If you missed the big Palmer/Wirfs show in Portland this past weekend, you have another chance to see what upwards of 150 of the Northwest’s premier antique and collectibles dealers have for sale – and right before the holiday gift-giving season, if you’ve got a collector or decorator on your shopping list.

As usual, I asked around to find out what some of the vendors specialize in and what they’ll be bringing to the show. Here are their responses:

Marshia Armstrong of Mastoyshop (aka The Toy Lady) has been exhibiting toys in shows for over 20 years and has been selling online for over 11 years. “My prices are very reasonable and vary from two for $1 to $5 each for plastic figures, depending on the subject matter,” she says.

Marshia will be bringing many TV and movie figures to the Puyallup show: Disney and Warner Bros. characters, Cabbage Patch Kids, Madame Alexander dolls, California Raisins, Smurfs, Breyer horses, Hallmark miniatures and ornaments, Boyds bears and Bearington bears and more – “Really, too many to name them all here,” she adds.

Sizes vary from half-inch items for dollhouse lovers to 20-inch plush items. “Nearly all of my items are pre-owned and recycled, making me a very green person,” Marshia points out. “Most plush have been washed and stored in airtight bags. Discounts are offered on multiple purchases over $20 total, and I’m always more than fair especially with the kids that come to buy for their collections.

“This year I am going back to my old style of plastic containers for the figurines, so they are all sorted out ahead of time. There will be a couple of digging bins, as some of my customers love them.”

Bruce and Barbara Blakeman of Blakeman Antiques are also veteran antiquer-dealers who have been in the business since 1986. “We began our ‘career’ in antiques and collectables when I retired from the Navy in 1985,” Bruce explains. “We did shows up and down the East Coast at the rate of 26 per year on average. We also purchased a pair of turn-of-the-century cottages in the heart of the Pensacola, Fla., historic district and turned them into an antique mall. They were perfect for the industry and were a joy to operate. We moved back to the Pacific Northwest in 1998 and are continuing our business in antiques.

“We specialize in primitives and country because they are our first antique love,” Bruce says. “However, we have an appreciation of all of the works of artisans from the mid- and early 20th century and late 1800s. Unfortunately, a lot of the talent and art that went into many of the wonderful items from this era have been lost in our industrial and automated society.

“Some of the items we’ll be bringing to the Palmer/Wirfs show include a mid-1800s tall wooden butter churn with a beautiful dark patina, and an early (late 1930s) Walt Disney Enterprises11-inch-wide spin top with beautiful lithographs of the original Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf. We’ll also be bringing a surviving whiskey barrel from 1937 with tap and plug still intact, a variety of crocks and stoneware (the heart of home canning/food and drink preparation and preservation) and a variety of hand tools used by the previously mentioned artisans. Since most of the attending audience of the Palmer/Wirfs show have extremely eclectic tastes, we will be bringing a surviving whiskey barrel from 1937 with tap and plug still intact, a variety of crocks and stoneware (the heart of home canning/food and drink preparation and preservation) and a variety of hand tools used by the previously mentioned artisans. Since most of the attending audience of the Palmer/Wirfs show have extremely eclectic tastes, we will be bringing a varied mixture to this show, including a gorgeous hanging mirror shelf from the Victorian era with ornately carved panels and finely detailed support stanchions and flourishes. This is a small sampling of the things we’ll present at the show and we are looking forward to sharing our enthusiasm and our merchandise.”

Wayne Anderson of Anderson Enterprises specializes in primitive art. “I will be bringing Indian baskets, stone artifacts, pre-Columbian artifacts, ethnic textiles and an Eskimo ivory pipe from the 19th century that is a museum-quality item valued at $7,500,” Wayne tells me. “I also will bring a wide variety of estate items, including vintage sports stuff like wood shafted golf clubs, framed art (both original oils and prints), a Nazi helmet, an ornate piano stool, some jewelry, pottery and a collection of rare books and vintage comics. We will also be buying Indian items and related material with free verbal appraisals.”

Paula and Gary Barnebey of Hall Mania, who just exhibited at the Palmer/Wirfs Portland Expo Show, will be at the Puyallup show as well. They are authorities on the Hall China Company of East Liverpool, Ohio, and will be bringing a wide range of ceramics, including dinnerware in a variety of patterns, as well as lamps and restaurant ware. Their prices range from $2 to $450.

