The Art of Summer: Three Festival Events Worth Seeing

Posted on August 22, 2019, 11:28 am
4 mins

Slide

Alas, we are officially in the denouement of summer. With Labor Day fast approaching, you know that autumn is close at hand. Fit some cultural activities into the last bit of your Seattle summer this week, through Sunday.

Seattle Design

Seattle Design Festival, Georgetown Design Crawl, Thursday, August 22

The Seattle Design Festival officially began last week, and it ends this Sunday. There are ongoing exhibitions happening citywide (and some installation in parks up until the 31st), but the last big shindig is the Georgetown Design Crawl. The neighborhood is known for its hive of artist studios and design firms. Nearly two dozen will have open houses, including Electric Coffin, Hoedemaker Pfeiffer and a slew of spaces and installations in Equinox Studios.

The after-party is at Photon Studios, a design space in a bohemian loft on Airport Way, just across the bridge north of Georgetown. You can RSVP for that free event online, but no RSVP is necessary for the design crawl. Just show up, explore the neighborhood, and see all the pretty things.

The Sense of Place Gallery in the Nordic Museum. Image courtesy of The Nordic Museum.

Nordic Sól 2019 at The Nordic Museum, August 22-25

Celebrating the lands of the Midnight Sun, The Nordic Museum presents a short festival of events and exhibitions this week. (Bonus: On Saturday and Sunday, admission is half-price!) The Nordic Sól festival begins Thursday, August 22, with a special edition of PechaKucha, a beloved Seattle lecture series on the arts and sciences. This edition will address the arts and culture of the Arctic…and also climate change.

Climate concerns simmer behind the work of photographer Ragnar Axelsson (aka Rax), whose focus is documenting glaciers. An exhibit of five large-scale photos by Rax opens with the festival and will be on display through September 30. And speaking of photography, the adjacent galleries are still showing the fantastic monographic exhibit of Hasse Persson’s photography. That show, Studio 54 and Beyond, ends this Sunday, so this is your last chance to see it if you haven’t yet.

See the website for the full list of events, including Inuit games, a special culinary tour of the Arctic, and a weekend of activities for families with children.

Performance in the Paccar Pavilion at Olympic Sculpture Park. Image courtesy of Seattle Art Museum.

SAM Remix at the Park, August 23

The biggest arty party of the month is definitely SAM Remix, this Friday, August 23. This one usually sells out a week in advance, but there are still tickets left this time. We get it…the rain has people wondering if they should commit to a big outdoor party in the Olympic Sculpture Park. Fortunately, the forecast is looking dry now!

This Remix will feature DJed music by dj100proof and DJ Essex, and pop-up performances by Dani Tirrell and The Congregation. Partake in art-making stations and check out installations inspired by the theme of changing patterns. (This theme takes its cue from Seattle Art Museum’s current exhibits Regina Silveira: Octopus Wrap and Victorian Radicals). Read more about all the activities on the official website.

Featured image courtesy of Seattle Art Museum

T.s. Flock is a writer and arts critic based in Seattle and co-founder of Vanguard Seattle.