and ostensibly homicidal) …
by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Coming next to The Gallery at South Puget Sound Community College is an exhibition of digital prints, sculptural objects, paintings and installations with sound components by Joe Hedges, assistant professor of painting and intermedia at Washington State University. Gallery director Nathan Barnes says he doesn’t yet know which of …
by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS Once a month, the lights at Traditions Café dim and the noise of a room packed with poets and novelists dies down to a hushed whisper. The crowd anxiously awaits one of Thurston County’s highest-regarded and longest-standing literary events: the Olympia Poetry Network’s monthly reading and open-mic session. This …
by Christian Carvajal for OLY ARTS According to the Daily Mail, there were over 200,000 wild lions in Africa three decades ago. Now there are a tenth of that number, with only five viable populations remaining on the vast continent. That’s why Madison Elementary is coming to the rescue. “Lion cubs are our mascot,” says …
by Jonah Barrett for OLY ARTS As a medium, stop-motion animation has been around for well over 100 years, being first introduced by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897’s The Humpty Dumpty Circus. A new stop-motion film, Torrey Pines, will be screened at The Evergreen State College on April 19. Clyde Petersen …
by Christian Carvajal for OLY ARTS Samba dancing began as semba in Angola, then evolved into its modern form in early-20th-century Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Olympia’s resident samba troupe, Samba Olywa, united to dance in Procession of the Species 1995. Now it performs several times a year under the direction of a seven-member steering committee. …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS ((See the OLY ARTS Luminary Procession 2017 photo essay, taken by Shanna Paxton)) The subtler sibling to the many-splendored Procession of the Species, the Luminary Procession shines bright, filling the streets of Olympia with glowing paper lanterns and live music. When it began in 2009, this procession was intended …
by Ned Hayes for OLY ARTS Nearly every inch of the route for the Procession of the Species is covered with vibrant chalk art. The Procession team hands out chalk to children from ages 0 to 99: Everyone is invited to create their own art on the route. Yet this is not just a momentary …
by Jennifer Crain for OLY ARTS In a little house on Olympia’s west side, Justin Wells creates cassoulet, chateaubriand and morel tarts while Zoe Wells welcomes diners looking to celebrate an anniversary or enjoy a solo meal over a glass of Beaujolais. La Petite Maison, which the couple started six years ago, has received praise …