If you love vintage advertising – as I do – you’ll want to meet Kerri De’Noble of The House of Kerri. She and sister Chriss have been selling at Palmer/Wirfs’ Puyallup show since 2002.

“I started out selling primarily tin advertising memorabilia,” Kerri recalls. “In 2004 I started branching out into embellishing vintage furs, advertisement memorabilia, antiques and collectables. I still sell advertising memorabilia but more general advertisement pieces as well as other items that would appeal to buyers.

“At this November Palmer/Wirfs Show, I will be bringing a 1950s Mr. Peanut costume, priced at $10,000: I had a picture taken with (antiques expert, appraiser and author) Harry Rinker when the shows were at the Tacoma Dome,” Kerri says. She’ll also have a 1949 Nalley Valley tin popcorn pail for $75 and an array of embellished vintage furs ranging price from $75 to $1,500.”

Also specializing in vintage advertising is exhibitor Donald Fairbanks, who told me: “I will have a 10-by-20-foot booth at Puyallup full of advertising, country store items, bottles, etc. Most of my items are from the 1930s though the 1950s. I will have lots of spice tins (100 or more), applied color label (ACL) soda bottles (about 80) and coffee tins. Many – as many as I can find – are from Washington state. Among them, Donald says, are an uncut metal sheet of 12 Mello Cup (Seattle) coffee tins ($100); three Gold Shield (Seattle) coffee tins ($35 to $40); an ACL Dennis soda bottle marked ‘Longview, South Bend and Raymond’ ($30); a rare blue Camerano (Tacoma) seltzer bottle ($175); a white ACL Eagle (Seattle) seltzer bottle ($70); and two more coffee cans, an Empress and a Reliance (both Seattle; $25 to $30) and a Gold Shield sample cup ($5). “These are some of my better items but I will also have lesser items for $1 to $20, including a fairly large box of $2 spice tins,” Donald notes.

Lighting and glass collectors will want to pay a visit to Tony and Debbie Davies of D&D Enterprises. “We specialize in what are called panel lamps: that is, the shades are made up of glass panels in metal frames,” says Tony. “These lamps were made mainly from the late 1800s to approximately 1930. We sell mainly table lamps and an occasional floor lamp or ceiling fixture. We also sell reverse painted lamps, leaded glass lamp, and smaller lamps for desk or mantel. Some of our more noteworthy manufacturers are Bradley & Hubbard, Miller, Pittsburgh, Rainaud, Handel, Duffner & Kimberly, Wilkinson, Whaley and an occasional Tiffany.”

Chris Palmer, president of Palmer/Wirfs, organizer of America’s Largest Antiques & Collectibles Shows, says, “As always, the show offers evaluations and identifications by our crack team of qualified experts for $5 per object. We utilize five people, all members of the International Society of Appraisers (ISA), many of whom have worked on the ‘Antiques Roadshow.’ We provide a verbal market evaluation, the price you would receive if you were to offer the item in a retail setting. In other words, a realistic value.”

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Links for more information and venue directions:

• Palmer/Wirfs & Associates: www.palmerwirfs.com
• Puyallup Fair & Events Center: www.thefair.com
• International Society of Appraisers: www.isa-appraisers.org

Fair disclosure: Palmer/Wirfs & Associates is an advertiser on AmeriCollector.com.

Just in case you’re still debating whether to rake leaves or go shopping this weekend, here is an additional sampling of what visitors to America’s Largest Antique & Collectibles Show in Portland, Ore., can look forward to:

Walt and Jody Bammann of Woodberry Lane Antiques are experts in ceramics made by the Bauer Pottery Company, in operation in Los Angeles from 1910 to 1963. “They are best known for their colorful kitchenware line from the thirties and forties called Ringware, and for the popular hand-thrown pieces by Matt Carlton and Fred Johnson, also of that era,” Walt said.

