First things first, no rollerblading and don’t sell vape juice in the galleries.
Seriously though, we want you to have a great visit to SAM and with Remix (SAM’s late-night, creative night out that is definitely not a party) coming up on Friday, November 15 (tickets are still available, FYI), Weird Dog Productions is here to help outline how to behave at our museum.
Don’t touch the art, leave your selfie sticks at coat check, stay hydrated at the water fountains, and you’ll be an art influencer in no time. And remember, the Seattle Art Museum appreciates you!
“Vulnerability” has been a bit of a buzz word ever since Brené Brown’s TED Talk, “The Power of Vulnerability.” Having watched Brené’s TED Talk and read one of her books, I value vulnerability a lot, but being vulnerable myself can still feel fairly nerve-wracking. So when the other Emerging Arts Leader Intern and I were asked to lead a My Favorite Things Tour, little did I know that the next 10 weeks would also include a road trip down vulnerability lane.
When I first heard about
the tour, I thought this tour would remain in the realm of theoretical,
academic concepts. To be fair, a large part of the process involved researching
the history behind each piece, utilizing resources from SAM’s libraries
(thanks, Traci, Jordyn, and Yueh-Lin!), and meeting with curators (thanks, Pam
and Chiyo!). But along with the historical research, our mentors and
colleagues, Rachel, Seohee, David, and Priya (thank you all!), encouraged us to
delve vulnerably into our stories and weave them into each piece.
Because of this, I began asking myself some questions about my story, including being mixed race. For a while, I’ve been nervous about my voice because being mixed race often feels like a grey area between two distinct points of view and voices in society. But as I worked on the tour, each of our mentors and countless people shared their time, insight, stories, and vulnerability to help me process, ask deeper questions, and craft the content of the tour. Without them, the tour and this blog post would look entirely different.
Not to mention, I’ll
always cherish the times the other Emerging Arts Leader Intern, Cat, and I
practiced nearly 50 versions of our ever-evolving tour with each other. Because
our tours delved into more personal topics, we became each other’s support and
cheerleader through a lot of ups and a few downs. Together, we also arranged
informational interviews with staff across many departments, assisted at events
like SAM Remix, DragonFest, and Summer Institute for Educators, and attended
department and equity team meetings. I learned so much from working with Cat
(miss you!) and love the ways in which SAM values and integrates
collaboration.
Throughout this entire internship, I’ve learned so much about museums, equity work within museums, and about myself. The interdisciplinary focus provided the opportunity to learn about many of the departments that comprise SAM. All throughout and above the galleries, it’s inspiring to see how many dedicated individuals play a role – from fundraising to checking coats to communicating with the press to leading student tours—to make SAM the museum that it is.
I also learned a lot
about equity work in museums that I didn’t know before. I’ve realized that it’s
not enough to know some terms or read some papers or books, but it takes the
vulnerability to ask myself the same questions within these papers. And it
takes the bravery to answer these questions honestly.
SAM gave me a safe space to ask questions and come from a posture of growth and progression rather than perfection. More than ever, I’ve learned how crucial and empowering it is to connect with people who share both similar and different experiences. The ways that SAM strives for equity within education, programming, exhibitions, staff, and every part of SAM is inspiring. SAM is opening up dialogue, asking themselves, and others, critical questions, and aiming to lead and learn with each step towards furthering inclusivity and equity. SAM taught me that it takes vulnerability and guts to genuinely look at equity within ourselves in order to implement equity institutionally and beyond.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who made this internship so special. And guess what? I’m so grateful, honored, and thrilled to continue on with SAM’s amazing Development Team as a Campaign Assistant! See you around!
– Lauren Farris, SAM Campaign Assistant & 2019 Emerging Arts Leader Intern
The most
recent edition of Crosscut’s arts newsletter by Brangien Davis
includes a shout-out to the Seattle Arts Voter Guide,
created by Seattle University students in a Public Policy and the Arts class.
“The cels in the
exhibit come from Heeter’s personal collection of more than 900 Simpsons
animations, which he started collecting in the early ’90s. ‘I had a full head
of hair when I started collecting and now it’s all gone,’ he says.”
Don’t miss this
conversation-starting New York Times piece by Elizabeth Méndez Berry and
Chi-hui Yang that calls
for more critics of color.
“…the spaces in
media where national mythologies are articulated, debated and affirmed are
still largely segregated. The conversation about our collective imagination has
the same blind spots as our political discourse.”
The summer edition of the Stranger’s Art & Performance Quarterly is out! Recommended SAM shows in the visual arts listings include Hear & Now, 2018 Betty Bowen Award Winner: Natalie Ball, Victorian Radicals, Zanele Muholi, Material Differences: German Perspectives, You Are on Indigenous Land: Places/Displaces, and Claire Partington: Taking Tea. They also recommend upcoming events Summer at SAM and Remix.
The newspaper collection, says Dixon, preserves “an important, critical part of American history. To see that [this] time existed and that it’s captured in the pages of these newspapers so that people can actually see and read what we said—not what someone else is interpreting from afar—but what we said, how we articulated revolution in this country, that’s the importance of them.”
