Featured Artist Michael Orwick created the poster artwork for this year's Stormy Weather Arts Festival in Cannon Beach.

Arriving just in time to deliver a spot of sparkle to counter the onset of the North Coast’s gray and glooming winter is the Stormy Weather Arts Festival, Friday through Sunday, Nov. 5 through 7, in Cannon Beach.

There are so many amazing activities, there is no way to mention them all in this column. It’s just better if you take the whole darn family and see for yourselves.

Just wander on over to Cannon Beach for a jam-packed weekend of art, theater, poetry, music, food and people-watching. There will be art walks, gallery receptions, the “So You Think You Can Paint” photography exhibit, the “Quick Draw” competition, a silent auction and songwriting; and this doesn’t even scratch the surface of the many restaurants and shops along the way that will be offering visitors special activities, refreshments, wine tasting and demonstrations.

The rain in Spain

One celebrated mainstay of this annual festival is the Spotlight Event at the Coaster Theatre, 108 N. Hemlock St. This year’s Spotlight takes place at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 6, featuring “An Evening with Songwriters,” with Bruce Smith and Jon Koonce, and including a performance by the award-winning Seaside High School Jazz Band.

There will be a selection of music from the Coaster’s outstanding production of “My Fair Lady,” including such singalongs as “I Could Have Danced All Night,” “On The Street Where You Live,” “The Rain in Spain” and “I’ve Grown Accustomed To Her Face.” Tickets are $10.

These musical selections will be followed by an open mic at the Sea Ranch Resort’s new events hall.

The Quick Draw

The Quick Draw, one of the all-time favorites from years past, returns to the Surfsand Resort Ballroom, 148 W. Gower St., Friday, Nov. 5. Come watch as artists Rebecca Devere, Lisa Lamoreaux, Miska, Scott Johnson, Bonny Gorsuch, Mickie Skinner, Josh Henrie, Drenda Duff, Brian Anderson, Abbas Atwi and Walter Share (among others) create masterpieces on the spot from raw materials, all in one hour.

They’ll bring their own canvasses, paints, brushes, frames and inspiration, and their pieces will be part of a live auction when they’ve finished.

There will also be a silent auction of artwork by the same artists, as well as works by area photographers. Organizers say, “Buy your tickets early, as this event sells out weeks in advance every year!” Advance tickets are $55 or two for $99. Call to reserve at (503) 436-2623.

Framed

Or, if photography is your thing, stop by for the sixth anniversary celebration of George Vetter FotoArt, Village Centre at 231 N. Hemlock, Suite 113. The gallery will be highlighting four local framers, each showcasing a different image, some in classic black and white.  

Bubbly will be served, along with hors d’oeuvres at 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and two drawings will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday (the winner need be present for the second drawing only). Drawing winners will go home with a signed and numbered George Vetter fiber giclee photograph 12×16 inches or 12×18 inches – of the winner’s preselected choice.

Enter the drawing now by e-mailing george@cannon-beach.net with your favorite two images from the gallery site at www.georgevetterfotoart.com or come by the gallery.

From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday is the “Sunday Morning Send-off” with croissants and orange juice. Signed postcards of “Moon Bike” will be available for all visitors.

Something for everyone

Haystack Gallery, 183 N. Hemlock St., will be featuring an array of art from artists who have landed in the Pacific Northwest from all over the world, from the hand-crafted silver jewelry with inlaid 2,000-year-old Roman glass of the Kibbutz Revadim in Israel, to the frogs and landscapes of Chicago-born Bart DeGraaf.

Northwest By Northwest Gallery, 232 N. Spruce St., hosts four compelling artists at weekend events. From 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, public sculptors Lillian Pitt and Georgia Gerber will give a talk and presentation. Saturday brings Pitt to the forefront again at 1 p.m. Petroglyphs of the Columbia River Plateau and 12,000 years of ancestry inform Pitt’s work in bronze, crystal and ceramic. At 2 p.m. Saturday, plein air oil painter Eric Jacobsen talks about how he wants viewers to “feel the light, the moment, the season” he has captured.

Gerber makes an appearance at 3 p.m. She was the winner of the 2010 Sculpture Without Walls contest in Cannon Beach with her “Tufted Puffins.” Her latest edition of the dancing rabbit series, “Country Dance,” will be unveiled for the Stormy Weather Arts Festival. And at 4 p.m., figurative bronze sculptor Ann Fleming will talk about “the essential stories of our lives.” Fleming’s artwork is influenced by the writings of mythologist Joseph Campbell.

There truly is something for everyone, young and old, at this weekend celebration of the arts.

Sharon Visser, who works at the Cannon Beach Chamber of Commerce, said of the event, “There’s live music all around town on Saturday and Sunday at all the galleries and restaurants.

“There will be workshops and demonstrations featuring different artists and media. We’ll have the Palette Puddlers at the Chamber Hall Saturday and Sunday, selling their art and demonstrating. And there are artists’ receptions Saturday late afternoon into the evening at many different galleries, with wine bars, wine tasting and live music.

“This is our 23rd year for Stormy Arts and it’s just a lot of fun,” she added, which is probably an understatement.

For more information about any of the events, or for tickets, call the Cannon Beach Chamber at (503) 436-2623.