Seattle’s Art Not Terminal Gallery has two exhibits up and running through May 7th – the 20th annual ‘Functional Art Show’ and competition

an exhibition of work that has utility as well as visual interest

on the main floor just inside the entrance, curated by Kamilla White, and a group show in the cavernous basement curated by Jadd Davis titled ‘No trace – a Celebration of Eco Art’

…created in response to the overwhelmingly chemical and wasteful state of art products around the world. Artists and art collectors comprise some of the most responsible minds in the world; they deserve to see an other option to help our ailing planet while staying focused on artistic integrity.

The Art Not Terminal Gallery is huge, with a variety of art on display – sculptures, paintings, drawings and mixed-media. I attended opening night festivities on April 4th and the place was jammed – the artists were on hand, of course, and lots of viewers.

In the photo above, artist Liz Sheets is standing by her stunning piece, a finely tailored cutaway tail coat (these were in vogue from around 1890 to 1910) size 38, made from hand-painted Red Edge Linen. The coat is lined with silk from Thailand, with hand-lettered lines from Shakespeare’s plays Romeo and Juliet, Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Tempest and King Lear.

Liz constructed the supporting armature from 1/4″ copper tubing treated with gold leaf and india ink, and fabricated the hands from textured copper sheating with a finish of gold leaf, india ink and turquois acrylic. Congratulations, Liz, on placing in the top three in the functional art competition!

Functional art created by 2008 1st prize winner Geoffrey Globus (above) and 2nd prize winner John Osgood (below).