Inter/National News
From the Los Angeles
Times: The Natural History Museum of LA County announced a
major rethink of the La Brea Tar Pits site; the Olympic Sculpture
Park’s designer Weiss/Manfredi is one of three firms making proposals for the
project.
“Museums
desperately need talent in all sorts of positions—curators represent a fraction
of the staff of museums,” Anderson said. “We’d be thrilled if an accountant
emerges from [the Souls Grown Deep initiative] and finds their way into the
museum profession, but they’re an accountant who has knowledge and experience
in a particular cultural remit that otherwise they may not have.”
During my first week as an Emerging Arts Leader Intern at Seattle Art Museum, I was told that by the last week of the internship this reflection post for the blog would be due. I remember thinking, “Oh, that sounds easy enough—just summarize what happened in a paragraph or two.” Clearly, I had no idea what was headed my way. The past week has been an endless cycle of drafting, writing, editing, only to draft again. (You know that feeling of when there’s so much you want to say, and say eloquently, that words and sentences are flying around your mind and you’re scrambling to make sense of them, but you actually just end up staring at the blinking text cursor for an hour? Yeah, that.)
When I reflect on the past 10 weeks of my internship, I imagine having one of those View-Masters (they’re still relevant, right?) and clicking through reels of moments at SAM. It starts with the welcoming faces of everyone I meet coming into view. Then, a whirlwind of back-to-back meetings; getting lost in the labyrinth of the administrative office; storage visits with Carrie (thank you, Carrie!); always pressing the wrong level in the elevator; researching objects; conducting informational interviews with staff; preparing for my My Favorite Things tour; taking part in Career Day, Seattle Art Fair, Summer at SAM, and Remix; and so much more. As if in slow motion, images of my last week include the nerve-wracking day of my tour and saying goodbye to everyone I had the privilege of working with.
I’m surprised how much I changed in this short time span. In the beginning, I thought I knew enough about diversity and equity work from courses at university and my past experiences that I was only focused on giving my perspectives rather than allowing myself to be vulnerable and molded by those far more experienced than I. Working closely with the equity team this past summer, I found myself constantly learning, practicing, and honing the use of an equity lens in my work. I experienced the behind-the-scenes of a museum and community working towards transparency and racial and social equity. I saw every meeting ask how to be inclusive, provide access, and advance equity. There was, and is, so much I don’t know, not only regarding the arts and museums, but also in becoming a better ally for community. Watching and working alongside these amazing and passionate individuals, I’ve come to reevaluate myself, my goals, and my passions on a weekly basis.
What resulted of this reevaluation was the “My Favorite Things” tour I had the privilege of leading (I still can’t believe I led a tour). To close off, I’d like to share a snippet from what I shared at the tour.
“We tend to get easily distracted if an issue doesn’t directly affect us. From this internship and conducting research for this tour the past few weeks, I’ve realized again and again that privilege doesn’t always mean monetary wealth or status. It could be not having to worry about being seen as a threat walking in your own neighborhood late at night. It could be not feeling your heart pound every time you see words like ICE and DACA and UNDOCUMENTED in the headlines. It could be your close friends and family asking you if you’re doing alright and being able to genuinely answer that you’re well instead of brushing it off with an “I’m okay” when you really cried yourself to sleep at night because you’re supposed to have everything under control. Just because it doesn’t affect us directly, doesn’t mean it’s not there nor does it mean it’s less important. As a community, in order to work towards true equity, we have to embrace and endure all pains as if they are our own. We must face our worst selves and acknowledge our lacking. It’s going to be difficult; it will be uncomfortable…but I invite you to join me in this continuing journey of becoming more aware, becoming more responsible, and becoming more informed not only for ourselves but also for each other.”
To everyone I met and worked with this past summer, thank you so much for your continuous kindness, encouragement, and acceptance. I’ve never felt more welcome and cherished in a workplace setting than at SAM. And, thank you for all you do on a daily basis to work for and better our community.
As I walked towards the Seattle Art Museum to begin my Emerging Arts Leader internship, I was excited. I knew I would be working with the education and curatorial departments, but had only the minutest idea of what the internship would entail. At the staff entrance, I saw the other Emerging Arts Leader Intern for the summer nervously sitting on the couch. As Seohee Kim and I began to get to know each other, it was apparent we had many similarities. We are both passionate about immigrant rights and we both originally intended to take a law career track but found ourselves working in the arts, despite the initial backlash from our parents. I didn’t know it then, but Seohee and I would become an inseparable and fierce duo.
Everyone we met was genuine, welcoming, caring, and passionate. I honestly could not believe my eyes, it seemed almost suspicious. The education department glows with kindness and a love for the Seattle Art Museum’s mission to connect art to life. I went to college in Connecticut, and although I was raised in Seattle, I didn’t have many friends or connections with the arts community. This quickly changed. I could share with you about how I gained professional experience using The Museum System to research and organize objects. I could tell you about the meetings I sat in on where my voice mattered and my opinions were valued. I could tell you how I learned about the behind-the-scenes work that most people don’t know about. I could tell you how this internship opened my eyes to a possible career path that I would’ve never known about prior to this summer: exhibition design. I could write about each of these topics, but I want to focus on the amazing events that allowed me to get involved with the Seattle community and touched my heart with the amount of support and healing that took place at these events.
