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Seattle Announces Jourdan Keith as the City’s next Civic Poet

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Keith will present at the Mayor’s Arts Awards ceremony,
Thursday, Aug. 29 at 4 p.m.

The Office of Arts & Culture announced Seattle’s next Civic Poet, Jourdan Imani Keith. Keith, a student of Sonia Sanchez, is a poet, essayist, playwright, naturalist and activist. The Civic Poet program celebrates Seattle’s rich literary community, while investing the future of literary arts through community engagement. The program is administered by the city’s Office of Arts & Culture (ARTS).

“The Seattle Civic Poet program attracts the best artists in our region,” says Randy Engstrom, ARTS director. “We couldn’t be happier to have Jourdan Keith as our next Civic Poet, she’s the definition of an engaged generative, intersectional artist, with a demonstrated commitment to the City.”

Jourdan Keith’s writing blends the textures of political, personal and natural landscapes to offer voices from the margins of American lives.  A recipient of the 2018 Americans for the Arts award, her TEDx Talk, “Your Body of Water” became the theme for King County’s 2016-2018 Poetry on Buses program. Her Orion Magazine essays, “Desegregating Wilderness” and “At Risk,” were selected by Rebecca Skloot for the 2015 Best American Science and Nature Writing Anthology.

As a keeper of culture and history in the Griot (gree-oh) storytelling tradition, her ekphrastic poems were commissioned by the Northwest African American Museum and by Seattle Art Museum.  She has been awarded fellowships from Hedgebrook, Wildbranch, Santa Fe Science Writing workshop, VONA, and Jack Straw. She is also Seattle Public Library’s first naturalist-in-Residence. Keith is the founder and director of the gender, ethnicity and environmental justice organization, Urban Wilderness Project. She’s received awards from University of Washington, Artist Trust, 4Culture and ARTS. Her memoir in essays, Tugging at the Web is forthcoming from University of Washington Press.

The two-year Civic Poet post serves as a cultural ambassador for Seattle’s rich, multi-hued literary landscape and represents Seattle’s diverse cultural community. In addition to five annual performances, the Civic Poet will also complete hands-on work with communities to engage constituents city-wide. Seattle’s Civic Poet will serve a term of two years, from August 2019 to August 2021, and will receive a $10,000 stipend distributed over the two-year term.

Photo by Diem Jones.

Mayor Durkan announces recipients for the 2019 Mayor’s Arts Awards

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Recipients will be honored at the Mayor’s Arts Awards ceremony on
Thursday, August 29 at 4 p.m. at the Charlotte Martin Theatre, Seattle Center

SEATTLE – Mayor Durkan announced the recipients of the 2019 Mayor’s Arts Awards. The award honorees are Center on Contemporary Art (CoCA), Dani Tirrell, Delbert Richardson, Intiman Theatre, and Marcie Sillman. All five recipients have shaped Seattle’s arts and cultural landscape through their contributions to the community, education, arts and race and social justice.

Collage of the 2019 Mayor's Arts Awards recipients
left to right: Center for Contemporary Art, Intiman Theatre, Delbert Richardson,
Marcie Sillman, Dani Tirrell

“Seattle’s artists inspire us, and they make our City better. These artists represent the rich diversity of talent, innovation, and passion in our communities,” said Mayor Durkan. “The Mayor’s Arts Awards are a chance to shine a light on amazing arts and cultural contributors in Seattle, and to celebrate the work they’re doing to advance equity and justice. Congratulations to these incredible artists.”

The Mayor’s Arts Awards celebrates the people and organizations that broaden our horizons and humanize our city and our world. The winners will be honored at the Mayor’s Arts Award Ceremony on Thursday, August 29 at 4 p.m. at the Charlotte Martin Theatre at Seattle Children’s Theatre. Recipients will be presented with an original artwork award by KT Hancock, a local, emerging artist working in glass and metal.

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The Mayor’s Arts Awards are presented in partnership with Bumbershoot and One Reel with sponsor Boeing and event sponsor Chihuly Garden and Glass.

