Rachel Gallaher
Where History Repeats Itself
Populus Seattle features more than 300 original works of art
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the hotel’s new name, Populus Seattle. It appeared in print as Hotel Westland. Five years after the Covid-19 pandemic sent Pioneer Square on a downward spiral — shuttered businesses, closed restaurants, a dearth of people — things are looking up for the city’s first historic district….
A Mix Of Fantasy And Reality
Kirsten Anderson found success selling outsider art. Now, nearly 30 years after founding Roq La Rue Gallery, she’s staying the course in a brand new location.
Gallerist Kirsten Anderson is having a full-circle moment. In March, she opened the doors of the newest location of Roq La Rue, the arts space she launched 27 years ago in Belltown. Now, after hop-scotching through the city — 13 years and several locations downtown, three years in Pioneer Square, a stint on Capitol Hill,…
Food Flight: Alaska Airlines Partners With Famed Seattle Chef
Alaska launches elegant dining experience with chef Brady Williams
It’s safe to bet that anyone who’s ever flown on Alaska Airlines is probably familiar with its infamous fruit and cheese plate. It’s a crowd-pleasing classic that’s healthy, filling, and not too heavy, which makes it the perfect option for sky-high snacking. But for those looking for something a little more adventurous — and flying…
Not Flown, Grown: The Slow Flowers Movement is Having A Moment
New book — The Flower Farmers — promotes the use of locally grown, seasonal, and sustainably harvested flowers
A few years ago, Debra Prinzing — speaker, podcast host, outdoor living expert, and founder of Slow Flowers — and her business partner, Robin Avni, pitched an idea to an editor at Abrams Books. The editor passed, but quickly came back with another offer. They didn’t have to think twice about it. Prinzing had extensive…
Glacial Expressions
Local scientist and painter Jill Pelto spotlights climate change in a multi-artist show at Slip Gallery
The divide between the arts and sciences is long-fostered and well-documented. From elementary school onward, children are often singled out for their penchant for math or artistic ability and guided toward classes — and later careers — that align with their right or left brain tendencies. For Jill Pelto — a local climate scientist, painter,…
Conru Foundation Launches Seattle Prize Masters Fellowship
Effort seeks to cultivate early career artists
After a successful run in the tech world, engineer and entrepreneur Andrew Conru, founder of the namesake Conru Foundation, is leaning in to one of his personal passions — art — with the launch of the Seattle Prize Masters Fellowship. Announced recently through the Conru Art Foundation, the one-year program, according to a press release,…
Rethinking the Residency
Community-focused Actualize provides space and support to artists
One night in December 2023, industrial designer Kate Bailey sat down to dinner with philanthropists and art supporters Shari D. Behnke and Edie Adams. It was a routine get-together at Adams’ house — the three women, each deeply involved in Seattle’s creative community, had grown close, bonding over their love of art. Adams and Bailey…
Ai Weiwei’s Biggest U.S. Show Opens at SAM
The retrospective covers 40 years of the conceptual artist’s career
This week, the Seattle Art Museum opened the largest-ever U.S. exhibition featuring the work of Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei. Spanning four decades of the artist’s career, Ai, Rebel: The Art and Activism of Ai Weiwei (March 12–Sept. 7) includes 130 works — a mix of sculpture, video, painting, wallpaper, furniture, and installation —…
Spring Arts in Seattle
Shake off the winter blues with a fresh crop of arts happenings around the Emerald City
Spring brings a vibrant season of arts performances, celebrating renewal and creativity. Here’s a roundup of major arts events happening across Seattle this spring. Dance One of the buzziest performances to hit the Pacific Northwest Ballet stage in years, Crystal Pite’s Emergence returns on March 14, sharing the bill with the late Jerome Robbins’ neoclassical…
A Weekend in Park City with the Best Snow I’ve Ever Skied
Known for its luxury resorts and powder days, this tiny Utah town is a must-visit for outdoor enthusiasts and après-lovers alike.
Last month, I found myself standing at the top of Prospector — a black-diamond run at the Park City Mountain Resort In Utah. I’d just sailed down the first part of Parley’s Park, a straightforward blue, and it was absolutely dumping snow. A fairly new skier for someone who grew up in Seattle (it was…
Most Influential: Amy Tipton
Gallery owner, advocate
Amy Tipton is nothing if not resourceful. In 2013, shortly after opening her now-shuttered Belltown boutique Sassafras, she decided to resurrect the neighborhood’s monthly art walk, which had fizzled after Roq La Rue Gallery moved south to Pioneer Square. “I found an old map of the locations that used to participate, then reached out to…
Secrets of the Sound
A new mystery novel by local author Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum draws from her personal experiences
Writer Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum grew up surrounded by words. As children, she and her sister enjoyed falling asleep to their mother’s voice as she read books before bed, and their father — a Lutheran pastor and poet — spent every Sunday working on his sermons, reciting the words aloud as he wrote. “Being around a…
Most Influential: Susan Lieu
Author, Playwright
Last spring, after publishing her first book, Vietnamese American author, playwright, and performer Susan Lieu went on a 30-stop national tour culminating in an event with the Vietnam Society at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art. Along the way, Lieu garnered reviews and praise from media outlets including the New York Times, NPR, Kirkus…
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