Three events, in particular, had a strong impact on me; the [Black] Power Summit, the Creative Advantage, and Remix. The Power Summit was a health and wellness conference for Seattle’s Black community. The first panel was one on mental health and mindfulness. The panel spoke about generational trauma and the stigma behind mental illness within the Black community. I could relate to these trends within the Latinx community. Often times, our parents work so hard to provide for our families that they dwell in survival mode. When we are raised in households where mental illnesses are stigmatized, we feel as if we are a burden to our family if we bring up issues we may be facing. As we keep hiding, the marble-sized issue becomes a bowling ball. One panelist suggested that we sit with our discomfort and strip it of its power over us. The trauma may still be present in the form of memories or thoughts, but it will no longer have power over our ability to thrive.
If you’ve never been to Remix, just know you’re sleeping! Remix is a beautiful event in which many people come together to share the dance floor, art activities, tours, drinks, as well as their most fly outfits. I loved the art activities, but what really impacted me was the dancing. With performing artists such as the Purple Lemonade Collective, Bouton Volonté, and Randy Ford, the dance floor was throbbing with presence and beauty. When the dancers dipped, catwalked, and, yes, even twerked, a semi-circle formed around them of mainly white allies. Space was created for queer and trans people of color to exist, express their passion, make art, and share joy. As they created magic with their bodies, the viewers cheered and recorded, but mainly they yelled words of encouragement and awe. This wonderful space for marginalized groups to feel at ease within a large group of white folks didn’t feel uncomfortable or unwelcoming though. At that moment, race, gender, and sexuality were being praised and we were allowed to take up space with the knowledge that our allies are there to support us. If I wasn’t so busy sweating through my orange romper from all the dancing, I probably would have shed a tear of joy and love.
The Seattle Art Museum is a highly inclusive environment that truly values racial equity. The institution is not building inclusive spaces or challenging our thinking because it is the trendy thing to do. The Seattle Art museum genuinely values equity work, from the director of the museum to interns like me and Seohee, and in between. This experience was one of healing for me after graduating from an institution on the East Coast that lacked passion for equality and often protests had to occur to demand visibility for underrepresented groups. The Seattle Art Museum is taking a stand and a leadership role to highlight and welcome all identities. When the mission statement says that the Seattle Art Museum connects art to our lives, I understand that they connect art to our lives because they know that our lives matter and want to be a space for healing, learning, and unity.
– Dovey Martinez, SAM 2018 Emerging Arts Leader Intern
“Is it a guttural battle cry? A shriek of surprise? A call across a crowded subway platform to an old friend glimpsed boarding a train? A eureka-like shout of stunned recognition that Armenia is the country whose art you long to appreciate the most of all?”
Image: Maharaja Abhai Singh on Horseback, c. 1725, Dalchand, Jodhpur, opaque watercolor and gold on paper, Mehrangarh Museum Trust, photo: Neil Greentree.
The solo exhibition of Molly Vaughan, winner of the 2017 Betty Bowen Award, is now on view. Project 42 raises awareness of a persistent pattern of extreme violence against transgender people by commemorating 42 murdered individuals. The show was recently highlighted by both City Arts and Seattle Weekly.
“When Molly Vaughan accepted the Betty Bowen Award at the Seattle Art Museum, she opted not to speak about her own work, as is custom. Instead, she invited three local artists with Native heritage to memorialize Fred Martinez, Jr., a trans-identified Navajo teen who was murdered in Cortez, Colo., in 2001.”
The Evergrey features artist April Soetarman’s Museum of Almost Realities, about objects “from the life you might have had.” The project popped up at March’s edition of Remix.
Local News
For the Seattle Times (and all the nerds), writer Paul Constant and novelist G. Willow Wilson preview MoPOP’s MARVEL: Universe of Super Heroes, which opened last Saturday.
“If the flower in the vase of the 1925 black-and-white gelatin silver print ‘A Shirley Poppy’ could speak, it might say, My heart is wide open. I’ve unfurled my petals so you can see it all. Tracing the valleys of light within the crepe-like petals, one imagines photographer Ella McBride responding from behind her single-lens reflex camera, I notice you.”
Inter/National News
Last week, TIME magazine published its list of the year’s 100 most influential people; Kehinde Wiley, Judy Chicago, and JR were three visual artists selected.
The Legacy Museum and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice—“the first public museum and memorial to the victims of racial terror in the US”—will open next week in Alabama.
“There is still so much to be done in this country to recover from our history of racial inequality,” says Bryan Stevenson, the founding director of the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI), which spearheaded the project. “We can achieve more in America when we commit to truth-telling about our past.”
And Finally
He doesn’t do it for the gram—or the Pulitzer. But this was all of us when rapper and songwriter Kendrick Lamar won the prestigious award this week.
– Rachel Eggers, SAM Manager of Public Relations
Image: Installation view of Jono Vaughan: Project 42 at Seattle Art Museum, 2018, photo: Natali Wiseman.
