The Sun Valley Center for the Arts' new exhibition, "Creatures: From Bigfoot to the Yeti Crab," found its origin in the Wood River Valley.
"The artist who gave us the idea for the show was Karen Jacobsen, who lives here," said Courtney Gilbert, The Center's curator of visual arts. "We looked at Karen's watercolors and thought the creatures she depicted couldn't possibly exist, but they do."
The Center's newest multidisciplinary project, "Creatures: From Bigfoot to the Yeti Crab," is a fun—but also thought-provoking—look at fantastical creatures through the eyes of contemporary artists, filmmakers and scientists. The project includes visual arts exhibitions in Ketchum and Hailey as well as lectures, films and classes for all ages.
"Bigfoot has been spotted in more than half the counties in Idaho," said Gilbert. "We are so curious to find Bigfoot because it represents a possible missing link for humans. We want to believe in the Loch Ness monster because we want to know that human beings and dinosaurs coexist. And werewolves explain bizarre human behavior."
Jacobsen is a scientific illustrator who works alongside marine biologists to document the sea life they encounter on deep-sea expeditions. For "Creatures," Jacobsen has created an installation of her illustrations in The Center's project room, giving visitors a glimpse into a world rarely seen by humans. From sea cucumbers to the Yeti crab, she depicts creatures that seem the stuff of science fiction—yet are very real.
Richard A. Young has created an entire body of work devoted to Godzilla, on display as part of the group exhibition in Ketchum and also in a solo show at The Center in Hailey from Jan. 21-March 25.
Artist Scott Fife has created sculptures and drawings of both real and legendary creatures such as Tyrannosaurus Rex and the head of a werewolf. Artist Matthew Groves crafts fine ceramics of figures like Sasquatch and the Wooly Man, a creature of his own invention.
Artist Stephanie Metz makes needle-felted wool sculptures of odd animals without mouths or internal organs or birds without wings or heads. Finally, artist Megan Whitmarsh uses fabric and embroidery to create images drawn from late-1970s video games and early computer graphics. For this exhibition, Whitmarsh is creating a lair for a make-believe creature.
The public is invited to an opening reception for "Creatures: From Bigfoot to the Yeti Crab" on Friday, Jan. 14, from 5:30-7 p.m. Two of the artists featured in the exhibition, Karen Jacobsen and Richard A. Young, will speak about their work at 6 p.m.
The Center will offer free exhibition tours at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 20, and Thursday, Feb.17, and at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 22, or by appointment. The Center Gallery will be open late, until 8 p.m., for Gallery Walk on Friday, Feb. 18, and Friday, March 11.
Exhibition events
For details, call 726-9491 or visit www.sunvalleycenter.org.
Talks
- A free talk by Roland Smith will take place Thursday, Jan. 13, at 6:30 p.m. at The Center in Ketchum. Smith is the award-winning author of the "Cryptid Hunter" series of young adult books.
- A free talk by Jeffrey Meldrum will take place Thursday, Feb 10, at 6:30 p.m. at The Center in Ketchum. Meldrum is an associate professor at Idaho State University and the author of "Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science." He is considered by many to be the nation's leading expert on Sasquatch.
Films
- A free film screening, "Not Your Typical Bigfoot Movie," will take place Thursday, Jan. 20, at 6:30 p.m. at The Center in Ketchum.
- A free film screening, "Bigfoot, A Beast on the Run," will take place Tuesday, Feb. 8, at 6:30 p.m. at the Community School Theatre in Sun Valley.
- The Ketchum Cinema Club will present "King Kong" on Sunday, Feb. 13, at 2:30 p.m. at the Magic Lantern Screening Rooms.
- A free family day will feature origami creatures with Mitsuru Brandon on Saturday, Jan. 22, from 3--5 p.m. at The Center in Ketchum.
Workshops
- A class, "Combining Art and Science: An Introduction to Scientific Illustration" with Karen Jacobsen, will take place Tuesday through Thursday, Jan. 25-27, from 5:30--8:30 p.m. The class costs $200 for Center members and $250 for nonmembers with a $25 supply fee.
- A class, "Storytelling Through Collage" with Vicki Fish, will take place Feb.10-11 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The class costs $150 for Center members and $200 for nonmembers.
- A Teen Workshop, "An Introduction to Scientific Illustration" with Karen Jacobsen will take place Saturday,
Feb. 12, from noon to 4 p.m. The workshop is $10 and preregistration is required.
Sabina Dana Plasse: splasse@mtexpress.com
