Ocean Beach is considered by many to be an “arts inclined” area, being home to a plethora of artists from photographers to musicians. Even with such a varied and storied local crowd, Adelaide Marcus stands out. Perhaps best known as part of the Shimmy Sisters, a belly-dance duo, Marcus is also a teacher, model, stilt walker, acrobat, snake charmer, hula hooper and fire dancer — depending on the event’s needs. More recently, she has begun to find acclaim as a visual artist. For Marcus, dancing is in her blood. Her mother is a dancer, and her sister, Leilainia is her partner in the Shimmy Sisters. “When I was in high school, I started really coming around to dancing,” Marcus said. “My mother was always a dancer and I grew up around it, but it was in school that I started to take my own initiative and learn about different types of dancing.” She arrived in San Diego from El Paso, Texas in 2005 to attend college and with the idea of starting the Shimmy Sisters already in place. “My sister had started a dance troupe [in San Diego] and it was the possibility of doing something that I loved for a living while I went to school [that appealed to me],” Marcus said. “We hadn’t seen each other in quite a while, but we were both excited by the idea of working together.” Marcus’ restless nature has also seen her searching for additional creative outlets, although she notes she doesn’t have a favorite among her performance arts choices. “They kind of balance each other out,” Marcus said. “Right now, I’m really enjoying visual arts because I’m just coming into working on commissioned pieces, getting myself out there and seeing who that attracts. “That’s really exciting because I’ve already spent more than five years building up my performance art so that people know who I am from that,” she said. “But now people also know me from seeing my art hanging in galleries and coffeehouses.” Marcus’s vivid, colorful works use various media, including colored pencil and acrylic paintings, with prices ranging from $25 for a print to up to $300 for an original canvas. Commissioned pieces can cost more. In addition to local galleries like OB Centric, viewings of the art can be arranged by appointment. “It’s like somebody seeing a new piece of me where I’m not just this person who is looking sexy or doing some circus act,” Marcus said. “I have a lot that I express through visual art.” The Shimmy Sisters now tour regularly alongside their musical accompanists, Danyavaad, playing a unique mix of events from the Burning Man Festival to corporate functions and venues like The Kava Lounge, where they perform March 6. The Shimmy Sisters will also appear April 1 at Portugalia, 4839 Newport Ave., in Ocean Beach. More recently, the duo have begun work with local promoters Charmed Life. Once a month, the sisters perform at a different themed night at downtown’s On Broadway, with forays into the Las Vegas club scene. While the musical backing at these venues is modern dance as opposed to their more traditional Middle Eastern sounds, the duo’s act includes exotic costumes, swords, fire and a six-foot snake, making it a showstopper with any soundtrack. “People love it. You see all the i-Phones come out because there’s a girl with a snake,” Marcus laughed. “Other clubs who find out about it have to step up their game.” With so many irons in the fire, Marcus’ life is a whirlwind, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. “Things have branched out pretty far since I started with belly dance,” she said. “I think most of my artistic endeavors stem from my world view, the way I see life. Everything that I do that’s creative stems from just being inspired by life and wanting to share that with people.” The Shimmy Sisters perform at 8 p.m. on Sunday, March 6 at The Kava Lounge, 2812 Kettner Blvd.. 21 and up. $5. www.artbyadelaide.com.