The radiant clouds that stretch across the bridge of Teresita Fernández’s Seattle Cloud Cover look different every time you encounter them. On a rainy day, the site-specific work at the Olympic Sculpture Park offers a shelter of saturated colors that pop against the surrounding gray sky. When you witness a freight train moving beneath it, the train’s cargo becomes part of the art, washed over in its rainbow assortment of hues. As you stand beside it to watch the sunset over the Puget Sound, your body appears in silhouette to onlookers across the Park. As Fernández describes, Seattle Cloud Cover “…blur[s] the lines between your presence as participant and observer.”
The blurred line that Fernández refers to between participation and observation is integral to the art at the Olympic Sculpture Park, as well as to SAM’s Education Department as they design programs to engage visitors from all walks of life. “It’s amazing to have the Sculpture Park as a free resource located in the heart of Seattle and to think of how we as educators can maximize that opportunity for the community by creating programs that challenge visitors to rethink the relationship between art and environment,” says Regan Pro, SAM’s Kayla Skinner Deputy Director for Education and Public Programs.
Pro continues, “I love thinking about all of the different ways we have had visitors interact and engage with Alexander Calder’s The Eagle over the last ten years and how people have come to think about all of the permanent sculptures in new ways.” Every year, all second graders from Highline School District explore the land and art around The Eagle during the free tours and art workshops offered as part of SAM’s School Programs. Dogs and their owners walk along the path at its base during Dog Night. Revelers dance into the night beneath its wingspan during Remix, which moves to the Sculpture Park for its summer iteration. Dancers from the Pacific Northwest ballet perform new work beneath its steel limbs as part of Summer at SAM for Sculptured Dance, a night of site-specific performances. These are only a few of the many programs that offer a chance for the public to participate and think about The Eagle and other works in the park in new ways.
In recent years, SAM has expanded the programming in ways that stretch ideas about what art museum experiences can be. This fall, the museum will partner with Tiny Trees to offer an outdoor preschool at the Sculpture Park that focuses on art and the environment. In the winter, SAM Lights illuminates the landscape with temporary light installations and hundreds of luminarias. And, the PACCAR Pavilion temporarily becomes an artist residency space, where performers create new projects in response to the artworks and landscape.
Essential to all of the educators’ work is the participation of departments from across the museum and beyond, including community organizations like Pacific Northwest Ballet and Forterra. “This is work that incorporates ideas of so many people,” emphasizes Pro. “It’s this shared vision that’s made the programs at the park successful.” Similarly, it’s the coalescence of elements—the art, the design, the environmental achievements, the landscape, the programming and the community—that together create the Olympic Sculpture Park as we know and celebrate it now, on its tenth anniversary.
— Erin Langner, Freelance Arts Writer and Former SAM Adult Public Programs Manager
This post is the final installment in a series of stories exploring the history of the Olympic Sculpture Park in celebration of its 10th anniversary.
Images: Photo: Robert Wade. Photo: Jen Au. Photo: Robert Wade. Photo: Sasha Im.
S: I come to SAM for many reasons: a respite for meditation and solitude, for inspiration in my own artwork, to share my love of art with friends and family, to meet my daughters for lunch. I love having a membership because I can drop in for twenty minutes or two hours as often as I like.
Nina, can you tell me a little bit about what you do?
N: I went to grad school for museum studies. When I was a kid I really liked art and science. So when I went to grad school I studied art and science museums and science and art museums. Now I work in science, but I’m trying to start a pop-up science museum that will take place at community organizations, storefronts, or places like big museums.
We come in and do a curriculum that’s science-based but really multidisciplinary. This weekend is the second one, which is a paper circuit workshop. Kids will make Christmas cards and they will learn some electrical engineering—and they will draw, play with colors, and figure out what they want things to look like. It should be fun. The first one took place in White Center and was an exhibit on computer science.
Do you guys experience SAM as a family? Do you come here together?
S: Yes! The whole family comes. Actually, my husband used to work around the corner so we would meet here frequently. It’s a stopover place for us, which I love. I love to have a membership so I can just say, “Hey, meet me here, let’s go see whatever is going on or go revisit something.” It’s not just an occasion. It’s part of our lives—of my life, anyway.
N: During a lot of grad school I was abroad. My sister’s been traveling and my brother’s not living here. When we all come back to Seattle we go to SAM.
S: Nina takes us. My husband has work meetings in the café. We have a lot of history here for the last ten years. We moved here about ten years ago.
N: I got her a membership as a birthday present.
S: I’d forgotten about that!
N: When we first moved here I was probably seventeen. I said, “This is for Mom.” If you want to know a place you have to find out where the museum is.
S: Yes! I travel with my husband; I’m fortunate I can sometimes go with him for free. Every city I go to, I go to the museums. I’ve seen tons of American museums lately. Yes, SAM’s right up there. Proud of our hometown. I like it best when SAM brings in really unique exhibitions, things that you aren’t going to see everywhere and you aren’t going to follow along to a bunch of different cities.
Do you attend many SAM events?
N: I like the museum events because they break things up—you can go see the art, and then you can explore in your own way how you feel about that art. When we go to Remix, I always really like those because they break up how you establish a relationship with art—you look at it and then do something.
