Highlighting Whidbey’s Beauty in Black and White

Film photography has been Thom Hall’s passion for more than forty years. It began with his studies of film development and darkroom techniques and grew from there. He transformed a spare bathroom in his house into a darkroom—blocking out stray light, setting up the enlarger, and turning on amber safelights. While listening to jazz, he watches as blank pieces of photo paper turn into stunning black and white representations of the world around us.

For Hall, who currently serves as secretary on the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts (WICA) Board of Directors, photography is part of his everyday life on Whidbey.

“I explore with a camera in hand and stay open to possibilities,” he says. “If a photograph doesn’t work the first time, I go back when the light is better and set up my tripod. Even with digital, I slow down and frame the photograph.”

Whether it is the Washington State Ferries shrouded in fog or the intricate details of a blooming sunflower, Hall’s images evoke intrigue and a connection to the world around us. Titled Whidbey in Black and White, this ongoing portfolio project will be on display in WICA’s Lasher Gallery through the end of February.

“I look for ordinary things that others do not see,” says Hall. “Each photograph stands alone and evokes something unique and special; together these pictures tell a story of our beautiful island.”

For Lasher Gallery Curator James Hinkley, Hall’s photography is the perfect complement to the Whidbey Island Film Festival (WIFF), scheduled for January 17-26.

“We are very excited to be presenting his work in black and white photography at the same time as our film festival—“In Glorious Black and White,” says Hinkley. “Hall’s scintillating photos really communicate stories, places, and moods using many of the same techniques used by the great directors and cinematographers of classic black and white films. Use of contrast, lighting, shadow, and composition really help to direct the viewer's eye to the desired focal point in each work. There is really something so unique about both black and white photography and black and white film—especially in the hands of artists like these.”

The gallery exhibit will open on January 17 to coincide with the festival’s red carpet opening party at 6pm. All of the prints will be available for purchase, with Hall donating all sale proceeds to WICA.

To learn more about WICA and the Lasher Gallery, visit WICAOnline.org.

Half a Century of Movie History on Display at the Whidbey Island Film Festival

Now in its sixth year, the Whidbey Island Film Festival (WIFF) will be back at the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts (WICA) for a two-week run January 17-26, 2025. This year’s theme, In Glorious Black and White, will feature a curated selection of classic films that celebrate the timeless elegance of black and white cinema. The festival is the perfect addition to January programming on the island with its red carpet opening party, ten films, one concert, a signature cocktail, and bottomless popcorn.

"Dress up a little, come see some great films, and eat some of the best popcorn in town,” says WICA Executive Artistic Director Deana Duncan. “We can’t wait to roll out the red carpet!”

Produced by WICA, the film festival is the only purely classic film festival in Washington State, bringing in movie lovers to experience these iconic classics as they were meant to be seen—on the big screen.

“Because WIFF is held in WICA’s beautiful and intimate space, this film festival feels like a true community and family event,” says Duncan. “People share their love of the classics, meet and make new friends, and relive favorite classic movie memories from their past.”

WEEK TWO | JANUARY 23 - 26

ED WOOD
January 23rd, 7:30 PM

PLEASANTVILLE
January 24th, 7:30 PM

ANATOMY OF A MURDER
January 25th, 2:00 PM

THE INNOCENTS
January 25th, 7:30 PM

YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN
January 26th, 7:30 PM
Closing Night

WEEK ONE | JANUARY 17 - 19

PAPER MOON
January 17th, 7:30 PM
Opening Night with Reception

JANE EYRE
January 18th, 2:00 PM

RAGING BULL
January 18th, 7:30 PM

PINKY
January 19th, 2:00 PM

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD
January 19th, 7:30 PM

In addition to the film lineup, the Art of the Score concert will be returning to the WICA mainstage on January 26 at 2:00 PM with a performance showcasing the magic of cinema like never before. Viewers will enjoy a captivating performance by the talented James Hinkley and some familiar faces, bringing beloved music scores to life.

WIFF began in 2019 as a way to broaden the humanities programming at WICA and to draw tourism to the island during the winter with a heritage festival. Sponsored by the Washington State Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Arts, WESTAF, City of Langley and Island County, this year’s festival showcases more than fifty years of black and white film history.

“In the world of cinema, the use of black and white film can play a pivotal role in creating a timeless quality and setting time and place. The transition from black white to color was a multi-decade process that began in 1915,” says Duncan. “Our films range from 1943 to 1998 and are an extraordinary look at the evolution of black and white in film history.”

