New Seattle Art Fair Artistic Director on Exploring the Good, Bad and Ugly of Tech
Philly native Nato Thompson says this year’s fourth annual expo will explore changing forces within Seattle’s art scene
By Gavin Borchert August 2, 2018
This article originally appeared in the August 2018 issue of Seattle magazine.
This article appears in print in the August 2018 issue. Click here to subscribe.
“I know deeply how important it is to develop a complex cultural economy to support the arts. The Seattle Art Fair has given me the platform to do something that speaks to a broader community outside the traditional gallery or museum setting. Since Seattle is famously the home of many internet and tech companies, I’m eager to highlight work that is thinking through the good, bad and ugly of these profound, world-changing forces. These programming highlights include a prototype of artist Trevor Paglen’s satellite, ‘Orbital Reflector,’ that he’s launching into space at the end of the summer; Heather Dewey-Hagborg’s installation ‘Probably Chelsea,’ which features algorithmically generated masks of [transgender activist] Chelsea Manning using her DNA; and performances by machines made by [artist and inventor] Mark Pauline’s Survival Research Laboratories.”
8/2–8/5. Times and prices vary. CenturyLink Field Event Center, downtown, 1000 Occidental Ave. S; 212.518.6912; seattleartfair.com
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…