Jody began collecting Bauer pottery in the early 1990s and Walt got involved a few years later. By 2001 their collection had grown to the point that they could sell duplicate items. “Bauer produced many lines of pottery over the years as customers’ tastes changed,” Walt observed. “We always have the largest display of Bauer at shows and typically have items from Bauer’s earliest years up until their closure. Prices for Bauer items range from $10 to over $1000 depending on scarcity, condition and popularity.

The Bammanns will be bringing several very unique Bauer items to the Portland Expo, including four hand-thrown vases attributed to Matt Carlton, ranging in price from $150 to $1,000, and a rare water bottle with lid from the Ringware line for $650. They’ll also have an assortment of other antiques, from Taylor Tilery bird panels to Bakelite jewelry.

Robert King and Peggy Phillips of Rainy Day Treasures specialize in “smalls,” with a few Halloween items thrown in. They’ll also have a rack of clothes including some by Pendleton Woolen Mills.

Marci Carvalho of Character Collectibles has been selling antiques and collectibles for over 30 and specializes in toys, dolls and bears, but she’ll also have antique holiday items, including Christmas, Easter, Halloween and the Fourth of July pieces. “I love children’s items and rabbits and cats, so I usually have a pretty strong collection of all of the above-mentioned,” Marci told me.
Of special note, she said, are some wonderful mannequins for children’s clothing, lots of Disney items and lots of African-American memorabilia.

“I also have a wonderful RCA Victor lamp and dog. All my items are OLD,” Marci pointed out. “I do not deal in reproductions and my condition is as good and as original as I can find. I really love this business, and my booth will represent my passion for it. Hope this answers your question, please feel free to ask more and I will try to help out.”

Paula and Gary Barnebey of Hall Mania have been collecting products made by the Hall China Company of East Liverpool, Ohio, for about 15 years, have almost all of the shapes and sizes of tea- and coffeepots made by the Hall China in their personal collection. “Hall China made more tea- and coffeepots shapes and decorations than any other American china company,” the Barnebeys told me. They are the authors of the collector’s reference book “Hall China Tea and Coffee Pots: The First 100 Years” (Schiffer, available on Amazon) and a self-published book on Hall decanters and lamps.

Gary and Paula exhibit at both the Portland and the Puyallup show. They will be offering a wide range of Hall China products, including a 1939 maroon automobile teapot, coffeepots, decanters, lamps, refrigerator ware, and restaurant ware pieces. They will have various pieces in dinnerware patterns including Autumn Leaf, Red Poppy, Orange Poppy, Silhouette, Crocus and Wildfire. Because of the wide variety of items, prices range from $2 to $450.

For paper and ephemera collectors, Elisabeth Burdon of OldImprints.com sells historical graphics from the 1600s to about 1950; at the Portland Expo she’ll have antique prints, antique and vintage maps (with a specialty of pictorial maps), a select stock of old books, especially illustrated (children’s, travel, natural history, literature, etc.), ephemera (such as old travel brochures and merchandise catalogs etc.) and vintage magazines. Prices range from $5 to $1,000+.

Asked about special pieces she’ll have on hand, Elisabeth mentioned a 1905 bird’s-eye chromolithographic view of Spokane, Wash., by John W. Graham & Co., a Spokane paper and stationery supply store. “In 1898 the main commercial area of Spokane had suffered a devastating fire; along with loss of life, there had been hundreds of thousands of dollars of property damage, including the total loss of the Graham store, then located in the Great Eastern block, built in 1890 at a cost of $250,000,” Elisabeth explained. “A mere seven years later, J. W. Graham & Co. trumpeted the resurgence of the Inland Empire, and their business, in this huge bird’s-eye-view image,” which identifies 74 sites, including two J. W. Graham locations, one of which is a warehouse; there is an inset at the upper left edge of the military post Fort Wright. Measuring 41.5 by 61 inches, mounted on linen and attached to wood rods at upper and lower edges, the map is priced at $2,650.

On the lower end, Elisabeth mentioned a complete January 1914 issue of the “Good Housekeeping” magazine, illustrated in color and black and white, in color pictorial wrappers as issued. The contents include an article titled “The Making of a Militant” by suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst and artwork by Jessie Wilcox Smith (the Mother Goose series), plus a massive quantity of period advertising. It’s priced at $55.

