Last Night: A Few Highlights From First Thursday

Photos by Adriana Grant

If you missed it at Bumbershoot, part of the Seattle-Tehran Poster Show is on view at the Design Commission. It's full of striking images, like the one above, which reads Imagination Iranienne, a gorgeous image of a mind swirling with thought, depicted in a whirlwind of Arabic lettering.
121 Prefontaine Pl S., on view until Oct. 15.

At Gallery4Culture, Laura Ward's delicate wood, paper, and metal sculptures read like white wrought iron. (detail below)

Gallery4Culture launched a video series this month, e4C, with works on four LCD screens, visible from outside.

The above work, Noshe-e Jan (Bon Appétit) by Gazelle Samizay, features pink paper made into dumplings. I had a visceral reaction to this one. The videos in the windows intersect nicely with the street: Stand close enough, and you'll see the art through the movement of the reflected sidewalk behind you.
101 Prefontaine Pl. S., both exhibits on view until Oct. 31.

The SOIL members show features a cloud piece by Ben Hirschkoff (above) and small ceramic mountains by Vaughn Bell (below) looking a bit like oyster shells protruding from the wall.
112 Third Ave. S., on view until Nov. 1.

In a solo show at Howard House, Lauren Grossman employs texts from the King James Bible. Works such as this one, Valley of Decision, offer text as pattern, form, and shadow. My art-looking companion responded this way, "I like the treatment of the pointies. I could care less about the letters." That might just be the artist's intent.
604 Second Ave., on view until Nov. 1.