For more information about the Mayor’s Arts Awards, including past recipients, visit http://www.seattle.gov/arts/mayors-arts-awards.

About the 2019 Mayor’s Arts Award Recipients

Two performers in th middle of CoCA's gallery.
Fear of the Other by Laura Rodriguez, 2017, Photo by Warren Woo

Seattle’s Center on Contemporary Art (CoCA) serves the Pacific Northwest as a catalyst and forum for the advancement, development, and understanding of Contemporary Art. CoCA has been a vital part of contemporary art in the Northwest for nearly 40 years, and has operated galleries and produced events throughout the Seattle area since 1981 when over 100 artists, local business owners, and arts supporters formed the organization.

CoCA has continued to question the status quo of the existing art scene by challenging the social and political meaning of art and artists in contemporary society. The organization, staff, board and members have encouraged experimentation from artists through gallery exhibits, music and dance performances, residencies and discussion forums. CoCA has a long history of providing an inclusive space for emerging and established artists to make and show their creative efforts. CoCA continues to champion diversity of community, culture, race, ethnicity, and gender for their Board, Volunteers, Staff, and Artists, and address the disparities that often challenge arts organizations and society. Executive & Artistic Director, Nichole DeMent; Gallery Manager, Katelyn Johnson, MA; Board President, Eddie Reed, EdD; and Board Chair, Judith Rayl, MD, PhD, currently manage CoCA.

Dani Tirrell promo image for "FagGod".
Promo image of Dani Tirrell from FagGod, 2019 at CD Forum

Dani Tirrell (Seattle, WA) is A Black, Queer choreographer, dancer and movement guide. Dani has guided people in Detroit and Seattle as well as sharing movement practices in other cities in the United States. Currently Dani is the curator for the 2019/2020 season of Central District Forum for Arts and Ideas, this is Dani’s second season as curator. Dani is the host and co-creator of Sunday Dinners, and served as the student advisor for the Arts Diversity Council at University of Washington (Seattle campus).

Dani is the founder and current artistic director of The Congregation a movement/art collective that is led by mostly Black and Queer bodies. Dani is currently teaching at Northwest Tap Connection and University of Washington Seattle campus and Bothell campus (fall 2019). Dani has created work for Dance This (Northwest Tap Connection), Strictly Seattle (advance/professional track), Seattle Repertory Theater, Nina Simone Four Women (Directed by Valerie Curtis-Newton).

Dani also was at the helm of four sold out shows, for Dani’s production of Black Bois (On the Boards). In 2019 Dani was the recipient of an Artist Trust Fellowship Award and a Dance Crush Award for Black Bois (performance). Dani also received a 2018 Arts Matter Fellowship grant. Dani current work FagGod in collaboration with Anastasia Renee and Naa Akua was presented in Central District Forum for Arts and Ideas 2019/2020 season.

Delbert Richardson
Delbert Richardson

Delbert Richardson, is an ethnomuseumologist, Second generation storyteller, and the founder of the American History Traveling Museum: The “Unspoken” Truths. This National Award Winning mobile museum is geared primarily towards the self-empowerment of Black and Brown COC (Children of Color). With the use of authentic artifacts, storyboards, and the ancient art of “Storytelling”, Mr. Richardson’s goal is to inspire youth in the areas of identity development and self-actualization. His multi-sensory “hands-on” exhibit creates a unique opportunity for attendees of all ages to appreciate the courage, perseverance, resilience, and determination, of Black/African American people and the many contributions that have made to the world.

The “Unspoken” Truths American History Traveling Museum chronicles the rich history of Africans in Africa prior to American Chattel Slavery, the experiences and impact of American Chattel Slavery, Jim Crow Era, and the many contributions African Americans have had in scientific, cultural, and technological (inventions) innovations in the U.S. and the world.

