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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
May 24, 2012     Shelton Mason County Journal
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May 24, 2012
 
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. . ~ .... . °|- , o o Shelton'Mason County Journal WHAT%COOKIN' Harstine artists to open studios on Memorial Day weekend By NATALIE JOHNSON lot of alder and fir and maple, natalie@masoncountv.com * Benn said. This really deep green comes from burning conif- erous woods. Nestled in the thick forest ~ati~Ha~#~isl~d:Ar~S~i~T~ Many of Benn's ieces also : P of Harstine Island, inspired by have impressions of shells from the area's natural beauty many nearb beaches Each ot bowl y • p , artists work around the clock to or cup needs to be above the make unique pieces of all kinds. *Wh~i Kathy R~ ~ ~3D S~ at I0 E B~!i~ ~dl floor of the kiln. Instead of us- Five of those artists plan to JohnBenn~d~o~iee~Gali~gh~r~Be~hPotterya~32~E in more cla to do this Benn , g y , open their studios to art lovers M~ Lan~ B~b ~d~a~nB~p~e~ ~Ha~st~ !st~ ~ uses the shells to support the for three days on Memorial Day pottery weekend for the Harstine Island Benn said the techninue Ar,t, StudioTour. pioneered by ancient Chinese We were hoping Memorial FO~or~ potters, works well because the day would be a good time ,. that shells, made of calcium carbon- people would be coming to the ate, dissolve in the fire, leaving island," said John Benn. 18 years, minutes, only their impressions burnt Benn and Colleen Gallagher Both Benn and Gallagher, "We're in shifts," Gallagher into the pots. of Benn Pottery plan to show off who have been full time potters said. "We've got somebody stok- Gallagher's signature style their two home-built, wood-fired since 1979, create vases, bowls, ing all the time." to her pots is slightly different. kilns, as well as their spacious cups, pots and more using kilns They also use all natural She engraves designs into her studio to the public during that powered exclusively by wood. glazes which come from the ash pre-fired pots and vases, and weekend. To fire the clay, the kilnsfrom whichever wood they use. then inserts glazes. This is the first time Bennreach temperatures of 2,300 de- ,'When it gets that super hot "Whereas my work is kind and Gallagher have -opened grees for about 100 hours and temperature that's when the their t!arstine Island studio in have to be stoked e.very five glazes start to form. We burn a See Artists on page B-6 Journal photo by Natalie Johnson John Benn, of Benn Pottery. on Harstine Island, is one of several artists opening their studios for the Harstine Island Art Studio Tour. NARST NEISLANDNEW5 Journal photo by Natalie Johnson Bluegrass band Wayward Vessel of Portland, Ore., including Josiah Payne, left, Julie Schmidt and Ken Chapple perform last Sunday at Bluegrass from the Forest at the Shelton High School Student Union Building. Festival keeps traditional music alive in Mason County By NATALIE JOHNSON very positive. "[Bluegrass from the Forest] com- natalie@masonco~,nty.con~"I've not heard one negative com- pares really well in terms ofthe crowd it ment. I've been so pleased," Miser brings," mandolin player Josiah Payne said. said. "It's nice to have pockets like this Bluegrass lovers from near and far Portland band Wayward Vessel that keep the traditional alive." once again descended on Shelton last won the festival's annual band con- One of the benefits of a small fes- weekend for the eighth-annual Blue- test in 2011 as a trio with guitar, tival like Shelton's, Chapple said, is grass from the Forest Festival, sport- fiddle and bass. However, the band the ability to rub shoulders with na- sored by Kristmas Town Kiwanis. changed members last year, and is tional acts headlining the festival. The festival drew some of its larg- now a three piece with guitar, fiddle This year, the festival had two na- est crowds this year, said event orga- and mandolin, tional acts: The Kathy Kallick Band nizer Greg Linder. "It's something they do at this fes- from California and Frank Solivan "It has just been phenomenal," he tival every year. They have a hand- and Dirty Kitchen from Virginia. said. ful of bands," guitarist Ken Chapple Bluegrass music aficionados travel He said the festival drew a lot of said. "The judges have deep roots in each year from throughout the north- first-time attendees this year. bluegrass." west to attend the festival, and this "I'm not bragging but they were The band has been together about year some came from even farther. blown away," Linder said. three years and plays mostly original "We came to visit with our friends. Dave Miser, auditorium opera- bluegrass songs and plays festivals We checked the area to see if there tions manager at Shelton High all around the northwest, and plan to was a good festival," said Paul Mills, School, where the event took place, soon play in Ashland, Ore., and Tel- said the response to the festival was luTide, Col0. See Bluegrass on page B-6 Thursday, May 24, Come feast on spaghetti after art tour .... " "t seems that as winter brushed its cold hand across our island we . settled into a quiet repose and the pace of life slowed. A large number of active birds flew south for the warmth and desert playtime. We that stayed burrowed in, held close to the Wood stove. But now as summer approaches, the quiet island is beginning to get busy. I was going to say that the sun was here finally, but as of the morning of this writing, our friend the rain has definitely returned. But, I don't think the rain will hamper next week's active weekend. You can start Memorial Day Sat- urday, Sunday and Monday with the self-guided island tour of local art- ists (see above). Kathy Ross, John Benn, Colleen Gallagher, Bob Bonnett and Jann Bonnett founded thisnew event in order to offer an unusual op- portunity to visit the home studios of the artists. Tour participants will see works in progress, raw materials, tools and the environ- ment that inspires these creative people. Guests will meet the artists, discuss their work and learn about influences affecting the design of each piece. Kathy} Ross By MIKE moved to Harstine CALLAGHAN Island three years ago bringing along many of the parts for her whimsical sculptures. "I live among my art process," said Ross, describing her studio. Her two- story studio is filled with natural light and has many workplaces where she builds her sculptures. Husband and wife John Benn and Colleen Gallagher have been mak- ing their ceramic art work in their extensive studio for more than thirty years. They are nationally recognized for the beautiful and unique glaze col- ors and forms created in their wood fired kilns. Bob and Jann Bonnett retired to Harstine Island eight years ago. Mr. Bonnett is a wood turner and uses the abundant locally available woods in his work. Mrs. Bonnett makes delightful fabric bowls and containers using col- orful fabric and found objects. Within the theme of bowls, the couple will be demonstrating the process they use to make their current work. I'm sure that on Saturday, you might get hungry after looking at all this art. If that is the case, dinner will be close. It's time for the annual See Harstine on page B-6 2012 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Page B-1