November brings a new show at the Gallery Space and Main Meeting Room of the Seattle LGBT Community Center. “The QArts Committee Show” feature the work of painters Michelle Salazar and Michael Strangeways, sculptor Salvador Valenzuela, and film photographer Amy C. Abadilla. They also run QArts, who curates the Gallery Space’s artwork. This group of volunteers strives to serve as an exhibit venue for Queer Artists of all skills sets.

At press time, three of the Committee Members made brief statements.

Washington State artist Michelle Salazar, a WWU graduate, uses subtly erotic
cowboy & figurative imagery as a metaphor for the romantic notions of
strength, courage and rebellion. Her paintings reflect a deeply felt
experience of what it means to be human. You can view Michelle’s work at
www.michellesalazar.com.

After earning her BA in English with Creative Writing Emphasis from the University of Washington, Amy C. Abadilla began taking pictures as a means to generate short story plots & locations. While her initial intent has gradually waned, her interest in West Coast architecture, Americana, and just documenting her life has yet to cease. A self-taught film photographer, Amy lives and works in Seattle. More of her photos can be accessed online at http://abadiphoto.net.

An entirely self-taught and self–deprecating artist, Michael Strangeways was motivated to commit to a lifetime of slapping blobs of paint onto squares, or even rectangles of canvas, for very little remuneration. Thanks to the inventions of the Xerox machine and tracing paper and poorly enforced copyright laws, Mr Strangeways is living proof that anyone with a creative desire can create a work of art, get it hung on the wall of a gallery or coffee shop or sell it to the unsuspecting on Ebay. His artistic influences include all the parents of Pop, especially Mr Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and the children of Pop Surrealism and Lowbrow: Gary Taxali, Elizabeth McGrath, Camille Rose Garcia as well as many, many others.

Two Receptions are scheduled. The first one is coming up fast: Saturday, November 4, 6:00-9:00PM at the Center; the second Reception is pending. Address is: 1115 E Pike St., which is up the street from the Wildrose and Neumo’s.

The Gallery Space hours are the Drop-In hours at the Center: 10:00AM to 9:00PM, Monday to Saturday, and 11:00AM to 8:00PM on Sunday. To ensure that the Center is open, dial the Center’s main line: (206) 323-LGBT (5428), or go online to http://www.seattlelgbt.org.