Two actors sit on the floor, one of them is trans, looking at each other.
Production photo from HIR at ArtsWest Playhouse and Gallery, 2018, Photo by John McClellan

Intiman Theatre’s mission is to Wrestle with American Inequities. Intiman is a professional theater company in Seattle, Washington who in recent years was awarded three 2018 Gregory Awards for their Outstanding Production of a Musical (Dragon Lady),  three 2018-19 Teeny Awards for being an awesome org, creating work that most artfully illuminated a social issue or sparked civic dialogue, most transformative theatre experience as well as the 2006 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. Intiman is overseen by Artistic Director Jennifer Zeyl, Executive Director Phillip Chavira, and Board President Daniel Nye. The company retired a historical $2.7m in debt & obligations in 2018, with thanks to the community for keeping Intiman alive and flourishing. We are grateful to share a Free for Everyone ticketing initiative with our audiences made possible by our Community Ticket Project.

Since its founding in 1972, Intiman Theatre has presented 240 productions to Seattle audiences. Among the more recent of these are HIR by Taylor Mac, WILD HORSES by Allison Gregory, NATIVE GARDENS by Karen Zacarías, ANGELS IN AMERICA by Tony Kushner, TROUBLE IN MIND and WEDDING BAND by Alice Childress,  and BOOTYCANDY and BARBECUE by Robert O’hara.

Intiman produces in various venues throughout Seattle, which include the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute in Central District, The Erikson Off Broadway, 12th Avenue Arts, Velocity Dance Center, UW Jones Playhouse, Seattle Center Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, the Alhadeff Studio and Cornish Playhouse at Seattle Center.

Marcie Sillman
Marcie Sillman

Marcie Sillman, arts and culture reporter at KUOW, arrived at the station in 1985 to produce the station’s daily public affairs program, Seattle After Noon. One year later, she became the local voice of All Things Considered, NPR’s flagship afternoon news magazine. After five years holding down the drive-time microphone, a new opportunity arose. Along with Dave Beck and Steve Scher, Marcie helped create Weekday, a daily, two-hour forum for newsmakers, artists and thinkers. During her career, more than 100 of her stories have been heard on NPR’s newsmagazines, as well as on The Voice of America. In 2005, she became KUOW’s first special projects reporter. In this role, she produced in-depth audio portraits and documentary series about life and culture in the Puget Sound Region. In September, 2013, Marcie was part of the team that created The Record, a daily news magazine focused on the issues and culture of the Puget Sound region. Marcie writes regularly about Seattle’s dance scene for national publications and at her blog, “And Another Thing.” Her book Out There: Jonathan Porretta’s Life in Dance was released in 2016 by Seattle Scriptorum publishing house.

Nominees for the 2019 Mayor’s Arts Awards

Congratulations to everyone who was nominated* this year:

