NEWS RELEASE                              February 29, 2008   

Lt. Governor’s Art Council features artist Kim Drew

OLYMPIA –   Colorful paintings by philosopher-artist Kim Drew of Issaquah, who once traded sketches for meals while traveling through Europe, will be on display in the Office of Lt. Gov. Brad Owen through May.
 

Drew, proprietor of the Kim Drew Studio/Gallery in the Pike Place Market area of Seattle, draws his works frequently from nature. Featured in the lieutenant governor’s office are paintings of spawning salmon, Snoqualmie Falls, colorful fields, Skagit Bay and Mt. Rainier.
 

“Painting is a way for me to connect with what I feel and see: nature, life, ideas and relationships,” said Drew. “As people respond to my work I feel satisfied somehow I have a purpose.”

Drew graduated with honors from the renowned Art Center in Pasadena, Calif. His work appeared in numerous publications including the New York Times, Time/Life and Reader’s Digest.  

A five-time winner of Excellence recipient from the Society of Illustrators, Drew is regarded as an outstanding muralist with murals around his native Pacific Northwest. His work has been selected in group shows at the Frye Art Museum, Nordic Heritage, Maryhill and the Tacoma Art Museum.

While traveling through Europe in the 1980s, he traded sketches for meals, much to the delight of cafe' patrons. Although his travels and career took him far from Seattle, he returned in 1990 and was again drawn to the Pike Place Market.

Artists for the Lt. Governor’s Art Council are nominated by a review of their works and based on themes chosen by the council.  Works and featured artists change each quarter. The council is chaired by Linda Owen, wife of the lieutenant governor.

The Office of the Lieutenant Governor is open to the public from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. It is located in Room 220 of the Legislative Building (State Capitol), 416 Sid Snyder Avenue S.W. in Olympia.

For more information contact:
                                   

Office of the Lt. Governor: Brian Dirks (360) 786-7707 or dirks.brian@leg.wa.gov