OKOK Gallery (Seattle)

City/neighborhood: Ballard/Crown Hill

Hours: Noon-7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday

Parking: Street parking

In "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," Johnny Depp's character leads his charges to an island that cannot be found "except by those who have already been there." In a manner that is not entirely dissimilar to Cap'n Jack's, the selection of art, books, toys and groovy ephemera offered at OKOK Gallery will probably make the most sense to those who have already been there, so to speak: to the pages of Giant Robot magazine; to Cartoon Network's Saturday-night anime block of programs; and to the local home of the "pop surrealism" art movement, Roq la Rue. OKOK has bridges to all these landmarks, but culturally, it's pretty much off the maps and into some pretty awesome unexplored territory. Even once you're inside OKOK - hopefully entering this reformed garage through the garage door, which opens the entire storefront to Ballard Avenue - you may have a tough time getting your bearings. There's a sizable gallery space in the back, but the place isn't strictly for art. There's a formidable stock of art books, covering subjects from Charles Eames furniture to House Industries font design - but it isn't a bookstore. And good heavens, the toys - you've got your Uglydolls, you've got your Kubrick plastic figures, you've got your limited-edition Yoshitomo Nara goodies. It's not a toy store, either. Even if you didn't realize you ever wanted a book of Superflat art , a set of Sex Pistols action figures and a "Maakies" jack-in-the-box that plays "What Shall We Do with the Drunken Sailor?", OKOK has you covered in any case. It's only fitting that Ballard, the watery end of the city, should play host to this, the happy end of the world.

By Geoff Carter
NWsource