206 Zulu  ▪  African American Writers’ Alliance  ▪  Africatown   ▪  Afua Kouyate ▪  Al Doggett and Esther Ervin  ▪   Alana Skye Crawley  ▪  Amanda Manitach  ▪  Angie Hinojos Yusuf  ▪  Asia Tail  ▪  Ben Hunter  ▪  Bill Berry  ▪  Blue Cone Studios   ▪  Bushwick Northwest   ▪   C&P Coffee  ▪   Casey Weldon  ▪  Center on Contemporary Art (CoCA)   ▪   Christiane Karefa-Johnson  ▪  Claire Michelle  ▪  Clarion West   ▪   Claudia Castro Luna  ▪  Creative Justice  ▪   Dani Terrill  ▪  Daniel Pak  ▪  Dante Felder  ▪  Degenerate Art Ensemble  ▪   Dina Blade  ▪  Delbert Richardson  ▪  Donte Felder  ▪  Duwamish Tribe  ▪   D’Vonne Lewis  ▪  Early Music Seattle   ▪   Eli Lara  ▪  Emerald Comics Distro   ▪   Eric Banks  ▪  Eric Nelson  ▪  Eric Salisbury  ▪  Esther Altshul Helfgott  ▪  Etienne Cakpo-Gbokou  ▪  Free2Luv  ▪  Gallery Onyx  ▪  Gary Faigin  ▪  Hallie Kuperman  ▪  Hanako O’Leary  ▪  Ijeoma Oluo  ▪  Intiman Theatre  ▪   Inye Wokoma  ▪  Jade D’Souza  ▪  Jayden Fennell  ▪  Jean Walkinshaw  ▪  Jeffrey Veregge  ▪  Jeffry Mitchell  ▪  Jennifer Zeyl  ▪  Jovino Santos Neto   ▪  Julie Chang Schulman  ▪  Julius Brandon  ▪  Kelly Kitchens  ▪  Kelly LaCombe  ▪  Kelly Lyles  ▪  Kimerly Rorschach  ▪  Larry Reid  ▪  Living Voices   ▪   Lorrie Scott Cardoso  ▪  Marcie Sillman  ▪  Marisol Sanchez Best  ▪  Markel Uriu  ▪  Martín Sepulveda  ▪  Miguel del Aguila  ▪  Mindie Lind  ▪  Music4Life  ▪   Nisi Shawl  ▪  Northwest African American Museum   ▪   Onyx Fine Arts Collective   ▪   Patti Curtis  ▪  Phoebe Bosché  ▪  Pramila Jayapal  ▪  Rain City Rock Camp   ▪  Richard Gold  ▪  Room Circus Medical Clowning  School of Acrobatics and New Circus Arts  ▪   Ryan Blackwell  ▪  Ryan Henry Ward  ▪  Sahra Farah  ▪  Sam Farrazaino  ▪  Sarah Fansler Lavin  ▪  Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra   ▪   Seattle Walk Report  ▪  Seayoung Yim  ▪  Shaya Lyon  ▪  Stephanie Johnson-Toliver  ▪  Susan Silver  ▪  Tariqa Waters  ▪  Ten Grands Seattle   ▪  Teresa Thuman  ▪  The AMP: AIDS Memorial Pathway   ▪   The Arboretum Foundation   ▪   The Residency, a program of Arts Corps, MoPOP and Macklemore, LLC   ▪   The Union   ▪   Verhanika Willhelm  ▪  Vincent Keele  ▪  Virginia Wright  ▪  Wa Na Wari  ▪  Witch Chat  ▪  Wyking Garrett

*only eligible nominations are included.

News: Lara Davis and six years with ARTS Creative Youth Programs

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“Differences must be not merely tolerated, but seen as a fund of necessary polarities between which our creativity can spark like a dialectic.”  

– Audre Lorde

After six incredible years leading the Office of Arts & Culture (ARTS) Creative Youth programs, I’m excited to announce that I am leaving to pursue an opportunity with the Visionary Justice StoryLab – a collective of interdisciplinary artists, media makers, and cultural workers evolving story, media, and performance based racial and healing justice practices for communities of color and the organizations that serve them – and take personal time for myself to reconnect with my own creativity and artistic practice.

Photo of Lara Davis against a rainbow flag background.
Lara Davis, Youth Arts Manager at ARTS

Youth Arts Manager position open at ARTS

ARTS Creative Youth programs have grown significantly in the past six years and continue to deepen our impact through school-based arts education investments and a continuum of Creative Youth Development and career-connected learning opportunities. I’ve been proud to be part of a fierce team of collaborators that includes teaching artists and community arts organizations, City and Seattle Public Schools staff who work in partnership to advance education justice and prioritize the arts as central to achieving racially equitable and justice-based outcomes. 

Now in over half of Seattle Public Schools, The Creative Advantage, our citywide initiative, is committed to realizing equity in arts education for all Seattle students.  Driven by a public-private partnership, this initiative works through a collective impact framework that includes the district, ARTS, Seattle Foundation, and the broader arts community. To learn more please check out this article on The Creative Advantage in Seattle Foundation’s Heart and Science Magazine spring 2019 issue by Naomi Ishisaka.

The leadership of our young people, Black and indigenous and POC communities is essential to these ongoing efforts – to fully realize local education equity initiatives like The Creative Advantage and to build a just future rooted in culture, collective power, the imagination, and love.