Fran and Luke Alton of Sweet Memories Antiques are eclectic dealers with lots of period items from the 1930s and forties. “We have been selling in the Expo show for over 15 years, and we have been doing shows for over 25 years,” Fran said. “We sell what we call ‘happy’ items. Our items are colorful, priced right and off they go . . .

“We keep our prices very fair,” she added. “We sell a tremendous number of items to other dealers, and we rarely bring items a second time. After the show, the antiques go to our shops. The customers love the fact that our items are always new.”

Floyd and Marine Bergmann of B & B Antiques, whose specialties include furniture, silver, Venetian glass and lighting, told me they’ll be bringing “a lovely old Chinese cupboard, a drop-leaf inlaid table, matching burgundy wingback chairs with ottoman, a small oak drop-leaf desk and chair, mirrors, oak coffee table, confessional style bookcase, a beautiful old drill bit holder, collectable flatware, some Waterford, Limoges and Bavarian china, English china, a horse harness mirror, a Victorian wall-hanging cupboard, a bamboo table, a primitive medicine cabinet, chandeliers . . . Whattaya think?”

Personally, I like it just fine!

The Portland Expo Show, produced by Palmer/Wirfs & Associates, promises to be a great one: the perfect place to do your holiday shopping early – and have fun doing it!

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Licensed doll dealer Patricia A. Wood has been selling dolls and exhibiting at for over 30 years. Her business is Patricia’s Tiny Dears. She’ll be sharing a booth with a friend from Arizona.

“Antique dolls and bears were initially my specialty, and estate jewelry of gold and silver were my partner’s specialty,” Patricia told me. “Over the years, we have increased our inventory to include vintage dog and cat figurines of high quality; vintage hats for both men and women; brand-name purses; and vintage carved wood figures, especially those from ANRI … I still handle the dolls and bears, and I especially love to find and handle vintage/antique African-American memorabilia and native Indian dolls and items. I got into the vintage hats by accident and have loved meeting and getting to know the new and returning customers, who have brought this past back to life by purchasing and wearing hats.

Asked about a price range for the items the items she’ll be bringing, Patricia noted, “A dealer must strive to keep abreast of the change in the economy and adjust prices whenever possible. A normal range of merchandise in our booth might be $40 to $250, with items lower and high … I would consider that to be the most common range for pricing.”

Bob Merck of St. Nicholas Trading Company specializes in antique Christmas, Halloween and other holiday decorations. Bob told me he’s been an avid collector for more than 30 years; he’s the author of “Deck the Halls: Treasures of Christmas Past” (Abbeville Press), a book on antique Christmas decorations.

“I will be offering a wide range of early German holiday decorations and toys at the October show, including Santa Claus candy containers, Belsnickels, cotton, figural glass and Dresden tree ornaments, bisque Santa Claus ‘snowbabies,’ feather Christmas trees, Christmas china, including Limoges holly dishes, as well as vintage toys and ‘putz’ village items for under the tree,” Bob said.

Bob will be offering pieces for the beginning and advanced collector. Of special interest:

• a huge 17-inch German papier-mâché Halloween witch lantern with original paper insert facial features
• a rare Dresden tree ornament of Father Christmas with two children
• two scarce heavy composition German Santa Claus lanterns in different sizes.

Chris Palmer, president of Palmer/Wirfs & Associates, said that the Portland Expo Show (as it’s known in the trade) will feature 1,000 booths filled with collectibles from the 1880s to the 1970s, from traditional antiques (estate jewelry, sterling flatware, china, glass, etc.) to pop cultural items (comic character items, ’60s board games, TV related stuff, vintage clothing – “Pretty much anything your mother threw away,” she remarked).

“We have not one but two displays for this show,” Chris pointed out. “The first is a fabulous display of American Brilliant cut glass, brought to us by the Columbia Chapter of the American Cut Glass Association. I’ve attached a description. The other is a stein collection (courtesy of Pacific Stein Sammler, a chapter of Stein Collectors International), also pretty cool. Plus, we offer evaluations and identifications by International Society of Appraisers (ISA) appraisers. The cost is $5 per object, with all proceeds going to the Sunshine Division Food Bank.”