Each film showing will include a live introduction, with speakers discussing themes and reasons for why the film is still so relevant today. Pay What You Wish tickets will be available for all films.

“We aspire to make our programs accessible and inclusive for all,” says Duncan. “Movies are meant to be a community experience; they were made to be watched with others. Great art, classic film included, has the power to connect us. These stories and these artists can and will reach audiences in powerful ways. We need social experiences to enrich and impact our lives.”

So this festival season, WICA invites viewers to come for the old Hollywood glamor and stay for the community, connection, and celebration of arts. To learn more about the festival and to purchase tickets and passes, visit whidbeyislandfilmfestival.org.

A Beautiful Symbiotic Relationship

From an early age, art has been a self-described obsession for Cormac McCarthy. As a child, he would spend hours binge-watching painter Bob Ross on television and would experiment with different art media at the kitchen table—“drawing, painting, making, and exploring any creative experience I could get my hands on.” It was out of these childhood moments growing up in Ireland that McCarthy discovered his love of painting. 

“When I paint, I lose a form of grip on space and time,” he says. “Nothing else exists except me and my paints. I layer my paints onto the canvas to create beautiful paintings, which brings my sometimes chaotic mind, stillness and tranquility. The paints and I have a beautiful symbiotic relationship.”

Through the month of December, this symbiotic relationship will be on full display at the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts (WICA) Lasher Gallery, where McCarthy will be showing his work to the public.

“If you've only ever seen Cormac's works online, then you already know how vibrant and evocative they are,” says Lasher Gallery Manager James Hinkley. “But believe me, when seeing them in person, they burst into lively, sensual textures and new depths that will draw you even further into the experience.”

For over a decade, McCarthy has called Whidbey Island home. He established his art gallery in Clinton—Cormac McCarthy Fine Art—which he fills with paintings that celebrate the “importance and majesty of the beautiful world around us.”

His impressionist style combines thick palette strokes of acrylic paint with subtle and dynamic variations in color, resulting in a mesmerizing blend of form and texture that draws the viewer in. Each piece is as unique as the next—whether it’s an urban jungle aglow in neon lights, a seal pup frolicking among the kelp forest, or the shores of a serene lake, bathed in the branches of a weeping willow and dotted with delicate lilypads.

“I hope my work brings peace and joy to those who take a moment to view it,” says McCarthy. “I also hope my paintings remind the viewer of the importance and majesty of the beautiful world around us. I hope my paintings stir up and remind us that we are the stewards of the world and that our natural world needs us to foster its life and growth.”

For McCarthy, it is simply celebrating “how beautiful our world is” that inspires him as a painter. It is this message that he is excited to showcase at WICA.

“I am delighted to show at WICA, and to be an active member of our arts community,” he says. “I attempt to harness creativity, flow in its currents, paint something beautiful, and share it with others.”

For those interested in seeing McCarthy’s paintings, the art will be on display through December, with a reception held on Friday, December 20th, from 5 - 6:30 PM. In addition to visiting the Langley exhibit, McCarthy’s art can be viewed at his gallery in Clinton or through his website, www.cormacpaints.art.

Ballet “Let it Snow: A Holiday Revue” to Open at the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts

The Whidbey Island Center for the Arts (WICA) will be aglow in snowy glamour and brilliance December 19-22 with the jazzy, sophisticated, and lighthearted classical ballet, “Let it Snow: A Holiday Revue.” Just in time for the winter holidays, this ballet is the perfect blend of seasonal elegance and festive cheer.

Created by WICA Board Member Christopher Stowell and sponsored by the LaBert Dance Fund, the ballet will feature an array of dances inspired by the spirit and aesthetic of mid-century classics like White Christmas and the television variety shows of the ‘50s and ‘60s.

“This is a holiday alternative to Nutcracker, but we are in solidarity with all of our colleagues around the world who are dancing Nutcracker right now,” says Stowell. “There's nothing cute or sweet about it as much as it is fun, effervescent, silly. It's sometimes romantic and it's a series of dances, each one creating a different atmosphere. The music will satisfy you if you have some favorite holiday tunes that you love hearing and it will also surprise you in that there are some songs, more tangentially related to the holidays that are just fun.”

For WICA Executive Artistic Director Deana Duncan, this ballet is the perfect encapsulation of the organization’s role in the community—to create powerful shared experiences around innovative and engaging expressions of artistic creativity.

