Out and About: Celebrate Oly style, see sculptures and bite into barbecue
Kimya Dawson at LoveOly
Singer-songwriter Kimya Dawson, one of Olympia’s best-known musicians, is headlining the LoveOly Summer Fest on Saturday, June 24. Dawson, known for her sweet and simple tunes and brutally honest lyrics, reached national prominence for her work on the Grammy-winning soundtrack to the 2007 coming-of-age film “Juno.” She’ll be playing at 5 p.m. on a stage outside the Capitol Theater, 206 Fifth Ave. SE, Olympia. Also on the bill is sultry Seattle hip-hop duo Peace and Red Velvet, playing at 4 p.m. This week’s festival also features the magic of Olympia favorite Jeff Evans at 12:30 p.m., a Zumba class at 2 p.m. and wood-turning demonstrations by Arbutus Folk School at 1, 2 and 3, plus bubbles, sidewalk chalk and crafts for kids, a beer garden and more. LoveOly Summer Fest is happening from noon to 6 p.m. Saturdays through Aug. 28. Find out more at the Olympia Downtown Alliance’s website.
Stroll among the sculptures
A new crop of sculptures are on display along Percival Landing in Olympia. The 14 pieces chosen for Olympia’s Percival Plinth Project will be on view until June 2022, but those who appreciate Olympia’s public art collection will want to see them soon. The sculpture that gets the most votes from the public will be purchased by the city for its permanent collection, and voting ends July 31. A work that’s getting a lot of attention is Aisha Harrison’s “Woman With Graves at Her Back,” a life-sized seated figure with a hole revealing part of her rib cage. “’Woman With Graves at Her Back’ represents an ancestor who survived the journey across the Atlantic,” Harrison wrote in an artist’s statement. “This ancestor witnessed many tragic and heroic things and survived them. Her bravery and will to live is part of why I’m here today.” The sculpture was accepted into last year’s Percival Plinth Project, but Harrison, a former professor at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, lacked the money to have the clay original cast in bronze. She raised nearly $20,000 on GoFundMe to make it happen and is aiming to raise enough to cast another sculpture, too. Harrison was the guest juror for South Puget Sound Community College’s 2021 Southwest Juried Exhibition, on view through Aug. 19. It can be seen between noon and 6 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays at the college’s Leonor R. Fuller Gallery, 2011 Mottman Road SW, Olympia, and online.
Compete or just eat
Those who love barbecue — whether they’re all about cooking it or just savoring the flavor — can get their fill Saturday, July 24 at the Nisqually Valley Barbecue Rally in Yelm. And for those who want to eat and compete simultaneously, there’s a pie-eating contest, too. The rally, launched in 2019 by the Yelm Area Chamber of Commerce, also features lots of live music and an aerial peformance. The chamber is billing the event, happening from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Yelm City Park, 115 Mosman Ave. SE, as “saucier and smokier than ever.” Oh, and that’s not all: The folks organizing the rally will do the chicken dance.
Freelance writer Molly Gilmore talks about what’s happening in Olympia and beyond with 95.3 KGY-FM’s Michael Stein from 3 to 4 p.m. Fridays.
This story was originally published July 23, 2021 at 5:00 AM.