The Must List: Freedom Fantasia, Fourth of July Festivities and the Gate to Nowhere Art Installation
Things to do in Seattle this weekend
By Seattle Magazine Staff July 3, 2014
Must Paddle
Rent a Canoe and See the Gate to Nowhere
(Through winter, times vary) — You’ve likely seen the abandoned SR-520 “ramps to nowhere” in the Arboretum, leftover after voters rejected the R.H. Thomson Expressway in 1972. The spooky half-built highway will be torn down when the new 520 Bridge is completed, but in the meantime, an art installation called Gate to Nowhere highlights the visual impact of the structures. It’s best seen up close, so rent a canoe or kayak and paddle through a piece of Seattle history.
Must Ooh and Ahh
Lake Union Festivities Galore
(7/4 to 7/6, times vary) — The Center for Wooden Boats is holding its 38th annual waterfront fest–featuring free boat rides, a boatbuilding race and historic ship tours. After you get your seafaring fill, locate a spot in Lake Union Park to plop down and watch the Fourth of July fireworks.
Must Head East
See Stunning Artworks at Bellwether 2014
(7/5 to 7/6, times vary) — It’s time once again for the biennial Bellevue sculpture exhibition, featuring exciting new installations by Northwest artists including Elizabeth Gahan and Junichiro Iwase. Drink in the art over the holiday weekend–30+ works stretching from Downtown Park to City Hall.
Must Fly a Fabulous Flag
Freedom Fantasia Takes Over The Triple Door
Thursday (7/3, 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m.) — This wonderfully wild spectacle of patriotism featuring song, dance, burlesque and theater returns for the fourth year to the Triple Door Mainstage. Witness stars BenDeLaCreme from season six of RuPaul’s Drag Race, local drag performer Lou Henry Hoover and Kitten LaRue of The Atomic Bombshells celebrate America in all its glittery glory.
Must Hear
Amy Pennington Reads at Book Larder
Tuesday (6/8, 6:30 p.m.) — Seattle urban farmer, host of KCTS restaurant review show Check, Please! and Seattle mag contributor Amy Pennington has released a new book, Fresh Pantry: Eat Seasonally, Cook Smart & Learn to Love Your Vegetables, bursting with recipes based in local bounty. She’ll share her words of wisdom at Fremont cookbook haven Book Larder.
Follow Us
Studio Sessions: Jo Cosme
The Seattle-based multimedia artist and 2026 Neddy Award winner challenges the postcard version of Puerto Rico and centers the persistence of its people.
Jo Cosme knows how seductive a postcard can be. The Seattle-based Boricua (Puerto Rican) multimedia artist works across photography, installation, video, sound, and interactive elements to examine and pull apart how Puerto Rico is seen, sold, and misunderstood from the outside. Trained in photojournalism, with a BFA in photography from Puerto Rico School of Fine…
Seattle’s Drag Brunch Has History
The city’s Sunday shows started long before the mimosas got bottomless.
There was a time not too long ago, when drag performances—now a mainstay of Seattle’s queer scene—were kept under wraps. And when brunches, complete with singing and dancing queens dressed in dazzling drag as you sipped mimosas, weren’t a Sunday staple. During the 1940s and ‘50s, an era largely shaped by restrictive laws and bias…
Studio Sessions: Sangram Majumdar
Working at the confluence of history, culture, and various painting traditions, UW associate professor Sangram Majumdar is one of this year’s Neddy Artist Award winners.
Discover the art of UW professor Sangram Majumdar, a 2026 Neddy Artist Award winner. Learn about his inspiration and upcoming Seattle exhibition at Cornish.
Rearview Mirror: A Georgian Dinner, Sidewalk Sips, and One-of-a-Kind Clothing
Things I did, saw, ate, learned, or read in the past week (or so).
A new life for old clothes To celebrate one year in its current studio, the FXRY—a clothing repair service available via in-person appointments, home pickup, or mail-in drop off—is dropping its first collection. A small batch of reworked pieces, Second Mark will feature 13 vintage barn jackets, cropped, chain-stitched, and renewed into a completely unique, one-of-one…