Sat. and Sun., Oct. 29 and 30, 2011, at the Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center, 2060 N. Marine Dr., Portland, Ore. Hours: Sat., 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sun., 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission: $7 adults, good for both days. Parking: $8 at Expo, $5 at nearby Portland Meadows horse racetrack (quick continuous shuttle provided) or you can ride Light Rail (called MAX down here) right to the parking lot.
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Visit Palmer/Wirfs & Associates for more information and venue directions: www.palmerwirfs.com

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Sat. and Sun., Oct. 29 and 30, 2011, at the Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center, 2060 N. Marine Dr., Portland, Ore.

Sat. and Sun., Nov. 5 and 6, 2011, at the Puyallup Fairgrounds ShowPlex, Puyallup Fair & Events Center, 110 Ninth Ave. SW, Puyallup, Wash.

What a world! When I first started poking around antique shops as a kid, looking for old books, I never would have imagined that, 40 years and considerably more pounds later, I’d be searching for dusty tomes by poking a sleek computer keyboard.

In fact, the Internet has revolutionized collecting: It offers limitless possibilities if you like to buy and sell online, but it can shake the foundation of your livelihood if you are a dealer with a traditional brick-and-mortar location and/or exhibit at shows. (At least, that’s what the dealers with the brick-and-mortar businesses tell me. Even so, most of them in fact do business online to some extent, if only to hook up with their regular sources and customers more conveniently.)

And the wonder of the Web is not just the ease of finding the things you collect (which will eventually surface on eBay if you wait long enough and search hard enough for it); it has actually changed the ECONOMY of collecting by making it simple to comparison-shop while making previously scarce items much easier to locate – and that, needless to say, impacts price.

That said, just as the Internet doesn’t necessarily make people smarter – and, I’m convinced, hinders the development in young people of social skills like polite, grammatically correct conversational and letter writing abilities – online collecting can never replace the tactile advantage of examining an item in person.

What’s more, a lot of great stuff is just never going to find its way onto the World Wide Web – ever – for three big reasons:

• It can be a pain in the butt to photograph and list an item online.
• There are fees involved, and they’re only getting steeper.
• A lot of old-school dealers enjoy the camaraderie of selling shoulder to shoulder with other exhibitors and like to have face time with the people they sell to.

When all is said and done, nothing – NOTHING – beats examining a collectible or finding a treasure in person.

For Northwest antiquers and collectors, there are no better venues than America’s Largest Antique & Collectibles Shows, organized by Palmer/Wirfs & Associates of Portland, Ore. Palmer/Wirfs has been putting on these shows for many years: in at the Puyallup Fair & Events Center (aka the Puyallup Fairgrounds) in Puyallup, Wash.; at the Clark County Fairgrounds in Vancouver, Wash.; and at the Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center in Portland, Ore. I wrote about a number of these shows for a certain Tacoma newspaper and look forward to doing so here, as it’s always a lot of fun to report on what some of the hundreds of exhibitors will be bringing.

I asked Christine Palmer, president of Palmer/Wirfs & Associates, about the upcoming Portland show:

AmeriCollector: How many exhibitors do you expect in Portland next month?

Chris Palmer: We’ll have 750 exhibitors who will fill 180,000 square feet of indoor exhibit space plus 300 booths outside. This is our largest show and is definitely the largest antique and collectible show west of the Mississippi. The only larger ones are in fields in Pennsylvania.

AC: Where are the exhibitors coming from?

Chris: In addition to Washington and Oregon, dealers will be coming from Idaho, Indiana, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Maryland, Arizona, Florida, Utah, Illinois and Montana, and the buyers from every state. We always have a contingent from Japan, who seem to buy different things every time they come. We watch though and have seen those customers negotiating for “atomic-era” collectibles from the mid-1950s, vintage clothing and pop culture items. Sorry, they’re not buying Victorian Americana.

AC: What kinds of items do your exhibitors usually bring?

Chris: Our strength is in our diversity. That’s the fun part of a good treasure hunt: not knowing if you’ll find architectural items, “smalls” (small items), advertising, matching sterling flatware, vintage clothing, furniture, vintage lighting, original prints, paintings, vintage toys from the 1880s to the 1970s … The show is not all vintage collectibles but we do have what is selling today – items that the 35- to 40-year-old may remember. We also see a lot of traditional antiques, such as Victorian décor, sewing items, stemware, glass and china, porcelain. We like to be all things to all people – at least, that’s how I shop.

