Festival goers watch fi re performers at the 2015 Festival of the Dark Arts at Fort George Brewery.
‘Playfully sinister’
The FestiYal of 'ark $rts is also about attend
ees absorbing the spirit of music and performance.
Besides a sea of Motorhead and Black Sabbath
Tshirts, there’s steampunk attire, masks and glit
ter galore, all of which lend a rock ’n’ roll circus
Yibe to the proceedings.
3ortland 'J (liot Johnson — aka 'J $li $ht
Blood, Beers and Typewriters
$ new entry into the FestiYal of 'ark $rts rep — crafts together beats, melodies and Yocals uti
ertoire, “Blood, Beers and Typewriters´ seeks to lizing looping and sampling. He thinks musicians
bring out dark beerloYers’ inner 'ashiell Ham and artists thriYe inside the festiYal’s dark spirit.
“,t’s about celebrating not only great dark
mett. $ 1oir ¿ ction freewriting e[ercise, it’s the
creation of $storia teacher and author Matt /oYe. beers, but also the arts and music that might be
/oYe, who has gathered together si[ Yintage considered fringe to some,´ he says.
Johnson, who is a ¿ rsttime performer this
typewriters, will hold four hourlong writing ses
sions beginning at 2 p.m. Set among the brewing year, thinks the crowd who attends the festiYal
barrels and metal apparatus that is the guts of Fort embraces that notion.
“The whole enYironment is so
George, it promises to be a loud
much fun,´ he says. “,t has an al
and entertaining gig.
most oldtimey carniYal feel with a
“&rime ¿ ction is huge it’s
OTHER DARK
eYerywhere on T9´ /oYe says.
ARTS AROUND twist of the playfully sinister lurk
ing just below the surface.´
“What better place to e[plore mur
THE FORT
The term ‘carniYal’ certain
der, mystery and mayhem than the
Sisters of Fire fi redancing.
ly applies to 3ortland’s Bo[ Of
FestiYal of 'ark $rts" $nything
Trixie the Burlesque Dancer
&lowns, performing for the ¿ rst
can happen.´
Box of Clowns performance art
time at the festiYal. $ physical
$t each session, /oYe will start
DJ Ali Aht
theater company, Bo[ Of &lowns
by giYing the contestants a prac
Middle Eastern
specializes in creating Tuirky, ec
tice prompt and allowing them to
Dance by Cameron and Derek
centric characters.
warm up on the typewriters for a
Tarot and Belly Dancing by
“,f &arol Burnett and the Three
few minutes.
Jessamyn Grace
Stooges had triplets who were
“That prompt will be some
Daylight and the Minstrels
raised by Mr. Bean, you’d get Bo[
thing goofy, like ‘it was a dark and
The Cigar Guy
of &lowns,´ says troupe member
stormy night,’´ he says.
The Solstice Blacksmith Forge
Laura Loy.
$fter warmup, /oYe will giYe
PDX Ice
For the dark arts festiYal, Loy,
the authors the real prompt —
Henna Artist Miranda
along with Jeff 'esautels, bring the
“probably something ,’Ye oYer
Karen the Beer Painter
dynamic duo of The 3ortland $rea
heard in an Oregon diYe bar,´ he
Shanghaied Tattoo
3aranormal Society, or 3.$.3.S.
says — and giYe eYeryone 10 min
Blood, beer & typewriters
3.$.3.S. is a drag piece featur
utes to type a story on carbon paper
with Matt Love
ing Mysteria, a psychic medium,
/oYe purchased especially for the
and Greg Murphy, cat groomer by
occasion.
When time is up, eYeryone will read their sto day and paranormal inYestigator by night.
“Tarot and belly dance, both elements of my
Murphy and Mysteria haYe been “hired´ by
upbringing, are sacred to me, and so , haYe incor ries, and judges will determine the winner, who
porated ritual in both for the last 0 years,´ she will receiYe a copy of /oYe’s latest book “The the Fort George to inYestigate possible paranor
mal actiYity.
says. She adds that reading tarot and belly dancing Great Birthright.´
“,t’s comedic, ridiculous and spooky,´ Loy says.
3articipants also take home their story, perhaps
help her maintain a meaningful connection both to
with dreams of a forthcoming manuscript.
herself and to people.
/oYe is especially e[cited about using type
True to the festiYal’s roots, a sense of the un
No rest for the wicked
known dwells in eYerything Grace does. “There writers, despite the fact that the majority of
,f festiYal attendance is close to the nearly
has always been an element of mystery to tarot and festiYal attendees likely haYe neYer used one 3,000 people who attended last year, a small army
belly dance, both in their histories, current manifes before. “They’re such a great teaching tool,´ he will be on hand to take care of them.
says.
tations and use of arcane symbolism,´ she says.