S: You’ve always been interested in art. I mean, I was one of those moms that threw the shower curtain on the kitchen floor and gave them paint, said go.
N: I don’t remember that!
S: You don’t? You remember your birthday in the garage. We covered the walls in the garage and we painted.
N: Yes!
S: Everybody remembers that.
—
As the holidays approach, give the gift of art to someone so they can enjoy the pleasures of SAM Membership year round. As Nina, a SAM member for 10 years says, “If you want to know a place you have to find out where the museum is.” And the museum is right here for you. Share it with someone special! Gift memberships are available now!
PAIGE MATHEW
Pharmacology student, UW
Student member / gift membership since 2013
You’re in the sciences? I’m a pharmacy student right now.
Do you like it? Yes! I do.
Why do you like going to art museums? Being a part of the science world, there’s not a lot of ways to express yourself—everything is black and white. So it’s fun to get out of my box and go explore different museums. And then it’s nice because SAM has a lot of events like Remix.
Do you think of art as a way to learn about the city you’re in? Art is definitely a way to learn about the city. In the sciences things are more rigid, with art the rules are more free and free flowing. Exploring helps me express my creativity and have fun, seeing the things in the city. Being a SAM member is a way to get around and learn more about Seattle and what art can do.
—
No matter what you’re studying, student memberships are discounted to create increased access to art for anyone with a student ID. Consider how art impacts your life join SAM as a Student Member today!
COREY RAWDON
35–44
Salesforce consultant, Sans The Tie
Patron member since 2014
What’s your occupation? What are your hobbies or passions? Founder and Managing Director, Sans The Tie. A boutique Salesforce consulting firm. Lover of good wine and espresso, singer of the opening song of the Lion King in different countries while standing on rocks, vegan, and philanthropist in training.
Why do you love art? Art has texture, art has color, art has form, and art has life—and it’s this life that can appeal to so many yet so few at one singular time. That is why I love art, Often pieces are deeply meaningful to some and yet completely irrelevant to others at the same time.
What’s your favorite SAM location? Do you have a special spot to visit? As a new member I have only been able to experience the SAM a few times so I have yet to find a truly favorite place.
I’m so glad that you got involved. We were very involved in the art scene in Dallas. My favorite location in Dallas was the Nasher Sculpture Center because I love sculpture probably more than painted pieces.
I was so excited to find the Olympic Sculpture Park. It’s probably one of the main reasons why we joined as members—to hang out there and do some of the cool, fun member events.
We also did SAM Remix at the Seattle Art Museum just a couple weekends ago actually. It was packed but fun.
What role do you think art plays in society? Do we need art? Are museums important? That’s such a huge question to answer. That’s a really great question because I do not have a long history with art. I never really appreciated art or architecture and all the different styles of architecture, actually, until I met my husband who took me around to all the museums.
I discovered, “Oh, there is this whole other world that I never even knew about or didn’t even think existed in a way that would be meaningful to me.” And through his lens I discovered that there are different types of buildings and architecture. It’s not in a museum, of course, but those buildings themselves are art through the ages.
That’s what really connected me to art—understanding the story and the history.
And then to learn to appreciate Art Deco and what all of the Art Deco buildings really represented, and the parties and the life and the joy that you had. Then to move forward into the Post-Modern era and all the really cool, crazy stuff where people just put a vacuum on a pedestal, and you’re like, “Oh, that’s art!”
So the answer is yes, you need art. Yes, it’s important but that art is going to be something totally different from one person to another.
I think part of the beauty of art is understanding yourself, that lens that you use to view art through, how you find art and its meaning to you.
Membership at SAM is full of perks such as Members Appreciation Night tonight at the Olympic Sculpture Park! Not a member yet? Sign up on Members Night and receive a $10 discount! See you there.
As the newest PR intern, it is slightly embarrassing for me to say that I have never been to SAM Remix, but this March 8 will be my very first time. As disconcerting as my lack of experience may be, I have made up for it with enthusiastic research and comprehensive interviews, which I believe present an authentic representation of the evening. It is my deepest desire that the following information may help other Remix newbies better prepare themselves for the upcoming SAM Remix. Read More
Before moving to Seattle to start my fall internship at the Seattle Art Museum this past August, I had already developed an appetite for Remix. I’d never been to one on my many visits to the Northwest but I had seen the posters—shiny, glossy and wickedly designed, I wanted, needed to know more about SAM’s quarterly event.
Aimed at engaging and building relations with young adults, SAM’s Remix events align ever so nicely with the museum’s special exhibitions to create a dance-party-meets-fine-arts experience that gets under your skin in the best way. This fall’s French import Elles: Women Artists from the Centre Pompidou, Parisweaves its way seamlessly throughout this month’s Remix at SAM Downtown on November 9 from 7:30 pm–12:30 am; showing that ladies can hang with the boys and party just as hard.
