The National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) Conference is coming up in Seattle from March 28-30. It’s a big deal for clay artists around the country, and many local galleries are mounting clay-based shows (see Critic’s Picks on Friday for details). But for a handful of local clay artists, it was the spur for a unique collaboration with Hilltop-based women’s help center Catherine Place to offer women a creative, therapeutic and bonding experience through clay.

“Clay is something we go to when we’re stressed,” explains Jana Fisher, the artist behind the collaboration. “Many of our strong friendships came about through clay; it’s important to have that going through transitions. And Catherine Place is all about helping women through transitions.”

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In an announcement this week, the Tacoma Art Museum was one of 58 cultural organizations in five states to receive 2012 grants from the Paul G. Allen Foundation, a non-profit granting organization founded in 1988 by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and Jo Lynn Allen. This cycle of grants totals $6.6 million, focusing on Native American communities and innovative projects.

The Tacoma Art Museum received $75,000 to organize their 2014 exhibit “Art, AIDS, America,” a collaboration with curator Jonathan Katz at the Brooklyn Art Museum. The show is intended to travel around the country.

“It’s an early grant, but …

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This Sunday visitors to the Burke Museum of Natural History in Seattle can watch and learn about contemporary Coast Salish art from practising artists. Included are demonstrations and talks about weaving, carving, printmaking, multi-media and more.

Here’s the schedule:

10:30 am: Talk with Qwalsius Shaun Peterson, Tulalip/Puyallup (carving, printmaking, multi-media)

11:30 am: Talk with Jason Gobin, Tulalip (carving, printmaking, multi-media) Read more »

The University of Washington Tacoma has teamed up with the Museum of Glass to offer a new glass art class, held at the museum. Giving a basic introduction to studio glass making methods within the context of glass as a visual art material, the class is a first for the university, being piloted this winter quarter.

This quarter’s course runs in tandem with the current Paul Stankard exhibit at the museum, and offers students access to the galleries as well as the Hot Shop. Read more »

Timothy Close has today resigned as Executive Director/CEO of the Museum of Glass after five and a half years leading the Tacoma glass museum. Citing the need for a change of leadership at the museum, Close says he wishes to return to a more general art museum. Current deputy director Susan Warner, who has a curatorial and art education background, will replace Close temporarily as interim director.

“This is a difficult decision for me, but I feel the timing is right for a leadership change at the Museum of Glass,” said Close in a press release. “It has been an …

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Still wondering about that strange mask Aunt Margaret brought back from Asia five years ago, or that odd basket-woven doll that no-one has a clue about but that’s been in the family for generations? The Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture in Seattle comes to the rescue this Saturday with its 27^th annual Artifact ID Day.

A home to many natural and cultural treasures from the Pacific, Asia and America, as well as experts that know about them, the Burke offers this day every year to give information about Native American, Pacific Island, Asian and Southeast Asian baskets, …

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It’s all happening at Tacoma Art Museum this Sunday: The annual Let It Snow free community festival also includes the second annual 20/20 Identity and Portrait Project, featuring 20 local individuals sharing stories and photographic portraits in anticipation of the major photographic exhibition Hide/Seek coming to TAM in 2012.

The festival ushers in winter with music from bell choir the Rainier Ringers, dance performances from Metro Arts and Grant Elementary students, make-it-yourself pop-up holiday cards or ornaments and more. You can also walk across Pacific Avenue to the new ice rink, co-sponsored by the museum. All museum entry is …

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Tacoma’s new Children’s Museum building isn’t yet open, but some of the art for it was being made last week at Grant Elementary. Third-graders from the arts-based school are helping artist Kristin Tollefson create an iconic tree full of unusual sculpted “fruit” for the museum’s new 8,700 square foot space for when it opens to the public on January 15.

The “playful tree” installation makes use of the Pacific Avenue space’s large vertical support pillars, and will transform one of them into the trunk of a tree, with aluminum branches and sprouting “fantastic fruit,” made by the artist from …

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