Artist Spotlight: After completing the gallery’s fabulous 10×24′ bus mural earlier this Fall, Tina Albro returned to her happy place ~ Pratt Fine Arts ~ to create her latest prints, currently exhibiting in our feature show, “Sanctuary.”
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Favorite restaurants/bar and your favorite menu item
• Tutta Bella never disappoints! I wait all year for the fresh fig and goat cheese situation in August. Also Rookies-honestly I love going there for brunch because it is never crowded. AND they have really good blueberry pancakes, a great breakfast sandwich or even a burger for breakfast if that’s your jam. I miss Super Six!
Favorite Seattle neighborhood
• Can anything anywhere beat all of the lakeside neighborhoods in south Seattle? If I had to pick somewhere else, I’ve always liked West Seattle, although as a lifelong Seattleite I have a LOT of thoughts about anywhere north of the ship canal. Don’t get me started on Ballard!
Favorite Pacific NW hike
• Super easy super fun: Franklin Falls. But also Lake Ozette and Cape Flattery on the Olympic peninsula- both more strolls than hikes. Also any of the old rail trails-there is a theme here, I prefer the gentler slopes to the mountain goat trails! If you are crazy and very fit, try for a permit to go to the Enchantments.
Favorite Seattle park
• Seward Park, my home away from home!
Favorite beach/waterfront spot
• I like all of the street end beaches, also anywhere along the Duwamish or Lincoln Park.
Favorite seasonal activity in Seattle
• Well the hydroplane races were always the highlight of the summer for kids in Rainier Valley and I still delight in the strange fun of it all, but no longer tie a wooden hydroplane made of scrap wood to the back wheel of my bike.
Favorite style of house
• A tie between mid century and craftsman.
Favorite Seattle movie theater
• Cinerama of course! Also the Admiral if it was still open…
Favorite museum/galleries (aside from Columbia City Gallery, of course!)
• I always stop by the Frye to see what is happening! I love MOM, and visiting the TK building to see what is up almost every month. Davidson for printmakers is also always inspiring.
What is your secret/hidden/useless talent?
• Darts, and I can still hit a baseball (thanks Dad for teaching me to keep my eye on the ball).
Who would play you in the movie of your life?
• Absolutely no ideas, but hopefully someone with a sense of humor.
What was your first concert? Best concert?
• First was a school trip to the symphony, best it was Carly Simon at the Gorge many years ago.
What are your go-to comfort foods?
• I’m a dairy gal so probably cheese or ice cream, but also very fancy sushi for a special occasion.
Are you an avid collector of anything?
• So many things! To name a few, vintage tablecloths, old sewing patterns and postcards. Mid century homeware (I won’t go into details!), also those souvenir pens that move when you tip them up or down.
Where is the coolest place you traveled? Where would you most want to travel to?
• Probably Croatia or Morocco are the coolest so far. I keep saying I will walk the Camino in Spain but it hasn’t happened yet!
What is something that always makes you smile?
• Dogs
What is your favorite random fact?
• Onomatopoeia are words that sound like the actual sound of the thing they refer to or describe.
What is your go-to karaoke song?
• No singing in public for me.
What is the best Halloween costume you ever wore?
• I do not, I cannot wear costumes, except my Victorian owl mask on Halloween when I hand out candy.
What book changed your life?
• Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankel thanks to Sister Rosemary Perisich. There are lots of others but that was the first.
What is your favorite quote?
• “Wherever you go, there you are.”
What is the last book you read?
• The Myth of Normal by Gabor Mate ~ I’m reading it now.
What is the last TV show you binge-watched?
• If I like it, I just keep watching, I can’t not, same with books.
What TV shows are you watching right now?
• Ted Lasso and my guilty pleasure, a few Real Housewives!
What movie could you quote by heart?
• Mostly “Oh Brother Where art thou?”, also many “30 Rockisms” are part of my vocabulary.
What is the best advice you ever received?
• To be myself, not compare myself to others-it definitely is easier as I get older. Also that education is to learn how to think, not to repeat what you have been told. Thanks to my Dad for both of those.
What is the worst advice you ever received?
• I usually forget bad advice right away, so I don’t know!
Favorite studio tool?
• Most used are a palette knife and rags, I also love a good glue and anything that scrapes.
Favorite artists?
• Early influence and perennial inspiriation is Corita Kent. She was a nun for awhile and her artwork was all around me as a Catholic school kid in the 70’s, in banners and books and posters. She was my introduction to contemporary art and printmaking. Key themes of her work were social justice and joy, and it spoke to me on a really deep level. She is now getting some well-deserved recognition along with so many artists who have been historically under-recognized.
Where are you from and how does that affect your work?
• I’m from Seattle and this place is in me on a cellular level I think. Whatever comes up truly comes out as the song “Forest Whitaker” goes!
Who are your biggest artistic influences?
• Other than what I already mentioned, so many working artists and teachers at Pratt in Seattle.
What is your favorite medium, and why?
• I am a printmaker and I love the endless possibilities of combining different printmaking methods and making one of a kind art using a medium meant for multiples.
Where do you find inspiration?
• Everywhere pretty much, but I love photography, typography and plants especially.
When is your favorite time of day to create?
• Early is always better.
What motivates you to create?
• It’s like an itch that needs scratching
How do you define success as an artist?
• Consistency, doing the work and following my heart while using my head.
Does your art practice help you in other areas of your life?
• Absolutely it helps me be open to myself and to others and to appreciate how vast the human experience and human expression can be.
How has your style changed over time?
• It is an interesting question, I think it has evolved but not really changed. It is always morphing into the next thing.
Artist Website: www.tinagarrickalbro.com
Instagram: @tinagarrickalbroart