In an era of persistent and growing economic, climate and racial injustice, I’m continually inspired by the boldness and creativity of young organizers and activists – many of whom are artists – and the collective struggle for liberation that relies upon intergenerational and collaborative leadership. I’m grateful to have been a part of this effort with the Office of Arts & Culture, and excited for its continued work in and with community. 

With deep gratitude,

Lara Davis

Redefining Seattle’s literary scene, Anastacia-Renee, Seattle Civic Poet 2017-19

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Seattle created the Civic Poet program in 2015 to invest in and foster the city’s rich literary community. Anastacia-Renee is the second Civic Poet, serving from 2017-19 and as her commission comes to a close we wish to recognize, cheer and share our gratitude for Anastacia-Renee and all who have contributed their valuable time, participated, and most importantly who generated literary work that overwhelmingly exceeded the expectations that the City and the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture had for the program. Anastacia-Renee’s contributions paves the way for future Civic Poets and community engagement through the literary arts.

In her two year tenure, Anastacia-Renee convened, recited, performed, curated, advised, led, taught, and listened to close to 7,000 residents of all ages, in a range of traditional and non-traditional venues city wide. She also engaged the community through her readings, workshops, consultations, City Council Civil Rights Utilities Economic Development and Arts Committee (CRUEDA) meeting openers, Speak to Me series, featured guest on TEDx and Lit Crawl, national holiday functions and many more one-time engagements for small neighborhood-based agencies/groups.

Anastacia-Renee raised awareness for the literary arts community and the Living Legacies tribute topped her two-year tenure with an event in June at King Street Station that acknowledged, celebrated, and raised three highly accomplished writers to the forefront of Seattle’s robust literary community, Mary Anne Moorman, Storme Webber, and Georgia McDade.

New artwork “Alone Together” delights downtown pedestrians

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Friday, August 2, 2019, 2-3 p.m.
Public celebration at Harbor Steps
1221 1st Ave, Seattle, WA 98101
Artwork stickers will be available for the first 250 people.

A new artwork, Alone Together, by Juliana Kang Robinson will be interwoven into the infrastructure of the all-walk intersection of University and 1st Avenue near Harbor Steps and the Seattle Art Museum. The artwork includes pictorial street signs in the blocks that surround the main artwork, and a new crosswalk painting on the intersection of University and 1st Avenue. 

One of the panels on the back of a parking sign depicts a baby bear on an ice floe as a narwhal swims underneath.

As you walk toward the intersection – west on University, North on 1st or South on 1st, the series of six separate but thematically connected images will lead up to the all-walk in which the theme of the artwork Alone Together will come into play. Pedestrians begin alone on the four separate corners of the intersection will cross over the artwork coming together for a moment.

A photo from above as pedestrians cross the intersection with the artwork below them.
Pedestrians cross at the intersection where Alone Together is installed

Bears are the main character in this illustrated series of images, in reference to a Korean creation myth and a reminder that people, like animals, share the same needs and strengths. The artist’s intent is to showcase that we all find refuge and strength in togetherness and that all families belong together. The goal of the artwork is to celebrate youth, families and pedestrians in our Downtown core. 

An aerial view of the intersection with a rendering of the artwork in the middle.
A rendering of the artwork at the pedestrian crossig

Inspired by conversations with pedestrian advocates, transportation specialists, neighborhood groups, and youth (special note of thanks to the kindergarten classes at Giddens Elementary and students from Summit High School) some of the overarching desires stated by these community members included the desire for new artwork to use bright colors, reference nature and animals, contain a positive message and put a smile on your face, and be located in a highly accessible location. You can learn more about the artist’s work at julianakangrobinson.com. 

