Review of ‘The Barn Shows’

“The Barn Shows: 1987–2003, In Their Own Words,” cuts deep and indelible swaths, like a glacier, forever marks on our shared cultural history. Lavone Newell-Reim and Cathy Pearson Stevens have beautifully documented this major Skagit Valley legacy – seventeen years of Barn Shows on Fir Island. Initially inspired by an exhibition titled “Summer Harvest” organized by artist John Simon, the Barn Shows were led by artists’ visions forming a shared cultural mandate and fueled by the ethereal yet undeniable spirit of Northwest School artists.

Dogged determination combined with farmland h...