AC: What are you yourself collecting these days?

Chris: I currently collect two kinds of items right now: Victorian umbrellas with mother of pearl- and gold-filled handles, and Nature’s Remedy store displays. But ask me in a year and I’ll be looking for something else. However, I find myself acquiring anything that is beautiful, cool and would fit into my home décor. I like to see my collections.

AC: What do really want people to know about your shows, and what advice would you offer show-goers?

Chris: We’re finding more people coming to shows and malls. The Web is a great place to make a quick purchase, but the hunt is pretty much gone if you do it that way. Today’s customers want to talk to the owner, find out all they can about an item’s history, where they got it, etc. And of course strike a deal. Striking a deal is something a newcomer may want to know how to ask about. It is insulting to ask the dealer to take one fourth of the price marked. However, they do price with a little “wiggle room,” so saying something like “What’s the best you can do?” or “Can you do any better?” will get you the best price while having fun doing it.

As always, the show offers evaluations and identifications by our crack team of qualified experts for $5 per object. We utilize five people, all members of the International Society of Appraisers (ISA), many of whom have worked on the “Antiques Roadshow.” We provide a verbal market evaluation, the price you would receive if you were to offer the item in a retail setting. In other words, a realistic value.

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Images courtesy of Palmer/Wirfs & Associates

Links for more information and venue directions:

• Palmer/Wirfs & Associates: www.palmerwirfs.com
• Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center: www.expocenter.org
• Puyallup Fair & Events Center: www.thefair.com
• International Society of Appraisers: www.isa-appraisers.org

Fair disclosure: Palmer/Wirfs & Associates is an advertiser on AmeriCollector.com.

Sat. and Sun., Aug. 27 and 28, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Admission is FREE

Waterside Activities

Seaport Docks

Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain. Washington state’s official ship and her topsail ketch companion vessel will be moored at the Seaport’s docks from Fri. to Mon., Aug. 26 to 29. The crews, dressed in 18th-century costume, will welcome visitors for walk-on tours.

Dockside tours ($3 donation requested per person)

• Aug. 26, noon to 4 p.m., Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain
• Aug. 27, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain
• Aug. 28, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Lady Washington only

Adventure and Evening Sails

• Aug. 26, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., Evening Sail: Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain ($35)
• Aug. 28, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Adventure Sail: Hawaiian Chieftain ($35 to $55)

Battle Sails

• Aug. 27, 5 to 8 p.m., Battle Sail: Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain ($40 to $60)
• Aug. 28, 5 to 8 p.m., Battle Sail: Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain ($40 to $60)

Demand is expected to be high during Maritime Fest. Early reservations for sails are strongly recommended. Purchase tickets online at www.historicalseaport.org or call (800) 200-5239.

Dragon Boats. Human-powered team boating.

Landside Activities

Seaport parking lot

Native arts and crafts. Enjoy this display of ancient arts and handcrafted works of Native American weavers and carvers. See the Native crafts shown on display at the Seaport’s Esplanade and in the Museum.

Radio-controlled boats. Get your hands on these amazing, quick and fun boats controlled by handheld radios as they race across the Seaport’s specially built pond. Test your skill and compete with other “pilots”!  Sponsored by Commencement Bay Maritime Modelers.

Toy boats. Build the toy sailboat of your dreams! Construct your boat’s hull and mast, then decorate your rig in unexpected ways with available art supplies. For kids of all ages!

Seaport Esplanade

Outboard Hydroplane Exhibit. See the Seaport’s very own Simmons brothers’ hand-built outboard light hydroplanes! Get an up close look at how drivers carry on this tradition from the fifties and sixties today, riding on their knees in these exciting small hydroplanes, inches above the water in area lakes and rivers at speeds up to 55 miles per hour!

Seaport Museum

Antique outboard motor exhibit. Explore these antique motors representing 22 makers, forerunners of modern factory and custom-produced racing and fishing outboards. Many refurbished motors in this collection are still used today in competitive amateur boat racing organized through local clubs and sanctioned by the American Powerboat Association.

