In the arts: Tyrrell and Hirondelle

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‘An Evening with the Gershwins’ – and Tyrrell

Pianist Nan Toby Tyrrell is joined by local musicians for “An Evening with the Gershwins” at this month’s Candlelight Concert at Trinity United Methodist Church.

The concert is planned for 7 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 24 at the church, located at 609 Taylor St.

“I have chosen the songs which I feel embody the best of George and Ira Gershwin,” said Tyrrell of the concert. “I believe that their music epitomizes the joys and highs of being in love as well as the pain of losing that love.”

Tyrrell plays piano regularly at San Juan Villa and Seaport Landing assisted living facilities, and has donated a piano to Jefferson Healthcare Medical Center, where she plays for patients and staff. She also is active in the community, tutoring children and leading creative art workshops.

Tyrrell’s supporting musicians and soloists include vocalists Linda Bach and Marj Iuro, and pianists Helen Lauritzen and Pat Rodgers.

“These friends of mine are sharing their voices for a program of wonderful music which reflects how time goes by as we treasure those moments,” Tyrrell said.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Admission is by a suggested $10 donation, with proceeds benefiting local food banks. Children are admitted free. Refreshments are served following the performance. For more information, call 360-774-1644.

Hirondelle discusses her evolving art Aug. 20

Artist Anne Hirondelle is to present an overview of her life’s work in ceramics and drawing at 2 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 20 at the Jefferson Museum of Art & History, 540 Water St. Admission is by a $5 donation.

Hirondelle’s lecture complements the museum’s current exhibit, “Pat and Peter Simpson: Collectors and Patrons,” which features her work along with other Port Townsend artists from the Simpsons’ collection. The Simpson exhibit is to run another month before closing.

Hirondelle plans to present a PowerPoint survey of the past 30 years of her work and how it has evolved. Hirondelle’s earlier pieces are recognizable as vessels but function as metaphors rather than containers. As she experimented with glazes and firing, Hirondelle said, she moved from the inspiration of traditional functional pots to increasingly architectural and organic sculptural forms. Her drawings, which were originally used to design her work, also took a path parallel to her ceramics from function to independent abstractions.

“People frequently ask me where do I get my ideas,” said Hirondelle. “I get my ideas from my work. It’s just like one thing follows the next, and it’s a combination of the ceramic forms and drawings.”

Hirondelle studied at the University of Washington, but said she didn’t find her own path until moving to Port Townsend in 1977. Her work has been featured in numerous solo and group exhibitions throughout the U.S. Her most recent shows were at the Hallie Ford Museum of Art at Willamette University in Oregon this past spring, and the Seattle Art Museum Sales and Retail Gallery in June.