Story and photos by Mary Sheely
Reporting for West Seattle Blog

Hungry?

Jessica Creager understands that a lot of people are these days — for jobs, for money, or for food.

Her show “Craving,” featured during Thursday night’s West Seattle Art Walk and continuing on display at Wallflower Custom Framing (WSB sponsor), 4735 42nd Ave SW, is a response to that reality: her paintings are focused on the “little things in life that cause her to spontaneously smile,” like a pink-frosted cupcake or a pair of Swedish Fish. Some of the paintings themselves are tiny, too, and that’s intentional, to make them more affordable to people who are feeling an economic pinch.

In fact, Creager is one of those people, but she’s not a starving artist. Instead, she’s an artist who’s looking for a job in law.

“I’ve been job hunting for quite awhile,” she says. “I just passed the bar and have been looking for legal positions.”

Creager isn’t planning to leave the art world behind — she plans to focus on copyright and trademark law, which often involves artistic works. And she worked during school for a clinic that specializes in providing law services at reduced rates to those in the arts.

Creager acknowledges the irony of being able to show her art as she continues a hunt for a law job.

“I have a BFA in painting and photography,” she says. “I’ll fall back on that, I guess!”

Laura Boos, on the other hand, says, “It’s been years, literally, since I’d done any kind of art project for any length of time.”

Boos is currently displaying works inspired by Dia de los Muertes (Day of the Dead), the Mexican day of tribute to the deceased that takes place each Halloween, at West 5, 4539 California Ave SW. Her paintings are inspired by the sugar skulls that are traditionally a part of Dia de los Muertes celebrations.

“I love it because the skulls look kind of like sugar,” she says of her art, which is layered with glittery beading.

Boos’ appreciation for Dia de los Muertes is a reaction to her Catholic upbringing, she says.

“My mom’s birthday is two days after Halloween. Mom was never into the gore, the dark side of Halloween. This is a different take on celebrating the dead.”

She likes to think of each decorated skull in her work as a tribute to departed souls.

“To me, they’re happy, positive ways of looking at each of these people,” Boos says.

Over at Keller Williams Realty, 4452 California Ave SW, Michelle Lenáe is showing artwork of a different kind. Lenáe, who lived in West Seattle for 11 years before a recent move to Queen Anne, is a metal smith who creates her own jewelry using recycled 14 karat gold, silver, and gemstones that are often cut in her signature “dahlia” style. The resulting work feels both organic and luxurious.

Lenáe says she “fell head over heels” for metalsmithing when she took her first class in 2001. Though she was mere hours from earning a degree, she stayed in school for three more years to learn everything she could about the craft. Today, you can find her work locally at The Finerie on 1st Avenue downtown, at Four Winds in Queen Anne, or online at michellelenae.etsy.com.

“I launched my own collection in 2003,” she says. “This is my second year full-time.”

And she really means full-time.

“I fabricate myself, I forge myself, I rep myself,” she says. “I pretty much wear all the hats.”

She wears them well.

The next West Seattle Art Walk is March 11, 6-9 pm. Watch wsartwalk.com for advance info.