DJ Michele Myers kicks off the night in the Brotman Forum with intoxicating rhythms and beats from pop, local favorites, soul and just about anything else you can dream of to keep you dancing your pants off. Watch as choreographers Linda Austin, Anne Furfey and Amy O perform excerpts from Ten Tiny Dances on a 4×4 foot dance floor throughout the night. Enjoy the musical styling’s of Hollis and The Pytons as they perform sets from ACT Theatre’s These Streets—an homage to the grunge movement in Seattle with a feminine twist. Curated by Gretta Harley and Sarah Rudinoff, these sets are sure to get the blood pumping and bring out your long dormant grunge kid.
Head on over to the Arnold Board Room to rest those tired dogs while testing your mettle and your knowledge of pop culture, sports, film and more at the Women All-Stars Trivia with Geeks Who Drink. Or earn your Artistic License with Erin Shafkind at her Department of Artistic Licensing with the help of Jenny Zwick and Tessa Hulls. It’s like the DMV only fun.
Let your activist self run free in the South Hall and create Take Action Buttons with Janet Fagan. Too much activism and not enough space? Create a Power Band with Romson Bustillo to showcase your inner superhero! Put your thinking cap on at the Second Floor Think Tank and ask yourself Can Women Really Have It All? Join Vivian Phillips and Priya Frank as they explore questions raised by Elles: Pompidou through interactive activities. Give your brain a break and mosey on up to the Fourth Floor Galleries and listen to Seattle Symphony Orchestra harpist Valerie Muzzolini Gordon while she performs music inspired by Elles: Pompidou’s French roots.
But wait there’s more! (Isn’t there always?) It wouldn’t be Remix at the museum without the My Favorite Things: Highly Opinionated Tours. Happening periodically throughout the entire night, the tours are led by short folks, tall folks, artistic folks, academic folks and just about everyone else in between to offer up their opinions, whether good or bad, about the art and artists featured in the Elles: Pompidou exhibit.
With my summer as a PR intern for SAM coming to a close, I couldn’t leave without giving you a sneak peak of SAM Remix! Just around the corner, Remix promises an evening packed with DJs, dancing, talks and more. And as a first time attendee, I couldn’t be more excited!
Inspired by Sandra Cinto’s Encontro das Águas and Sarah Bergmann’s Portal to the Pollinator Pathway, SAM Remix celebrates stories of the land and seascape with a late night creative explosion on August 24 from 8 pm to midnight. The Olympic Sculpture Park will be alive with the celebratory spirit of Brazilian carnival, dancing, art, games and more!
Kick off the night with Show Brazil! in the Gates Amphitheater, followed by Seattle indie rockers BOAT telling stories of dinosaurs, real-life, punctuation, and the ferocious sounds of lobsters—I don’t think I’ve ever heard the ferocious sounds of lobsters, but I can’t wait to find out! Dance all night as Tigerbeat mixes everything from mainstream pop to local favorites in the PACCAR Pavilion, and under the stars as DJ Riz infuses the waterfront with his soulful beats. And don’t miss the outdoor screening of our favorite thriller Jaws against the backdrop of the Puget Sound—I can’t imagine a better venue!
The park will be filled with creative activities! Make seed bombs to grown Washington wild flowers at home with artist Jeanne Dodds. Remix the sights and sounds of the Olympic Sculpture Park by creating a portable viewfinder with Seattle artists The Unearth Collective. Experience the park in new and unexpected ways on My Favorite Things: Highly Opinionated Tours—The Park After Dark with local artists, curators and more. And come play America’s favorite beanbag toss game cornhole on boards designed by Dumb Eyes. Design sea adventure hats with Seattle artist Romson Bustillo for your next nautical adventures—I’m gathering inspiration from Cinto’s Encontro das Águas, a piece that celebrates our planet’s most precious resource: water.
Like Encontro das Águas, one of Remix’s very own co-hosts, the Center for Environmental Law and Policy (CELP) is committed to preserving Washington’s water resources. Suzanne Skinner, executive director at CELP, said this about their role in Washington:
We have been watching the country burn this summer and we are now seeing Cle Elum fight rampant fires. The impacts of climate change are upon us—and in the West—where water has always been in short supply—that means more demands for our increasingly short supplies. We need water for everything. The Center for Environmental Law and Policy (CELP) is Washington’s water watchdog. We bring our water law expertise and passion to help citizen groups and tribes throughout the state to protect their rivers, streams and aquifers. From what we learn from people working on the front lines, river by river, aquifer by aquifer, we advocate for science based, sustainable water management in the legislature, in the courts and with government agencies. Now more than ever, we need to work together to protect our water resources.
You can browse the links below to find out more about the CELP or any of our other rad cohosts.
We will party rain or shine, so please dress for the weather, as many tents will be located outside throughout the park.
Every Remix is different, so be sure not to miss it!
P.S. Don’t forget that the first 50 guests at the door in aqua blue get in FREE.
Hey there! It’s Natalie Dupille, SAM’s newest PR intern. I’m excited to be working here, and even more excited for tomorrow—and not just because June 1 is my 21st birthday. Tomorrow is Remix, SAM’s hippest quarterly event, and it promises an evening jam-packed with performances, talks, dancing, DJs, and more.
