CoCA Digital Archive:
1982-1985
1982
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"Four Light Installations" by James Turrell was held on the second floor of the Lippy Building at 108 First Avenue South in Seattle’s Pioneer Square. This was the first CoCA exhibition; the space was built out to present the installation.
From the exhibition catalog (which is available from the Seattle Public Library): "It was made possible by a generous grant from Knoll International as well as by extensive financial assistance from Hewitt/Daly Architects, Olson/Walker Partners, Architects, Ivey-Seright, Inc., The Wyman Youth Trust, The Seattle Arts Commission and hundreds of individuals. Many people contributed hundreds of hours of their time to build the exhibition, constructing stairs, wiring, putting up wallboard, mudding, painting, and sending out mailings. We would particularly like to thank the core crew who worked with Turrell to renovate the Lippy Building and construct the installations: CoCA co-founder Mary Ann Peters, Dennis Evans, Craig Baumhofer, Jerry Jennings, Diane Briggs, Stan Hain, Krekow/Jennings/Millet and Coastal Pacific Enterprises. Further coordination of the exhibit was provided by: Judy Kleinberg, Carol Fuller, Andy Ostheimer, Laura Millin, and work study staff. Thank you also to the board and staff of and/or service for their technical assistance. Special thanks are extended to the artist who gave generously of his time and resources to ensure that this ambitious project would be carried out."
James Turrell: Four Light Installations
Exhibition Dates: January 29 - June 29, 1982
Location: 108 First Avenue South in the Pioneer Square neighborhood of Seattle
Artist: James Turrell
Molissa Fenley: Dance Performance
Event Dates: April 8-9, 1983
Location: Pioneer Square, 700 3rd Ave S.,Seattle WA
Artist: Molissa Fenley
Choreographer and dancer, Molissa Fenley presented two pieces, "Eureka" and "Voyager" at the Dome Room in the Arctic Building in Seattle on April 8-9, 1983. Music composed by Peter Gordon accompanied part of the performance. Costumes for the performance were designed by Yonson Pak.
"Eureka" was commissioned by Dance Theater Workshop in 1982 and was made possible in part by a National Endowment for the Arts 1982 Choreographer's Fellowship and a grant from the Jerome Foundation. We do not currently have any photos of this performance at CoCA; any leads would be appreciated.
Molissa has an extensive catalog of her videos on Vimeo.
1983
Public Comments
Exhibition Dates: Dec 3, 1983 - Jan 28, 1984
Location: Belltown, 2216 Western Ave., Seattle WA
Artists: Terry Allen, Lauren Ewing, Edward Kleinholz & Nancy Reddin Kleinholz, Komar & Melamid, Tad Savinar, Peter Shelton, and Krzyztof Wodiczko
For its second major exhibition, CoCA presented “Public Comments,” an exhibit that showcased the work of seven artists and artist teams. According to the 1983 CoCA Newsletter, the show was not about exhibiting "art about art” but rather to have works which were vehicles for the artists’ commentaries about real experiences--politics, communication, metaphor, autobiography, and a general re-evaluation of the world around us. The exhibit took place in a donated warehouse. A panel with exhibition artists Terry Allen, Lauren Ewing, Tad Savinar, and Peter Shelton was held at the Pike Place Cinema on November 29, 1983. On December 2, 1983, a lecture by Russian artists Vitaly Komar and Aleksandr Melamid, who also took part in the exhibit, was held at The Meeting Place in the Market. Funding was provided by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Seattle Arts Commission. All of the work exhibited was large-scale.
1984
Four Windows: A Peekshow
Exhibition Dates: April 7 - May 19, 1984
Location: Downtown Seattle, at the Seattle Art Museum, 2nd Avenue between Pike & Union
Curator: Barbara Noah
Artists: Artofficials, Linda Beaumont, C.T. Chew and Alan Lande
We don't know a whole lot about this exhibit. It was curated by one of CoCA's founding artists, Barbara Noah, co-presented by the Seattle Art Museum (SAM) and featured site-specific installations by Artofficials, Linda Beaumont, C.T. Chew and Alan Lande.
Here's an article by Seattle art critic Jen Graves about and/or that mentions Lande and discusses some of the history of how CoCA came to be.
1985
CoCA Folio
Exhibition Dates: April 12 - June 22, 1985
Location: Pioneer Square, 83 King St., Seattle WA
Curators: Ben Marks, Jan Butterfield, and Nancy Spero
Artists: Over 80 artists were involved. Full list to come.
"CoCA Folio" was an ambitious multi-artist series produced by CoCA Director Ben Marks. It included the exhibitions "Neo York/Seattle," "Steal Witness for that Time Being," "Art & Advertising" and featured artists William T. Wiley, Richard Posner, and Nancy Spero & Elaine Reichek at 83 King Street in Pioneer Square with lectures and panel discussions at the Henry Art Gallery at the University of Washington.
Neo York/Seattle included over 80 artists. CoCA purchased bus advertising that announced "CoCA Folio is Coming!" In a Seattle Post-Intelligencer article, art critic Regina Hackett stated: "This largely artist-run and artist-inspired fledgling institution wants the public to love them, or at least notice them" (March 29, 1985).
"Neo York/Seattle" (Season opener, 80 artists exhibited) / Curator: Ben Marks
William T. Wiley: "Steal Witness for the Time Being" / Curator: Ben Marks
Richard Posner (concurrent with William T. Wiley) / Curator: Jan Butterfield
Nancy Spero & Elaine Reichek / Curator: Ben Marks & Nancy Spero
"Art & Advertising" (concurrent with Spero & Reicheck) / Curator: Ben Marks
CoCA produced a print portfolio for the exhibit that featured photographs, a catalog of the exhibition, event lists and more. While CoCA does not currently hold a copy of the entire portfolio, Arundel Books in Seattle is selling a copy (full description here). If you would like to purchase this and donate it to the Archives, we would be most grateful