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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2016)
JULY 21, 2016 // 5 Sign up for Manzanita Tour Seaside’s downtown pocket gardens Sunday Beach Run & Walk PHOTO BY DWIGHT CASWELL “The Keeper,” a preliminary sketch for a painting, by Meghann Sprague. Continued from pg. 4 drawings are mostly large, even full-scale, and portray women, sometimes nude but more often in lavish cloth- ing that Sprague has de- signed herself. One corner of the room is full of pho- tographs of paintings and models, and another corner has photographs of her children “in their moment,” as Sprague says, wearing clothes she designed and made for them. Sprague sometimes works from live models but ¿nds that scheduling can be dif¿cult so she works more often from photographs, often ones she takes herself. She discovered a love of photography by taking pictures of her children, and it has become essential to her work. She says, “I love to design clothing and I love photography. It’s a good marriage. I can control all the steps when I make a painting.” Virtually all of Sprague’s work to date has been ¿gura- tive, but she has big plans — literally big plans. “I’d like to have a big studio, so I can work on 15- or 20-foot paintings.” Why the desire for greater size? “What I like is people, landscape and light. I love to control light. I want to tell a story, the scenes, the lighting, the people.” The light, line and form in Sprague’s paintings are, she says, “all shadows of things that we encounter in peoples’ stories and in the way life looks.” Sprague says there are four large pieces she wants to do now. All are paint- ings that tell a story. “They illustrate things I’ve gone through in my life,” she says. ”They are mapped out. I’m just looking for a place to do it.” Sprague’s time spent in her AVA studio space “has been a great place to think about my work.” She pon- ders her future paintings, thinking about, “fog, or sunlit fields, symbolism.” It is like writing a book that she will illustrate. Indeed, she writes as she thinks. Poems, stories, free writing as the images and stories coalesce. She is building paintings in her mind: “I want to add details, landscape, animals. I want people feel like they’re stepping into the stories.” Meghann Sprague hasn’t yet achieved her dream. “I’m not a full-time artist living the dream,” she says, “but a mother, wife and waitress who pushes paint- ing into any crevice I can find in this fabric of time.” Looking at her art, and her dedication to that art, it does seem only a matter of time before that dream becomes reality. Follow Meghann Hanour Sprague on Facebook. MANZANITA — The North County Recreation District will host the 26th annual Manzanita Beach Walk & Run on Saturday, July 23. The designated path for the event covers a wide e[panse of hard-packed sand that stretches from the cliffs of Neah-Kah-Nie Mountain to the Nehalem River. Cape Lookout to the south and Neah-Kah-Nie to the north provide in- spiring views going down as well as coming back, making this event one of the most scenic runs in the region. There is a non-compet- itive 5K walk, a 5K run, a 10K run and a new one- mile kid’s run. In addition to the new kid’s run, there will be changes to the 2016 race, which include walker results, recycling bins, a first aid station, more water, a better marked course, and a bag check, so entrants won’t have to go back to their car, hotel or home. Check-in starts at 8 a.m. The race begins at 9 a.m. on the sandy shores of Manzanita Beach, at the end of Laneda Avenue. Mile markers and volun- teers on course will pro- vide direction for runners. There will be music play- ing to pump runners up as well as snacks afterwards for runners to refuel. Awards for top finishers as well a raffle for prizes will be held after the event. The cost to enter the race is $36 for adults and $18 for children. Online registration at runsignup. com closes at 11:59 p.m. July 21. SEASIDE — Come see Àowers in bloom during Seaside’s Downtown Garden Tour, which is set for Sunday, July 24. At 8 a.m., meet at Beach Books bookstore, located at 612 Broadway, for breakfast and a photo presentation with Seaside city gardener Pam Flemming. She will share the history and background of the downtown Seaside pocket gardens. Fleming will then lead a guided walking tour of downtown Seaside’s themed pocket gardens startig at 9 a.m., discussing the plants and plantings in detail. The tour is free, but res- ervations are recommended. Contact the Seaside Down- town Development Associa- tion by calling 503-717-1914, or email director@seasid- edowntown.com for your reservation. PHOTO BY DWIGHT CASWELL Pam Fleming, of Nature’s Helper Landscaping, de- signed and has worked on the downtown Seaside urban gardens for the past 20 years. She will lead the SDDA Sea- side Downtown Garden Walk on Sunday, July 24. Puppet show to shine at Cannon Beach Library CANNON BEACH — Travel into an enchanted forest with the mini-musical puppet show “Dream, Sparkle, Shine.” Cannon Beach Library will host this free, all-ages event at 1 p.m. Saturday, July 23. The library is located at 131 N. Hemlock St. In “Dream, Sparkle, Shine,” a puppet show by Penny’s Puppet Produc- tions, Faye the Fairy has a dream to earn her wings at the Wonderful Festi- val with all the “perfect” fairies, but she is having a hard time getting her spells to work right. Join her as she makes new friends in the enchanted forest who help her learn about herself and the importance of be- ing true to yourself. Meet an array of fun characters like Little Bigfoot, Puss in Boots, Baby Dinosaur and many more. Penny’s Puppet Pro- ductions is a professional one-woman puppet compa- ny by Penny Walter that’s dedicated to making the world a better place, one puppet show at a time. Offering programs that ignite the imagination and ¿ll the room with e[citement and laughter, Walter’s live performances use puppets, story and song to inspire and entertain children of all ages. Walter is the writer, producer and director of original mini-musicals that she performs at schools, festivals, libraries, camps, museums, parks, theaters, recreation centers, farmers markets, and anywhere kids and families gather. Walter has performed thou- sands of shows since 2002. She has a master’s degree in curriculum and instruc- tion from Portland State University. U-Pic k 100% Natural Blueberrie s Open Daily ‘til 6 pm $2.00 lb. SUBMITTED PHOTO Penny Walter will bring her puppet show “Dream, Sparkle, Shine” to the Cannon Beach Library on July 23. 113th & Sandridge N. Long Beach, WA