Ships in bottles. Ever wonder who makes those tiny ships inside glass bottles? See the Seaport’s own Jeff Simmons’ handiwork on display with incredibly intricate craftsmanship in a wide range of vessels, complete with detailed rigging!

Balfour Dock Building Exhibit. This three-section exhibit showcases the Seaport’s historic building and turn of the century working waterfront activities. Visitors can watch short videos covering the Northern Pacific Railway’s construction of the building; the journey of wheat from Central and Eastern Washington to tall ships bound for global ports; and the engineering marvel evident in the building’s indelible Truss system and massive timber construction.

Discovery Wharf Children’s Activity Area. The 1,300-square-foot Discovery Wharf is chock full of innovative activities for children ages 4 to10 to learn about Tacoma’s waterfront, both above and below the water.

“Port Play.” Children don hard hats, transfer goods from railcars to container ships and set sail for distant ports using a collection of custom-built wooden port toys. This hands-on area lets young “dockworkers” have great fun while learning about the maritime industry!

“All aboard, mateys!” Young passengers slip on personal flotation devices (PFDs) to go aboard the Faith, the Seaport’s Columbia River gillnetter retrofitted by the Seaport’s boat builders just for young guests. They learn boat lingo (“bow,” “stern,” “starboard,” etc.); how life vests keep people afloat; what commercial gillnet fishing is all about; and how block and tackle systems enable handling freight on board.

Sea Star Lab. This multi-station interactive learning lab offers exciting, engaging education about sea stars seen throughout Puget Sound and around the globe. Children find out where sea stars live by putting together a giant floor puzzle illustrating the ocean zones sea stars call home. They also learn about the sea star’s eyespots; tube feet that enable movement across the ocean floor; and all about the sea star’s second stomach.

Dugout canoe. This 18-foot red cedar dugout canoe was crafted out of a single log. The vessel was built, it is believed, in the early twentieth century by a member of the Mounts family, of the Nisqually tribe. It is a shovel-nose canoe, originally crafted using an adze to carve the center of the log for river travel and net fishing. The canoe was later fitted to hold a motor so that it could be used for river racing.

James Robert Hanssen. In 2006, four University of Puget Sound students – the first Americans to set a transatlantic record by rowing unassisted from New York to England in just in 71 days – rowed this “mighty boat” 3,200 miles, 24 hours a day, with two rowers on shift and two off at all times. Peer inside the boat’s confined quarters to get a sense of the challenges faced by the foursome as they experienced courage, loyalty, fear, despair, human triumph and friendship to the extreme.

“Wheels, Whistles & Wonder.” Come explore the Bill Somers Maritime Collection, the results of one man’s 45-year obsession gathering Mosquito Fleet and military vessel artifacts from the 1800s to early 1900s – a jaw-dropping assortment of treasures!

The Discovery Models. Imagine taking your craft so seriously that you construct scenes inside a model – details that will never be seen – just to enhance the integrity and accuracy of the model! Come see three superbly constructed models, including Captain George Vancouver’s ship, Discovery.

MaST’s “Arroyo Gray Whale Story.” For a life-changing experience, watch scientists from Highline Community College’s MaST (Marine Science and Technology) Center piece together an enormous 37-foot gray whale skeleton into a life-like configuration in the Seaport. It’s your chance to participate in the fascinating mystery of whales!

Thea and Andrew Foss Exhibits. Watch “Finding Thea,” a short video with archival footage and photos of the life and times of Thea Foss, namesake of downtown Tacoma’s waterway. Learn about the Thea and Andrew Foss legacy through a variety of exhibits that illustrate the spirit and ingenuity exemplifying their pioneering spirit as two of Tacoma’s earliest influential decision makers.

Willits canoes. Experience this display of rare, handcrafted red cedar canoes built by Day Island brothers Earl and Floyd Willits, who perfected and built just over 900 of these double planked 17-foot crafts between 1908 and 1964. Willits canoes are treasured today primarily for their incomparable workmanship and gloriously varnished surface with gleaming copper nails crafted into graceful, smooth-bottomed, high-bowed outlines.

