STACYSAKAI

On Saturday, September 4, 2010, I was part of the Taiwan Festival, displaying my paintings in a booth with renowned artist Raymond Chow! We were outside at the Vancouver Art Gallery plaza, and it was packed with people before it even opened at noon. It was wonderful talking with Raymond all day, and I met so many people!

The festival had music and food, and booths set up for people to wander through…it was a beautiful day, and sooo much fun. Later in the evening, there was a fashion show on the main stage in the plaza, with three Taiwanese fashion designers showing their amazing work.

Below is a small selection of pictures of me and Raymond, and our exhibit of paintings.

Stacy Sakai with Raymond Chow at our painting exhibition for the Taiwan Festival.

Stacy at the Vancouver Art Gallery. The Modern Woman is the current exhibition at the VAG.

One of the lions in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery.

Stacy Sakai and Raymond Chow in front of our painting exhibition at the Taiwan Festival, Vancouver Art Gallery plaza.

I was invited to Lady Gaga’s Monsterball afterparty on Monday, August 23rd at Canvas Lounge. Wow, what a great party!!! The guests were a great mix of people, and there were so many amazing costumes! Semi Precious Weapons was there after the concert, and Lady Starlight was the DJ. Lady Gaga did not attend, as she had another concert the following night.

Here is a small selection of photos of me with some friends at the event…

Professional photos are courtesy of Norm Lee Photography.

Stacy with Andy Chu, Creator and Producer, Arc2 Intertainment

DJ Lady Starlight spinning great music at the afterparty!

Stacy with Tristan Risk aka Little Miss Risk

Stacy and Elizabeth with artist and Vancouver icon, Jimmy Cummins!

Stacy in front of the wall of sketches by Jimmy Cummins!

I recently met Ed Rezac who works with engineers, scientists and NASA astronauts. It’s been great hearing about what’s happening, and seeing some awesome pictures and videos!

There are only two official shuttle launches left. As part of the Face in Space program, my photo below will be aboard both the Discovery, scheduled for September, and the Endeavour, scheduled for November.

Watch for further posts on these upcoming historic missions. When the countdown begins, and the shuttle rockets out of our atmosphere, I’ll be thinking of that little piece of me and my art that is on board, on a journey into space.

This photo will be launched into space aboard the Discovery and the Endeavour!

What a fun night! So many artists, and all in support of a such a great cause!!!

Here is a small selection of photos of my exhibit that night.

Stacy Sakai in front of her latest paintings.

A close-up of Blue Crab

Bonanza

Two of my latest paintings...

Taking a break, while checking out the other artists. Credit this photo to Pandora.

On Friday, April 23, 2010, I was honoured to be included at a dinner for Ray Villard, News Director for the Space Telescope Science Institute (Hubble). There were about fifteen people at the dinner, mostly from the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Listening to the conversation about astronomy, and the Hubble Space Telescope was fantastic! I was privileged to discuss my art with Ray, and have my picture taken with him.

The following day was the Hubble’s 20th Anniversary, and Ray gave a talk at the Space Centre in Vancouver. Afterwards, I spoke with him again. We agreed to stay in touch, and I look forward to more conversations about the Hubble, astronomy, and art.

Stacy Sakai with Ray Villard, News Director for the Space Telescope Science Institute

The Gastown satellite spaces for grace-gallery are still open following Artwalk Vancouver 2010. My Spaced Out paintings, and my latest painting “Magellanic Cloud” can be viewed at 20 Water Street, Vancouver. The hours are 2 – 7pm, or by appointment.

The 10 satellite spaces were empty, with no power, and they took a great deal of work to prepare – and the results are amazing! They are raw and dynamic and unique, and brought to life with the artwork of 23 artists. Rachel Zottenberg of grace-gallery did a stunning job of pulling this together in only three weeks! Below are some pictures of my exhibition…

Stacy under the Veils

Monocerotis set and Antennae beside antique safe in the wall

Infinity - Green triptych

Magellanic Cloud and the Veils

This charity event was packed all night long!!! Rachel did a fantastic job curating such a variety of artwork…grace-gallery looked fantastic! And, of course, it was so much fun!

Read about Terri Potratz, one of the participating artists, and the charity, Our Social Fabric in The Vancouver Sun.

For this show, I painted small abstract paintings based on my concept of infinity. You can view the full series under my Galleries section on the right of this page. Below are the pieces that were up for “Art of Giving.”

Two diptychs from my Infinity Series: Infinity - Blue & Infinity - Red

The December issue of Eclectica is now available! It features my painting of the Circinus Galaxy, and my three Veil Nebula paintings.

There is also a special gift guide inside the magazine, featuring the work of many local artists.

Please see Eclectica Magazine for more information, and the store locations where it is available. Single issues and subscriptions are also available to order online.

Eclectica Magazine featuring Stacy's 'Spaced Out' paintings

I love telescopes. They give a perspective unlike anything else.

Last night, I was privileged to visit Breckenridge Anderson Astronomical Ltd., a shop where telescopes are built. It was amazing to see what is involved in building a large custom telescope.

Stacy at Breckenridge Anderson Astronomical Ltd.

I stood beside a piece of equipment specifically designed for holding and transporting the primary mirror, for testing, and to simply move it around the shop. The mirror for this particular telescope is 50 inches across, and several inches deep, weighing 1100 pounds. The mirror was sitting in a crate nearby.

When the telescope is completed, it will stand 18 feet tall. This telescope will be situated in the southern hemisphere. It will peer into space, bringing us amazing imagery, and knowledge.

Telescopes are like eye glasses, helping us to see beyond what our human eyes are capable of. They help us see deep into space, and bring us back images that are absolutely breathtaking. They give us perspective…

For me, telescopes also give me my subject matter for painting. They bring me views of outer space – views of our universe.

A selection of pictures:

Craig Breckenridge and Stacy Sakai at the Spaced Out opening reception.

Stacy and Rachel, the gallery director.

Stacy Sakai standing between Veil I and Veil II.

A view from outside...

A shot of the video created for the opening by Craig Breckenridge and Stacy Sakai.