38th annual Art's Alive!: Great art, Friday gala

This year, raising a glass to the artists featured in the annual Art's Alive! festival will be a cinch.

Instead of sipping your wine or beer outdoors in a tent – a measure taken in 2021 to keep the unseen but ever-present COVID-19 virus from crashing the party – you can offer your toast face to face with the artists during the Friday night opening gala Nov. 11.

Add in some scrumptious appetizers and the 38th Art's Alive! weekend will start with "a more traditional gathering of townspeople to welcome the artists into La Conner and kick off the event," said Sheila Johnson, a board member of the...