On a warm August evening on Glisan Street, a block from where music fans were gathering for an early show by Kris Deelane and the Hurt at the Laurelthirst pub, another crowd was starting to show up on the sidewalk outside Brassworks Gallery for the opening of Carnival Fabulon, an exhibit of art by more than 50 artists inspired by Katherine Dunn’s 1989 novel Geek Love.

The book is a family-friendly story — that is, if your dad poisoned your pregnant mom with concoctions of arsenic, cocaine and other chemicals so that you and your siblings could become traveling circus freaks. The characters are sensitively written, often hilarious, seriously shocking, and unforgettable: Arturo, the power-crazed flipper boy; lissome Siamese twins and piano prodigies Iphy and Elly; telekinetically gifted little Fortunato, aka Chick; Oly, the albino hunchback dwarf who narrates the story; plus a host of other oddballs and infiltrators who creep into the family’s world. Tim Burton bought the movie rights, and director Terry Gilliam was a huge fan who wanted to adapt it as a play in London, calling the book “the most romantic novel about love and family I have read. It made me ashamed to be so utterly normal.”

Dunn lived in Portland much of her life and is said to have been inspired for the idea of creating new varieties of babies while contemplating the manipulated roses at the International Rose Test Garden in Washington Park.

Dunn’s son, Eli Dapolonia, Ph.D., specializing in clinical neuropsychology,  arrived around 6:30 p.m. while the gallery was packed with enthusiastic Geek Love fans drinking cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon and wine from plastic cups.  Among the crowd of flagrantly hip people, artist Sam Dantone stood in front of his painting “A Museum of Nature’s Innovative Art” with his bandaged hand seeping with fake blood (readers of the book will know that grisly reference).

Before making his way through the work by more than 50 artists, Dapolonia said, “I saw a kid out front wearing a Ghostbusters Proton Pack. Maybe he thought this was a Comic Con overflow event.”

He said he avoided looking at any art on the website prior to his visit. “My intention was to view the show with an open mind,” Dapolonia remarked. His mother loved getting art from fans, but there has never been a proper show of artwork related to the book until Brassworks Gallery’s. “Mom started receiving art from fans of her work shortly after it came out, and we have a number of artworks in our basement that would have been right at home at the show,” he shared.

As Dapolonia — whose favorite character is Fortunato — made his way among the pieces, he shared some of his reactions, noting that his mom “would love it. I think she would have loved the emotion and intensity of many of the works on display at the show. The wooden sculpture of Olympia would have made her chuckle.”

Following are photos of several of the show’s works, with Dapolonia’s comments:

“Miranda” • Stephanie Brockway

“I loved this marionette-style artwork. The paint and the design really capture the period style of the circuses Mom drew her ideas from.”

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“Geek Love” • Nonamey

“What a fun tribute to the original cover artwork! The motion lines reminded me of the counter culture artist R. Crumb, of whom Mom was a great fan.”

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“Electra & Iphigenia” • Dave Lebow

“One of many images of Electra and Iphy at the show. This was a wonderfully sensual work in a style that reminded me of some of my favorite Northern Renaissance painters. Beautiful!”

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“Empennage” • Daniel Fagereng

‘This wonderful sculpture inspired by Olympia’s tail was such a cool find! I think my mother would have loved it! The use of different woods really helped the tail stand out.”

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“The Chute” • Ben Adams

“Gross, awesome, and perfectly reminiscent of the feel of the book.”

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“Electra and Iphigenia” • Karen Wippich

“This was my favorite of many Electra and Iphy paintings. There’s a haunted look that really captures them in way that stood out from the others.”

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“Crystal Lil” • Terrence Laragione

“This is such a wonderful image of Cystal Lil. Unapologetic, primitive in a glorious way and perfectly capturing the style of period circus freak show posters. I love it!”

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“Freak of the Week” • David Berkvam

“The rotating panel and vivid design made this artwork so much fun! I loved the dense menagerie of characters as well.”

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“Fabulous Showcard” • Josh Casey

“Another terrific tribute to period circus advertising. This is exactly the sort of circus flyer I remember from my childhood that one might find stapled to a phone pole in the neighborhood. Love it!”

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“Ely & Iphy” • Stephanie Brockway

“Another great Electra and Iphy. This one reminded me of the antique tin toys — often circus-related —that my mother kept in a basket for friends’ children to play with  when they came visiting. Great fun!”

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“Olympia” • Nathalie Tierce

“I was surprised to not see more images of Olympia at the show, as she was really the main protagonist in the book, but this was one of the exceptions. I think my mother would have really loved this style, and it seems to capture some aspects of Olympia’s personality.”

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“VERN The bag man” • Diego Corral

“This reminded me of some of my favorite local artists, the Pander Brothers. Love the comic book style and the color in the background. I would put this up in my living room.”

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“Arturo” • Gregory Hergert

“Gregory Hergert had a whole series of characters from the book, and they were great, but his Arturo was my favorite. I think he was able to capture some of Arturo’s charisma and menace in a quiet, beautiful way.”

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“Freakish Family” • Josh Stebbins

“Another reimagining of the original book cover that includes illustrations. I loved the textures and multimedia design. The images are fantastic.”

According to Brassworks co-owner Robin Weirich Seymour, many of the pieces have sold, but not all. “We hope to sell more, but the subject matter may not appeal to some people for art on the walls.” Say what? Who wouldn’t want paintings of amputated fingers, decapitated chickens and formaldehyde babies in jars in their living room?

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Carnival Fabulon at Brassworks Gallery runs through September 7; gallery open 3-8 p.m. Wednesdays-Saturdays. 3022 N.E. Glisan St., 503-593-9311.