This is part of the Imagine Greater Downtown initiative, designed to improve the pedestrian experience in Downtown Seattle using existing SDOT street infrastructure to create art for pedestrians and cyclists to see in their everyday movements. Commissioned by the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture and Seattle Department of Transportation.

yәhaw̓ Closing Weekend Celebration Events

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August 1 – 4, 2019
ARTS at King Street Station
303 S. Jackson St., Top floor
Seattle, WA 98104

All events are free, family friendly, and open to the public.

yəhaw̓ is an Indigenous-led, yearlong project that includes satellite installations, performances, workshops and trainings, artists-in-residence, art markets, publications, and partner events at more than 25 sites across Coast Salish territories and beyond. The exhibition at ARTS at King Street Station, running from March 23-August 4, 2019, is the centerpiece of yəhaw̓.

yəhaw̓ programs are accompanied by relationship-building and mentorship opportunities to support continued artistic development in their communities, with the intent that all participants will gain experience, exposure, and build sustaining connections. ARTS at King Street Station is ADA accessible and has all-gender restrooms. ARTS has a low/no scent policy; please arrive fragrance free.

Closing Events

Thursday, August 1
Open gallery hours 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Gallery Tour, 1:30 – 2:30 p.m.
Meet at the Reception Desk

Get a free tour of the yәhaw̓ exhibition and King Street Station facilities led by an Indigenous artist alongside an Office of Arts & Culture staff member.

Performances on the Plaza, 5 – 7 p.m.
King Street Station Plaza, Corner of 4th Avenue S.

Catch live performances by Indigenous artists – including the world’s premiere Quileute Drag Queen Hailey Tayathy and bands Black Belt Eagle Scout and Ghost Horse – outside on King Street Station’s plaza. The gallery upstairs will be open late till 8 p.m. in conjunction with First Thursday Pioneer Square Art Walk.

Friday, August 2
Open gallery hours 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Curatorial Panel, 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Large conference room

Join us for a panel discussion featuring Asia Tail and Satpreet Kahlon of the curatorial team, with additional presentations by yәhaw̓ community curators, followed by Q and A.  

Gallery Tour, 1:30 – 2:30 pm

Get a free tour of the yәhaw̓ exhibition and King Street Station facilities led by an Indigenous artist alongside an Office of Arts & Culture staff member.

Saturday, August 3
Open gallery hours 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Mentorship Program Artist Presentations, 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Large conference room

Drop in or stay for the day with three back-to-back talks by eight+ emerging Indigenous artists. Members of the yәhaw̓ Mentorship Training Program will share about their artistic practices and discuss experiences in their respective program cohorts in Seattle, Tacoma, or Portland, followed by Q and A.  

Gallery Tour, 1:30 – 2:30 p.m.

Get a free tour of the yәhaw̓ exhibition and King Street Station facilities led by an Indigenous artist alongside an Office of Arts & Culture staff member.

Sunday, August 4
Open gallery hours 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Exhibition Closing Reception, 1 – 4 p.m.

Come celebrate with us one last time as we conclude a year of Indigenous-centered programming across Coast Salish territories. We’ll open with a blessing, followed by storytelling, and remarks from the curatorial team. While you are here, get your picture taken in an artist-made photo booth, share your yәhaw̓ stories with filmmaker Raven Two Feathers (Cherokee / Seneca / Cayuga / Comanche) for their upcoming documentary, and don’t miss your last chance to see the yәhaw̓ exhibition featuring 200+ Indigenous creatives!

Gallery Tour, 1:30 – 2:30 pm

Get a free tour of the yәhaw̓ exhibition and King Street Station facilities led by an Indigenous artist alongside an Office of Arts & Culture staff member.

Downtown Summer Sounds 2019

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Produced by DSA and presented by Virginia Mason, Downtown Summer Sounds brings free local music to downtown Seattle throughout July and August. Formerly the Out to Lunch concert series, Downtown Summer Sounds continues a 42-year DSA tradition of supporting free live music for Seattle workers, residents and visitors.

New this year will be concerts at King Street Station Plaza, the new home of ARTS at King Street Station. You can listen to music and then check out the gallery on the top floor.

