Dear Liza,
Auntie Bridgett and I walked out in the rain the other day to see the new show at Happy Anyway. This small, delightful shop is just a few blocks down on SE Belmont here in Portland, and is one of our new favorite places.
Besides the usual quirky antiquities and tchatchkies, there is a show this month and next of Allie Yacina’s sketchbooks and art.
I quickly fell in love with Allie’s color palette and blend of observation and style, almost like Matisse… but not quite. I stared at the opened sketchbooks posted on the wall, and flipped through the one on the counter. Each one seemed to show me a new way of seeing.
Because these are Allie’s sketchbooks, we see the lines and corrections, the process of how she makes the image happen. This makes all this beauty feel very “do-able”… very possible, even for me. Allie is holding a small workshop and “sketch time” on January 19th, so folks can all hang out with this talented lady and do art together!
Since Allie lives in our neighborhood, and paints what she sees, many of these sights are familiar to me. Lone Fir Cemetery. Shop fronts on Burnside. Laurelhurst Park.
Steph Sheldon, the owner, is always fun to talk with, about art or any other subject. She has a positive attitude that is not starry-eyed, but strong and almost defiant. “Happy anyway” is her response to “The world is a mess”.
We spent a delightful hour at the shop and walked back home through our dear, soggy neighborhood. As so often happens after looking at art, every curb and branch became an object of wonder and appreciation.
And that’s why we love art!
Love,
Grandma Judy
Dear Liza 