I’m totally intrigued by Seattle band Midday Veil, who will be fusing mesmerizing, hypnotic rock meditations and vibrant projections to grace us with unique multimedia performances at 9:00 and 10:45 pm in the South Hall. On top of that, there’s the collaborative music and art installation by SAM and Olson Kundig Architects, inspired by the Theaster Gates exhibition, which runs through July 1. Join us in the Chase Open Studio, where, in addition to listening stations and hands-on activities, DJ Riz presents the Stairway to Vinyl Listening Party, where he’ll spinning LPs from the Record Store’s robust collection of records throughout the evening.
Remix is also a great opportunity to check out SAM’s newest exhibit, Ancestral Modern, an exuberant exhibition of contemporary art from one of the world’s oldest living cultures that includes more than 100 artworks created by Australian Aboriginal artists in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Cellist Paul Rucker will be creating “Sonic Interpretations” live in Ancestral Modern at 9:15 and 10:30 pm tomorrow, a surefire way to experience an already rousing exhibition.
Having never before attended Remix, I am thrilled to not only be able to attend, but also to be a part of this exciting event. Looking forward to all that and more, hopefully my enthusiasm is contagious, and I will see you there!
PS- The first 50 people in rainbows get in for free. Rock that ROYGBIV!
How could the late-night creative explosion of art, music, dancing and performances known as SAM Remix get any better?
We’re giving away an incredible Gauguin & Polynesia prize package from the Inn at the Market at Remix!
Inn at the Market is the only hotel located in downtown Seattle’s beloved Pike Place Market. Recognized by Travel + Leisure and Condé Nast, the Inn at the Market offers a signature Seattle experience treasured by visitors and locals alike. The prize package includes:
Overnight accommodations at the Inn at the Market in a water view room
Complimentary valet parking until 5 pm the day of departure
So how do you win this fabulous prize from the Inn at the Market? Take part in the Remix photo scavenger hunt!Simply take a photo of the 5 Remix activities listed below and tweet each photo to @iheartsam with the hashtag #SAMRemix.
Harpist and poet Monica Schley improvising spoken word, music and vocals in the 4th floor Baroque galleries
DJ Supreme La Rock spinning in the Brotman Forum
Cut-paper paradise by artist Celeste Cooning in the Think Tank on the 2nd Floor
The Record Store in the Arnold Board Room
Self-portraits in the Chase Open Studio with artists Jeanne Dodds and Elizabeth Humphrey
Everyone who completes the photo scavenger hunt will be entered to win the Gauguin & Polynesia prize package from the Inn at the Market. The winner will be announced on SAM’s Twitter feed on February 27 at 12 pm. Good luck and have fun at Remix!
Special thanks to the Inn at the Market for its generous prize donation. Go ahead and like them on Facebook.
SAM’s quarterly late-night party Remix is right around the corner and preparations are underway here at SAM. The masterminds behind Remix, Greg Sandoval, Manager of Adult Public Programs, and Erin Langner, Assistant Program Manager in Education and Public Programs, are busy finalizing the exciting programs for this Friday’s festivities. In this interview, the two give a sneak peek of what you’ll find at this Remix!
In honor of Presidents Day and Mid-Winter Break, SAM is open extended hours over the week of February 20-24. We hope you can take advantage of this time to visit Gauguin & Polynesia: An Elusive Paradise. Michael Church, arts writer at The Seattle Times, said, “Dazzling is the defining word for the extraordinary display of work by Paul Gauguin at the Seattle Art Museum.” Please note that tickets are reduced by $3 from 5-9 pm every day!
Monday, February 20: SAM is open 10 am – 9 pm.
Tuesday, February 21: SAM is open 10 am – 9 pm.
Wednesday, February 22: SAM is open 10 am – 9 pm. Check out a free exhibition talk by curator Pam McClusky at the Seattle Central Library.
Thursday, February 23: SAM is open 10 am – 9 pm. The François Truffaut film series continues with Two English Girls at 7:30 pm.
Friday, February 24: SAM is open 10 am – 6 pm. The late-night art explosion SAM Remix is 7:30 pm – 12:30 am.
Docent-led tours of the Gauguin & Polynesia exhibition are featured every day at 1 pm and 2 pm and are included with your admission ticket.
Drop-in art activities for kids are available in the Chase Open Studio. Visit the galleries and then make your own masterpiece to take home!
Everyone deserves a bit of paradise. Escape the gray of winter at the Seattle Art Museum!
1. Print your tickets at home. We’ll admit it: the Will Call line can be a little slow. So we suggest you print your tickets at home and skip it altogether.
2.Get in the right line. The PACCAR Pavilion will close at 4:00 pm and the park will close at 6:00 pm to the public. The doors for Remix will open at 8:00 pm. Print-at-home ticket buyers enter at Western Avenue and Broad Street. Will Call ticket holders and ticket buyers enter at Broad Street and Elliot Avenue (near the Neukom Vivarium).
3. Bring cash and your ID. There isn’t an ATM machine at the Olympic Sculpture Park. We suggest picking cash up before coming to the park. The nearest ATM to the park is located at Ellington Grocery & Deli, corner of First Avenue and Clay Street.