In addition, concerts will be at venues across the city including City Hall Park, Harbor Steps, City Hall Plaza, and King Street Station Plaza. Full Lineup

The concerts will take place from 12-1 p.m. every Thursday, July 11 through August 22, 2019.

City Hall and King Street Station Plaza Concert Schedule:

Thursday, July 11 City Hall 12-1 pm Naomi Wachira
Thursday, July 18 King Street
Station Plaza 		12-1 pm Bleachbear
Thursday, July 25 City Hall 12-1 pm SPL Playback
Showcase:
Gabriel
Teodros &
Tiffany Wilson
Thursday, Aug. 1 City Hall 12-1 pm Abbey Arts
Showcase:
Hoop & Drench Fries
Thursday, Aug. 8 King Street
Station Plaza 		12-1 pm Evan Flory
Barnes
Thursday, Aug. 15 City Hall 12-1 pm Otieno +
Rain City
Rock Camp
Thursday, Aug. 22 King Street Station Plaza 12-1 pm Totem Star
Showcase

For more information and a full schedule visit Downtown Summer Sounds

ARTS partnered with UW Evans School on a study of the creative economy

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In 2019, a Capstone team of University of Washington Evans School of Policy and Governance graduate students undertook a study of the region’s creative economy under the direction of the Office of Arts & Culture (ARTS) and Office of Economic Development.

The report, Assessing the Creative Economy of Seattle through a Race and Equity Lens” (2019) is an intentional, qualitative, and quantitative creative workforce study with a race and social justice lens.

ARTS and the UW students were interested in identifying barriers at the entry, middle, and established tiers of creative economy work. Then, the independent research team designed recommendations for how to increase access for those who historically have been left out.

The original data collection included a survey that generated 255 responses from the public, a majority of responses came from artists of color.
About the researchers

The University of Washington Evans School of Policy and Governance research team was comprised of MPA graduate students Aline Moch Islas, Casey Moser, Shomya Tripathy, and Louie Tan Vital. This effort was led by Mytoan Nguyen-Akbar, PhD, Impact and Assessment Manager and Mellon/ACLS Public Fellow at ARTS with on-going research partnerships between ARTS and UW Prof. Joaquin Herranz, Jr., PhD, the faculty member who advised the students on this capstone project.

Design firm Civilization selected to create Connecting Artworks Project for the AIDS Memorial Pathway

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Design firm Civilization was selected to create a series of artworks conceived as a “connective tissue” that will create thematic elements across multiple sites at The AIDS Memorial Pathway. These artworks will be at points around the pathway to help identify the multiple art zones, and guide individuals towards them. The artworks will be located within three art zones specified in The AMP Master Art Plan.

In 2020, the plaza over Seattle’s Capitol Hill Light Rail Station and the north edge of Cal Anderson Park will become home to The AMP: AIDS Memorial Pathway. The way-finding artworks designed by Civilization will help visitors find the art zones from the transit entrances/exits, through and around the plaza, and to Cal Anderson Park. They will allow visitors to encounter the different experiences provided by the art pieces along The AMP, create attractive sightlines, and connect all of The AMP without using formal text signage.

The AMP will offer visitors opportunities for meaningful participation in the ongoing fight to end HIV/AIDS and discrimination that can arise in a community during a crisis. It will be a reminder of our collective need to be active, remain vigilant, and stand ready to fight scapegoating and discrimination however and whenever they may arise. A passionate group of volunteers and community leaders, including people living with HIV, people of color, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community, are working to make The AMP: AIDS Memorial Pathway a reality.

Civilization is a design practice that builds identity systems, digital experiences, printed materials, environmental graphics and exhibitions that are engaging, empathetic, sustainable and create meaningful connections. They work on a variety of projects for public, private and non–profit clients that share their commitment to creating positive change and promoting greater insights about our world.

Their practice is a recipient of the National Design Award for Communication Design from the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in honor of “excellence, innovation, and enhancement on the quality of daily life.” Their internationally recognized work is included in the permanent collection of SFMOMA and the Milton Glaser Design Archives at the School of Visual Arts, has won numerous awards including a Webby Award for Best Activist Website, and is regularly featured in print publications as well as most major global media outlets such as The Guardian, The New York Times, The Huffington Post and NPR.

