The daily Astorian., February 08, 2018, Page 11, Image 11

FEBRUARY 8, 2018 // 11
G
owing and Perez, two Astoria
residents, are merging their eclectic
skills for the fourth year to pro-
duce what they describe as “installation
art.” Because much of the planning and
construction goes unseen by the public,
the people and process behind it are not
commonly known.
The artists shared some of their
insights and experiences in advance of
the 2018 festival.
‘Dark Oz’
This year’s theme in the showroom
is “Dark Oz.”
“Oz is a favorite story for both of
us,” Gowing said. “It definitely goes
with the pagan dark arts. Witchcraft and
magic is what it’s all about.”
And, she said, “we work really big,”
“The backdrop alone is 30 by 16
feet, with two witches, flying monkeys
perched on whiskey barrels and smoke-
stacks made from fog machines. And
simulated fire.”
She added: “We’d love to use
real fire, you know, but the town has
burned down three times already, so
… no.”
Perez said they also pondered the
possibility of an actual tornado but
weren’t sure it would be practical, if
even possible.
“We always start out with a
million ideas and end up narrow-
ing them down,” she said. “I’m
used to working with things that
move, as a costumer and spe-
cial-effects makeup artist, and
Andee’s good with things that
don’t move. We have different
skill sets that complement
each other.”
Perez summed up Gowing’s
own far-reaching background
in plant and animal taxonomy,
as well as carpentry and land-
scape design: “Andee’s really
good at making things.”
Planning the next year’s theme be-
gins promptly after the one-day event,
and gathers steam over the months, with
much of the brainstorming kept out of
the public eye. “We start out pretending
we have a million dollars and all the
time in the world. Then we edit,” Gow-
ing chuckled.
Dark arts and crafts
Much of their materials are found in
nature — moss, branches, animal bones
— or purchased from thrift stores. “We
do a lot of dumpster diving,” Perez said.
“We both grew up poor, so we’re pretty
used to being creative in how we use
resources.”
COURTESY FORT GEORGE BREWERY
The Festival of Dark Arts takes place Satur-
day, Feb. 17.
COURTESY ANDEE GOWING
Astoria artists Andee Gowing, left, and Gad Perez
Using plywood, Styrofoam, chicken
wire, LED lighting, PVC pipe, thrift-
store sheets and cloth, “monster mud” (a
combination of drywall joint compound
and latex paint), along with other items
at hand, the artists craft an atmosphere
that is satisfyingly eerie and occasionally
unsettling.
Given this panoply of unorthodox
materials and the range of innovative
demands their assembly calls for, Perez
observed, “I think it was through this
process that we finally accepted that we’re
artists.”
Gowing agreed. “It’s not an art that
you come across that often. You meet
painters, sculptors, but this is a little
different.”
Past themes have included
“Hecate,” “Baphomet” and “Kun-
in and Munin.” These have all
featured a central altar on stage,
memorable recreations of a
sarcophagus or a table elaborate-
ly decorated with animal skulls
and bones. Kunin and Munin, the
ravens of Odin, were towering
12-foot sculptures (alongside a
third mythical beast) — all three
of which, incidentally, still stand
stoically in certain Astoria front
yards, silently baffling neighbors and
passersby.
“There have been people who see this
festival advertised and think it’s a pagan
festival,” Gowing said. “Then they get
here and it’s a beer festival. And then
there are people who think it’s a beer festi-
val, and find all these other dark arts.”
After hearing the artists’ plans for the
Oz-themed characters and settings, it
seemed that one thing was missing from
the scene: the Wizard himself.
Perez put that to rest: “Anyone who
knows the ‘Wizard of Oz’ story knows that,
in the end, the wizard doesn’t matter.”
For event information, visit
fortgeorgebrewery.com. CW
COURTESY GAD PEREZ
The Baphomet Altar from the 2016 Festival of
the Dark Arts, constructed by Andee Gowing
and Gad Perez
COURTESY GAD PEREZ
Detail from the Hecate Altar built by Andee
Gowing and Gad Perez for the 2015 Festival
of Dark Arts