Remix is an 18+ event. All guests 21 and older will need to show ID at the two ID Check stations in order to receive a wristband to consume alcohol. There will be one ID check station at the main entrance on Western and Broad and a second ID check station along the Z path. Look for the white tent with lights.
4. Wear warm clothes and comfy shoes. The weather forecast for Remix is sunny with temperatures in the 70s. However, once the sun goes down, it can get a little chilly at the Olympic Sculpture Park. Ladies (and some gents), remember that you will be a park with grass so we would advise against wearing heels.
The first 50 people wearing gingham will get into Remix for free. The first 50 line will be at the Western Avenue and Broad Street entrance.
5.Know where the restrooms are located. Inside the PACCAR Pavilion, there are restrooms available for use. Additionally there will be temporary facilities along the Z Path in the park.
6.Carpool, bus, bike or take a taxi. We encourage using public transportation or cabs to the Olympic Sculpture Park. The parking garage will be closed to the public there is some street parking and several pay lots surrounding the Olympic Sculpture Park.
7. Reap the benefits of being a SAM member. Get the VIP treatment at the Remix Members Lawn. Perks include the opportunity to mix and mingle with Remix artists, and a first-class viewing area of performances in the Gates Amphitheater.
Not a SAM member? Join tonight! Turn your Remix ticket in for $10 off a new SAM membership. Offer good on Student- ($30) through Patron-level memberships. Please present your Remix ticket at the Membership Table or Members Lawn to redeem this offer. Offer good onsite only during Remix.
At SAM Remix on August 12, experience the Olympic Sculpture Park in new and unexpected ways with highly-opinionated tours led by artists, Remix co-hosts and special guests.
8:30 pm: Steven Vroom, Executive Director & Curator of Exhibitions, 911 Media
8:45 pm: Erin Fetridge, Canoe Social Club, Remix Co-host
9 pm: Sharon Arnold, Artist and Youth Program Manager, Gage Academy
9:15 pm: Julie Parrett, Landscape Architect
9:30 pm: Susan Robb, Artist
9:45 pm: Stephanie Pure, American Institute of Architects Seattle, Remix Co-host
10 pm: Kathy Lindenmayer, One Reel/Bumbershoot, Remix Co-host
Tours will meet on the Mosley Path near Dante’s Inferno Dogs. If you don’t have your Remix tickets yet, click here to buy them now!
My co-workers and I were talking about the upcoming SAM Remix at the Olympic Sculpture when someone mentioned that there would be artist-designed cornholes at the event.
I must admit that the term “cornhole” made several of us first think of this, but we soon learned that cornhole is actually a bean bag toss game, which fits in nicely with this Remix’s county-fair theme. Remix cornhole will feature play boards designed by Troy Gua and Dumb Eyes.
One of the best things about Remix is that you get the chance to experience art in unexpected ways:
Contribute to a collective massive paint-by-numbers landscape, and watch the image take form as the night progresses.
Join Seattle artist Nicholas Nyland and guests for a journey to the East Meadow. Illuminate the path with luminaria and admire the sunset from Gretchen Bennett’s sculpture, The Jetty.
Witness the newest iteration of Carolina Silva’s Air Below Ground, a series of actions composed by the artist to take place on, in and around her wooden platform and frame sculpture.
Sample the Olympic Sculpture Park’s signature scent, created by artist Susan Robb. Inspired by the park’s geography and art, the artist’s “spritzers” will offer Remix guests the chance to wear the scent of their choice.
So not only will you be surrounded by the amazing art of the Olympic Sculpture Park, you’ll have the opportunity to create, share and talk art all night long at SAM Remix. Click here to buy your tickets now!
Last August, I attended my first SAM Remix at the Olympic Sculpture Park, and I danced the night away under The Eagle, which was easily one of the highlights of my summer.
How would you describe this Nick Cave Soundsuit in 140 characters or less? Tweet your response to @iheartsam with the hashtag #SAMRemix, and you could win two tickets to the June 3 Remix and the opportunity to guest tweet for SAM at the event. The deadline for entries is 5 pm on Thursday, June 2.
Want to get updates on SAM program and events delivered to your inbox? Click here now to subscribe to SAM’s enewsletter. Here’s a message from SAM Director Derrick Cartwright from our May 2011 enewsletter highlighting some of the best SAM’s three sites have to offer.
The SAM special exhibition Nick Cave: Meet Me at the Center of the Earth has arrived in Seattle in a very big way. Have you been dazzled by how Cave transforms ordinary objects into extraordinary art (or want to be)? Well, come to SAM Downtown on May 5 from 5:30 – 9 pm for a terrific celebration: March to the Center of the Earth: Community Night Out.
Bring your students, friends, parents, kids, neighbors, fellow artists and crafters—there will be something there for everyone! Plus, you could win these fabulous prizes:
“Behind the scenes” responsibilities at an arts organization are not always the most glamorous work. In Public Programming at SAM, back-end work includes contracts, stage set-up, power point preparation, and many late-nights, among other things. The latest of my nights, but also one of the most exciting to work on, is the quarterly SAM Remix program. During Remix, my department has the opportunity to program the entire building in an effort to create a unique experience that engages audiences with the art on view through a more interdisciplinary and interactive approach.
