Poet Nikkita Oliver Returns to Olympia for 2017 Women of Achievement Celebration

by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS In November, YWCA Olympia is welcoming back nationally known slam poet Nikkita Oliver to Olympia. Last spring, Oliver was keynote speaker at the YWCA’s inaugural Racial Justice Summit. This fall, Oliver returns for the Annual Women of Achievement Celebration at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts. The event will …

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OLY ARTS Podcast Samples

OLY APPETIZER (Weekly Local Food Overview) (90 SECOND VERSION) OLY ARTS – SOUND STAGES (Weekly Theater Overview) (90 SECOND VERSION) OLY UPDATE (Weekly Arts Overview) (90 SECOND VERSION) For full podcast versions, see this page

OLY ARTS Editorial Change

OLY ARTS announces the departure of long-term managing editor Christian “Carv” Carvajal, who served as the publication’s founding editor. Carvajal leaves a healthy, vibrant and well-regarded publication for a full-time position in communications management. Publisher Ned Hayes stated: “OLY ARTS readership will miss Carv’s insightful editorial skill, and I will miss my right-hand man who executed brilliantly …

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"Street Love," mixed media by Evan Clayton Horback

Welcome to Fall Arts Walk 2017

OLY ARTS is very happy to be the print-media sponsor for Olympia’s Fall Arts Walk 2017.  In 2017, Fall Arts Walk and Procession takes place on these days: Arts Walk – Friday Oct 6 (5 p.m. – 10 p.m.) Arts Walk – Saturday Oct 7 (noon – 5 p.m.) Jazz Walk – Saturday Oct 7 …

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Jazz Walk

Even More Spectacle at Jazz Walk

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS When Arts Walk ends, Jazz Walk begins. The second-annual Olympia Jazz Walk, a fundraiser for the nonprofit JazzClubsNW, is timed to keep the festival atmosphere going late into Saturday night with live jazz throughout downtown Olympia. “The idea is to make the Arts Walk and the great spectacle that …

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Olympia Peace Choir

Community Peace Walk at Heritage Park

by Karen Lunde for OLY ARTS From the earliest tribal welcome songs to anti-war and protest anthems, music has given a powerful voice to messages of peace. The Olympia Peace Choir, a community chorus over 100 members strong, will carry that tradition on with its first-ever Peace Walk. Choir members have invited the community to …

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The REDS

Fiddle Fest Keeps It Traditional

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Within the citywide celebration that is Arts Walk, there’s nestled a mini-festival with a focus on the fiddle. Fiddle Fest, scheduled for the Friday night of fall Arts Walk, has since 2004 been a showcase for traditional music — an art with a long history. “Traditional music hasn’t always …

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"Go-Stay," painting by Susan Christian

Susan Christian at Stable Studios

by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Stable Studios is tucked away in an easy-to-overlook building on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Cherry Street in downtown Olympia. The artist it’ll feature for Arts Walk this fall is anything but little-known. She’s Susan Christian, former owner of Salon Refu and a painter who’s been showing her work …

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Amy Solomon-Minarchi

Amy Solomon-Minarchi at Fall Arts Walk 2017

by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS Olympia poet Laureate Amy Solomon-Minarchi is doing everything she can to change the perception of poetry as a stuffy, elitist art form. “Poetry is accessible,” says Solomon-Minarchi. “We do not need to be in a fancy school, have advanced equipment and technology or have a small window of opportunity …

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Tom Rieger, left, and Amos Callender, right. Photo courtesy Thomas Architecture Studios.

Sand Carving at Thomas Architecture Studios

by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS For the two days of Arts Walk and approximately a week thereafter, Thomas Architecture Studios will present sand carvings by Amos Callender and Tom Rieger. TAS is a combined architectural studio and art gallery. Callender says various factors will determine exactly how long the work is on view. Last year …

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