Indigenous Art Installation Debuts on King Street Station Plaza

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Free celebration includes blessing, and storytelling.
Friday, June 21, 2019, Noon – 3 pm
King Street Station Plaza, 303 S. Jackson Street at the corner of 4th Avenue S., Seattle

Brings the Medicine Sundial, a temporary public sculpture intended to bring healing, recognition, and awareness of this land’s First People by activating the King Street Station Plaza, debuts on Friday, June 21. The installation, which features six, 28’ tall fir tree poles that form a semicircle and public gathering place, is created by artist and architectural designer Kimberly Corinne Deriana (Mandan/Hidatsa) in collaboration with Coast Salish carvers. Brings the Medicine Sundial is Deriana’s first major public art commission.

On the day of the installation’s debut, the summer solstice, the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, in collaboration with yəhaw̓, will host an afternoon of celebration and arts engagement, aligning with its goal of creating an outdoor gathering area honoring the Earth. Planned activities – all free and open to the public – include a land acknowledgement and blessing by Denise Emerson (Skokomish/ Navajo) and storytelling by Jill and Sasha LaPointe (Upper Skagit/Nooksack).

The sculpture Brings the Medicine Sundial features free-standing tripod structures forming a sundial/dais and gathering circle that honor the Earth. Six fir lodgepoles will stand on what is now King Street Station Plaza for the first time since 1855, when the Treaty of Point Elliott outlawed the construction of Indigenous structures within Seattle city limits. The logs, sustainably harvested by Skokomish foresters, illustrate a shared cultural reference central to the theme of “lifting the sky” from the inaugural exhibition at ARTS at King Street Station, yəhaw̓ (on view through Aug. 4). yəhaw̓ is inspired by the Coast Salish story of Indigenous people from many tribes coming together and using poles to hoist the sky above the Earth. The word yəhaw̓ is used across languages to communicate and to form unity in this process.

yәhaw̓ is a year-long Indigenous community-based project culminating in the inaugural exhibition at Seattle Office Of Arts & Culture’s ARTS at King Street Station from March 23 – August 4, 2019. The exhibition is accompanied by a mentorship training cohort, satellite shows, residencies, vendor opportunities and partner programs. yәhaw̓ features the work of 200+ Indigenous creatives at over 20 sites across Seattle and beyond. Curated by Tracy Rector (Choctaw/Seminole), Asia Tail (Cherokee), and Satpreet Kahlon, yәhaw̓ celebrates the depth and diversity of Indigenous art made in the Pacific Northwest. Learn more at yehawshow.com.

About the artist: Kimberly Corinne Deriana is a Mandan and Hidatsa architectural designer and artist who specializes in sustainable, environmental, Indigenous architecture, housing, and planning. Her design methodologies focus on incorporating Indigenous lifestyle practices in relationship to past and present: design for seven generations. Deriana strives to achieve exceptional design by weaving together respect for individuality, honor for cultural identity, and appreciation for contemporary quality, manifested in the shape and structure of sustainable buildings and communities.

Facebook: @kimberlyderiana, @seattlearts, @yehawshow
Instagram: @kimberlycorinne, @seaofficeofarts, @yehawshow

Project Credits: Kimberly Corinne Deriana (Mandan/Hidatsa) – Artist & Designer; Rob Purser (Suquamish), Delbert Miller (Skokomish), Tina Kuckkahn-Miller (Ojibwe), Sayalts Miller (Skokomish) – Carvers; Absalom Shantz – Lead Fabricator; Christopher C. Shaw – Professional Engineer; Tracy Rector (Choctaw/Seminole), Asia Tail (Cherokee), Satpreet Kahlon – Curators; S Surface – King Street Station Program Lead, Seattle Office of Arts & Culture.


Free celebration includes blessing, and storytelling.

Friday, June 21, 2019, Noon – 3 pm