“As a professional producing arts organization, it is important for us to bring programming to WICA that supports all of our five areas of concentration—the humanities, music, theatre, the visual arts, and dance,” says Duncan. “I believe it is our job to champion the process of new work. It is only through advocating and supporting new work that we can create the imaginative shows that initiate, invigorate and innovate these art forms. We are lucky to have the LaBert Dance Fund available to help us commission our first show and we are thrilled to have Christopher Stowell at the artistic helm of this new American ballet.”

No stranger to the ballet stage, Stowell is the son of Pacific Northwest Ballet Founding Artistic Directors Kent Stowell and Francia Russell. He received his training at the Pacific Northwest Ballet School and the School of American Ballet and has appeared in theaters throughout the world including the Paris Opéra, New York's Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., and Moscow's Bolshoi Theater.

Stowell’s “Let it Snow” is a celebration of holiday memories, with echoes of nostalgia and joy. The revue brings together dancers from all over the world with local musicians in a beautiful and festive collaboration. Featuring Brian Simcoe, Luis Gonzalez, Lester Gonzalez, Xuan Cheng, Nicole Ciapponi, and Madeline Bez, the dancers will be accompanied by a live piano performance by Sheila Weidendorf and vocals by Ada Faith-Feyma and John Macarro.

“I think Deana’s vision for the organization is at the heart of all of this. She wants to cover many art forms while presenting and producing excellence,” says Stowell. “I hope this community understands how fortunate we all are to have this center for the arts that covers so much territory and is available to us on so many different levels. It’s really a place to come together and have lots of different experiences and I would say, this is a very particular experience that you would not find at many places. So I applaud WICA for producing it.”

The ballet will open Thursday, December 19th at 7:30 p.m., with evening performances on Friday and Saturday, and a matinee performance on Sunday. An opening night reception will be held after the Friday performance and champagne, chocolates, and a specialty snowflake martini will be served throughout the performance run.

WICA invites you to grab your champagne and come on in for the show because….baby it’s getting cold outside.

To learn more and to purchase tickets, visit wicaonline.org/letitsnow. 

Unscripted: Sue Frause and Peter Miller

We checked in with Sue Frause and Peter Miller about their Unscripted Center Conversation Series event on November 24. Here is what they had to say:

Sue, you're no stranger to the WICA stage and will be sitting down with fellow storyteller Peter Miller. What are you looking forward to discussing?

Sue Frause: Peter Miller appeared several times on WICA's popular Kitsch 'n Bitch series, two dozen shows I hosted from 2011-2019 featuring local and celebrity cooks and chefs, food demonstrations, signature cocktails and live music. And now, with four books to his credit in the past decade, Peter has many more tales to tell from his kitchen. And that's what Peter excels at—being both a wonderful writer and equally engaging storyteller. Oh, and a damn fine cook! As far as the categories of his books, he describes them as manuals about cooking, food and eating together. A trio of topics that are near and dear to so many people, especially during these turbulent times. I'm so looking forward to being in conversation again with Peter here on WICA's Main Stage. As Julia Child would say during her famous TV signoff, Bon Appetit! 

Peter, your most recent book, Shopkeeping, is now available to purchase. Why did you choose to pursue this subject for the book?

Peter Miller: From one perspective, a shopkeeper is a particular part to a community. They have chosen to open a shop. Most people do not open a shop. They visit them, they go into them, they experience them, as a new presentation. Oh, let us go in here, or I need boots, or mustard, or Proust or new glasses, to drink or to wear. And you go to a shop. It may be new or you may have long ago adopted it to your repertoire of what you do or what you need. You visit. To write about a shop, I realized, was to tell the stories of it. You plot the start of a shop—the name, the product, the colors—but that is only the start. Much of what it represents and becomes is an unfolding, a relationship to its location and to needs and to people.

Can you tell us about the book?

Peter Miller: Shopkeeping is a small book, from a fine design publisher, who loved the premise. The drawings are by Colleen Miller, who has a teaching studio for drawing just up the street from Grey Horse. The only way through the book is to read it, word for word, tale for tale. If you can come to the lecture, you will hear some of the tales, and some that are not written out.  Shopkeeping is as much about reading and storytelling as it is about shops 

What do you hope viewers will take away from the book?

Peter Miller: It is hoped that if an audience can hear and listen and read the story, and backstory, of a shop, then their sense of it is at least partly more intricate. It is not unlike learning the details of growing a fine tomato, or perfect varieties of lettuce, or choosing the precise flour for your dough—each gives you a better sense of what is involved. You give the tomato and the grower some attention.

For more information about the Unscripted Center Conversation Series, visit wicaonline.org/events-calendar-view/frausemiller.