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After thirteen years on historic Ballard Avenue, the Sev Shoon Arts Center moved in January 2004 to its permanent home at BallardWorks. Located near the Locks, BallardWorks is a 14,000sf building that has been developed into an arts center by artists Dionne Haroutunian, Jay Lazerwitz, Joan Stuart Ross, and John Gleason. It is the home to nineteen individual artists, and two businesses. Primarily an industrial area, Ballard is unique in its successful integration of industrial businesses, cafes, quaint shops, and wonderful people.
Sev Shoon Arts Center began in 1991, in response to the art community's need for a printmaking studio in Seattle. It is owned and operated by Dionne Haroutunian who came to Seattle from Switzerland in 1985. Inspired by the books she had read about the Impressionists and the Dadaists, Dionne had dreams of a community of artists who would meet in little cafes and reinvent the world! Sev Shoon is as close as she could get to that!
Drawing on her Armenian heritage, Dionne named the center
"Sev Shoon " which translates as "Black Dog," the nickname
of one of her favorite "adopted" uncles; she figured it would
be good luck, and it has been.
Working with a team of enthusiastic volunteers, our staff has brought exciting events to the community for many years.
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| International Artist in Residence Program
We started an international visiting artist-in-residence
program and Enrique Gijon was our first artist-in-residence.
He came from Oaxaca, Mexico to spend November and December
of 2004 with the goal of learning as much as he could
about the art world here, creating a new body of work
of his own, and most importantly, furthering the relationship
between Seattle and Oaxacan artists. He was a wonderful
presence in the studio, and his delightful woodblocks
and etchings were a great addition to the work being produced
in the studio.
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| 100
Artists to Defeat Bush in 2004!
It took just sixteen days for ten Seattle
artists to organize "100 Artists To Defeat Bush"
. The concept was simple: Ten artists asked nine other
artists to create a "small but substantial"
original artwork and to find a patron who would pay
$100 for any artwork in that show. One Friday night
in June 2004, everyone gathered at Sev Shoon –
patrons were given a lottery number which gave them
permission to enter the gallery at a certain time, and
place their name on a piece of art. Together we raised
over $15,000 which went to MoveOn.org Voter Fund.
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The
Ultimate Press
funded
by King County Arts Commission, this project brought together
senior citizens and teens to design and produce large
plates to create mural prints (up to 4ft by 16ft) with
a 2 ton steamroller! The final event took place on the
street in front of Sev Shoon, and was a great success. |
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This
Mug's on Us!
the
Sev Shoon Arts Center invited Daniel Smith Inc., and Arts
Ballard to join forces in order to present an exciting
art event for ballard Seafoodfest 2000. Two teams of artists
painted gigantic coffee mugs during the festival. |
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Erik
Desmazieres
paid
Seattle a special visit from France for this workshop.
Well-known for his intricate and fantastic architectural
landscapes, he shared his love of etching and aquatint
with students. |
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Erik
Desmazieres etching, first state, done during the Sev
Shoon workshop. |
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Joe
Feddersen and the Unique Print workshop
Often reflecting on his Native American heritage, Joe's
prints are the result of a playful and exploratory approach
to mixing printmaking techniques; etching, monotype and
more. |
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Mezzotint
workshop with printmaster Laurent Scholnyk
Mezzotint master Laurnet Scholnyk came from France to
share his approach to color printing - the trichomy technique
- based on the development of three plates: magenta, cyan
and yellow, to achieve very deep velvet-like darks, as
well as translucent lights. |
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Laurent
Scholnyk mezzotint done during his workshop at Sev Shoon. |
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