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Virtual Reality Exhibit Coming to South Lake Union Puts You Inside a Warzone

A traveling exhibition invites visitors to walk in the shoes of refugees.

7-Forced-From-Home-Elias-Williams

This article originally appeared in the October 2017 issue of Seattle magazine.

It’s hard for most of us to imagine the reality faced by the world’s estimated 65 million refugees: stay put in a war- or famine-ravaged home country, or flee to an unknown future with only a few possessions?

That’s the point of Forced from Home, a 10,000-square-foot traveling outdoor exhibit that lands in Seattle on Monday. Organized by Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the international health organization working in countries such as South Sudan, Syria and Afghanistan, the event is designed to promote “a more nuanced understanding of the refugee crisis,” according to MSF communications director Michael Goldfarb.

The installation (which contains some content best suited for ages 12 and older) is staffed by real aid workers, and uses virtual-reality, 360-degree film technology and interactive simulations to help participants “get as close as they can to being in one of these settings,” Goldfarb says. “It’s an opportunity to step outside of yourself and to ponder for a moment what it must be like.”

Forced From Home
10/2–10/8. 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Free.
South Lake Union Discovery Center, 101 Westlake Ave. N
forcedfromhome.com

 

SENSORIUM Takes on Our Screen Addiction

SENSORIUM Takes on Our Screen Addiction

Dance, drag, and immersive art collide in an eight-week exploration of our phone-obsessed lives, with a few surprises along the way. 

What do drag queens, smartphone addiction, art installations, and an old luggage shop have in common?  According to longtime Seattle choreographer Alana O’Farrell Rogers, a lot.  “There’s no dead time anymore,” says Rogers, explaining how the proliferation of smartphones fills the empty spaces that once served as time for rest or connection. Where we snuggled…

Salt-N-Pepa on Breaking Barriers and Staying Power

Salt-N-Pepa on Breaking Barriers and Staying Power

Ahead of their performance at Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture gala, the hip-hop pioneers talk about creative ownership, connecting with new generations, and the songs that still resonate.

The Museum of Pop Culture (MOPOP) will host its annual ICONS of Pop Culture Gala in Seattle on October 22, honoring five artists and institutions whose work has helped shape entertainment and culture.  This year’s honorees are martial arts and film legend Bruce Lee, fashion designer Jeremy Scott, the video game franchise Halo, hip-hop pioneers…

Studio Sessions: Christopher Paul Jordan

Studio Sessions: Christopher Paul Jordan

Drawing on childhood memories, neighborhood history, and salvaged materials, Christopher Paul Jordan’s latest show at Cornish’s Behnke Family Gallery explores how the past stays with us.

Start in the middle. It’s good advice for telling a story, and a way into Christopher Paul Jordan’s paintings. By the time you encounter them, their materials have already been something else, and who knows what they might move on to become. The Tacoma interdisciplinary artist works with salvaged objects, including screens, picture frames, canvas,…

Rearview Mirror: Wedding Bells, A Furniture Launch, and the Symphony’s New Look 

Rearview Mirror: Wedding Bells, A Furniture Launch, and the Symphony’s New Look 

Things I did, saw, ate, learned, or read in the past week (or so).

WEDDING BELLS I’ve been a bit absent from this column lately, but I think I have a pretty good excuse: I got married! It’s already been three weeks since my September 19 wedding, but I’m still reflecting on the magic of the day. My fiancé, well husband now (I can’t get used to saying it!),…