Coffee with a side of art

Steve Miller, owner of Café Rivista in Silverdale, gives customers a visual stimulant with their cup of joe.

The walls of the café have become lined with artwork from local artists. Each month an artist is featured at the coffee shop which is located off Bucklin Hill Road next to Super Cuts in Silverdale.

“It’s something that I’m starting to do each month,” Miller said. “It’s localized, anything to help the local community is great. (The artists) have a passion for what they do.”

The monthly art showings are part of his effort to provide more of a traditional coffee shop where people can sit, meet and talk, he said.

After several discussions with customers at his coffee shops (which include Steve’s Alley Espresso on State Street in Bremerton and a cart inside TeleTech in Bremerton), Miller discovered that there are several local artists who have a lot of finished artwork and nowhere to show it. This month he is featuring Northwest impressions watercolors by local artist Davina Parypa.

“It helps the local artists and it helps people in the community recognize a lot of talent right here, that is the driving force,” Miller said.

Each month, the community will have a chance to meet the featured artist. An artist reception for Parypa will be from 6-8 p.m. on Friday, March 18. The community will have a chance to meet with her while she demonstrates her techniques. The receptions are free and open to the public and free drip coffee and biscotti will be served. Next month, Joyce Jordan, who specializes in watercolors, will be the featured artist.

Miller doesn’t charge artists to show their work at the café, he only charges a small commission if a piece of art sells. The price of the art varies by artist and can change from month to month, he said.

Miller, who also works at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, is the third owner of Café Rivista after purchasing the coffee shop a year-and-a-half ago. The café offers more than 1,300 magazine titles for patrons to choose from. After remodeling is complete at the State Street location, Miller has plans to make some changes to Café Rivista by adding more comfortable chairs, couches and eventually have an open mic night with small jazz groups.

“I want to make it more of a traditional coffee shop ... there are too many cookie cutter places out there,” he said.

For more information about the art showings or displaying artwork, call Miller at (360) 698-2377.