Working boat shop. Watch Foss Waterway Seaport’s volunteer craftsmen handcraft replicas of original Andrew Foss skiffs and other heritage wooden boats. The Foss Waterway Seaport’s expert boat builders will be at work during Maritime Fest and throughout the year on Thursday and Saturday afternoons.

For directions, parking/shuttle bus info and more, visit Maritimefest.org and Fosswaterwayseaport.org.

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All photos except Hawaiian Chieftain by Jan Adams, courtesy of Foss Waterway Seaport. Hawaiian Chieftain photo courtesy of Grays Harbor Historical Seaport Authority.

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Small wonder that the art of the West is so highly prized – it’s a stagecoach ride right into the national psyche – with the most accomplished artists revered for their skill in transporting the viewer to breathtakingly unique, almost mystical landscapes – even if they are, like Mount Rainier, ones that you can see from the freeway when you commute to work each morning.

Fred Oldfield is such an artist. Robert Walton, who will be teaching a three-day palette knife oil painting workshop at The Fred Oldfield Western Heritage & Art Center in Puyallup later this month, is another.

A recipient of numerous awards, recent inductee into the venerable Oil Painters of America (www.OilPaintersofAmerica.com) and an avid mountain climber, Bob Walton is represented by six galleries in six Western states. He has also painted absolutely spectacular murals – but don’t take MY word for it: See for yourself at www.RobertWalton.com.

This is a great opportunity for local artists to build up their skill sets in advance of the warm weather and all the outdoor painting opportunities that will come with it. But space is limited, so don’t delay! And let us here at AmeriCollector.com know how it goes!

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All images copyright © Robert Walton. Used with the artist’s permission.

For more information and to register: Call (253) 445-9175 or e-mail foldfield@comcast.net.
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Michael Mc Grady, an actor as well as an accomplished painter will be the Guest of Honor for the 2010 Celebration of Western & Wildlife Art Show. Show Host Fred Oldfield, nationally acclaimed Western Artist, is pleased to have Michael join an already out- standing line up of over 100 of the country’s top Western Artists.  Fred is a friend and mentor to Michael and is delighted have Michael, a Federal Way HS Graduate, return to “his roots” and showcase his artwork at this event. Michael stars as “Sal” in the critically acclaimed TNT police drama “Southland” and is currently working in a movie. The show is delighted to.  Many of you know him as the young Federal Way High School graduate who took a leap of Faith and moved to Hollywood where he has enjoyed a full and rewarding acting career.  He has had recurring roles in “Las Vegas”, “CSI Miami”, “The Riches”, “Jag” and Fox’s “24”.  He has also guest starred in dozens of major films.  Even though Michael has experienced great success in his acting career, he has never lost sight of his deep-felt passion for art.  He gravitates towards bold colors and thick layers of paint that encourages a more three-dimensional experience with painting.

The show opens with much excitement in the air as the artists gather from the Western half of the United States to bring this show to you. Western Art includes every subject matter that pertains to Americana whether it’s Cowboys and Indians, Grandma’s old house, Victorian ladies, Landscapes, Historical portrayals, or Nature. There will be oil paintings, watercolors, pencil drawings, bronzes, carvings, weavings, paper sculptures, photography and jewelry to please every taste. The show brings together such a diverse array of talent it’s hard to fathom where else you would be able to feast your eyes on such a display all under one roof. Come and spend your day wandering through the art displays. Enjoy meeting the artists and watching their art demonstrations. Then relax with the evening festivities at the “Artists Reception”. There you will get to watch the artists create a piece of artwork in one hour at the “Quick Draw” event. The items will then be auctioned off at the Live Auction. Meanwhile you can enjoy the Silent Mini Auction with all the art gems being Miniature in size.

The show benefits the “Experience Art Program” at the Fred Oldfield Western Heritage & Art Center. The Art Program is designed to engage students of all ages in a guided creative learning experience.

Exciting Quick Draws – Live Auctions – FREE Family venue! FREE admission – FREE parking

Visit Fred Oldfield Western Heritage & Art Center,  www.fredoldfieldcenter.org  for more information.

Media Contact Joella Oldfield.

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More photos available – Phone interviews with Michael can be arranged.