Harris says all his employees and about an
$fter seeing the spirit of the festiYal last year, eTual number of Yolunteers will be ready.
OYerall, Grace enjoys being around likemind
/oYe says he really wanted to get inYolYed.
ed and genuinely supportiYe people.
“(Yeryone’s been told months ahead of time not
He does hope, howeYer, that the weather will to eYen think about asking for that day off,´ he says.
“The indiYiduals , haYe had the gift of reading
for haYe been wonderful, and the crowd has been be more suited to noir ¿ ction than the mild weath
One element cannot be preplanned: The
kind and supportiYe of my performances,´ she er of 201. “, hope it’s just ripping rain,´ he says. weather plays a huge factor in festiYal’s layout,
something that is determined almost at the last
minute. 2015 was warm and mild, while 2014 saw
heaYy rain and wind.
Still, Harris thinks people enjoy the noYelty of
the eYent compared to the traditional style of other
Noon The Resolectrics: rhythm & funky blues from Portland
beer festiYals.
2 p.m. Skamokawa Swamp Opera: historical rock opera from Skamokawa, Wash.
“,t’s not just a bunch of guys sitting around un
4 p.m. Jackson Boone and the Ocean Ghosts: psych folk from Portland
der À uorescent lights drinking beer,´ he says.
6 p.m. The Builders and the Butchers: twangy roots rock from Portland
The hardest part of the weekends’ aftermath"
8 p.m. The Thermals: power pop from Portland
“&leaning up all the glitter,´ Harris says.
WELCOME TO THE
Photo by Joshua Bessex
says. “, feel that the dark arts festiYal honors this
mystery that is reYerent in a way that is communal
and celebratory.´
Grace adds that the festiYal is an opportunity
for her to repay the support the Fort George lends
the programs at $$M& during the year.
DARK
SIDE:
O
Submitted photo
At the festival, beer paintings by Karen Eland will include familiar North Coast scenes.
FORT GEORGE BREWERY’S FESTIVAL OF
DARK ARTS TAKES PLACE SATURDAY, FEB. 13
STORY BY DAN HAAG
Submitted photo
Attendees of the festival are encouraged to bring out their dark side.
Photo by Joshua Bessex
Fort George staff serve thirsty patrons in the Lovell Taproom during last year’s festival.
12 | February 11, 2016 | coastweekend.com
On Saturday, Feb. 13, strange and magical
IRrces cRmbine tR cRnMure uS a truly magni¿ cent
spectacle on the Fort George Brewery block:
the ¿ Ith annual FestiYal oI 'ark $rts, part oI the
brewery’s annual Stout Month.
+ere, loYers oI some oI the 1orthwest’s dark
est beers gather to reMoice amid the clang oI anYils,
the swirl oI ¿ redancers and the rapid¿ re clatter
of typewriters.
:hile the constantly À owing dark beer is the
star of the show — 60 to choose from — the
eclectic Yariety of artists and entertainers contrib
ute to the eYent’s beating heart.
“We really look for acts that compliment the
festiYal,´ says Fort George coowner and head
brewer Jack Harris.
iar 1orth &oast scenes, such as the 3eter ,redale
wreck and early logging crews.
She will be on hand creating her work — with
dark beer only — and will also haYe an area set up
where the public can make their own beer paintings.
“Some of my subjects are a little dark, like
shipwrecks of the Oregon &oast,´ she says.
1ow in her third year at the festiYal, (land is
thankful for the chance to showcase her signature
style. “7he eYent is so uniTue and tasty,´ she says.
“,t’s also made the list as one of my most success
ful sales eYents.´
,t’s also just plain fun for (land, who doesn’t
hesitate when asked what comes to mind when
she hears “dark arts´: “Harry 3otter,´ she laughs.
Beer as art
,n her third year at the eYent, Jessamyn Grace
of $storia is eager to share the mysterious side of
dark arts to festiYalgoers.
Grace, founder and e[ecutiYe director of the
$storia $rts and MoYement &enter, is a tarot
reader and belly dancer, two skills she will display
at the festiYal: She’ll read tarot all day long and
perform belly dancing in the eYening, both in the
/oYell Showroom.
$sk any selfrespecting beer a¿ cionado and
they will tell you that beer is already art and can
not be perfected. $t the FestiYal of 'ark $rts,
that’s open to interpretation.
Just ask Bend artist and renowned beer painter
.aren (land, whose uniTue art is a ¿ [ture at the
festiYal. (land, who creates paintings using only
beer and water, has fashioned portraits of famil
Exploring mystery
Photo by Joshua Bessex
Jamie Brown sits on a bone altar while modeling for a painter during last year’s Festival of the
Dark Arts.
UPSTAIRS LIVE MUSIC
Submitted photo
Tarot card readings are on hand for brave souls at the festival.
February 11, 2016 | coastweekend.com | 13