July 22, 2026 — Feast eyes and ears on sculptures, puppets, performances
Molly Gilmore “Arts Aficionado” #4 — July 22, 2026
— ‘Liberty’ on Percival Landing
— Puppet ‘Opera’
— Concerts and films al fresco
sculpture
Isthmus Park’s New Welcome Figure Marks the Region’s Past, Present and Future
Olympia’s Isthmus Park is a gateway to downtown Olympia with views of both the State Capitol and Olympic Mountain Range on the horizon. The land and water around Isthmus Park carry many stories across the generations, and sit at the junction of historical, ecological and cultural significance. At the beginning of June, a new Welcome Figure carving by Squaxin Island Tribe artist and carver, Andrea Wilbur-Sigo, became a permanent installation at Isthmus Park. Named Həʔapus sqʷəbay, Mother of Restoration, Wilbur-Sigo’s carved figure connects themes of cultural heritage, local history and conservation into a towering 13-foot cedar wood carving.
Abe Singer’s Grass Lake Park sculptures
Sculptor Abe Singer turned an old water tank as large as a boxcar into a series of sculptures for Olympia’s Grass Lake Park. The water tank was on the park property before the recent park renovation. It was to be removed as part of the renovation, but instead of sending the tank to a scrapyard, the city thought it would be cool if someone could repurpose it for art. The city said they would deliver the tank to the selected artist if the destination was within 60 miles of the park. Singer lives on a farm in rural Montesano, so when he was selected for this project, the city delivered the tank to his shop on the farm property where it now keeps company with his turkeys. He utilized pieces of the massive tank to create the two mushroom entryway sculptures as well as the bird blind sculpture on the bridge.
Lynn Di Nino talks TRIPOD in Tacoma
Tacoma’s TRIPOD began more than five years ago, where Lynn Di Nino brings artists of all stripes around to show off what they’ve done, what they’re working on, and where they’re going. Artists will come up on stage, readied with a projector, and show off 50 images over 15 minutes, guiding the audience through a story, or just giving them an inside look at their creative processes. The effect is somewhere between a TED Talk, show-and-tell, and a friend sharing their vacation slides.
tomakesenseofitall: Aisha Harrison and Paige Pettibon at Tacoma Art Museum
The art of Aisha Harrison and Paige Pettibon in their show, “tomakesenseofitall” at Tacoma Art Museum works to deliver orchestrated messages, respecting and supporting each other’s voice, singing a similar song which gives you many things to think about. Harrison and Pettibon have much in common, they both practice their disciplines with similar concerns in mind, they both utilize a rich, visually allegorical narrative, incorporating surrealism as a means of communication to express the niche space they occupy in the world.
Don Freas Sculpting a Life
“I remember the crisis one day.” Sculptor Don Freas, already a well-respected craftsman who’d shown his furniture in galleries, said. “I said, ‘No, I can’t make a chair. I want to do something new.’ And it became a sculpture.” This retrospective at Childhood’s End Gallery in Olympia through April 21 is a meditation on Freas’ creative process.
Nancy Thorne Wins Plinth Project
This year’s winner of the Percival Plinth Project in Olympia, “A Song for Nurturing Peace” by Nancy Thorne-Chambers, is a bronze statue of a girl holding a bird’s nest with an egg in one hand while the mother bird, a white dove, perches on her other hand.
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 …
REVIEW: Cyrra Robinson’s Of the Abyss
VISUAL ARTS REVIEW by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS New to Olympia’s art scene is metal sculptor Cyrra Robinson, a recent graduate of The Evergreen State College, who’s showing a group of sculptures derived from life under the sea. Her sculptures are monumental in concept if not in actual size. They look like they should …
Percival Plinth Project
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Olympia is buying a new piece of art, and anyone who can get to Percival Landing this month is invited to help choose it. Over a dozen new sculptures by Northwest artists have been installed on the plinths, or sculpture stands, along the landing, and ballots on which to …