Seattle Art Fair week has arrived, bringing with it the usual wave of creativity that brings collectors, artists, and art enthusiasts together. This year’s fair at Lumen Field is set to spotlight the Pacific Northwest’s storied glass art legacy, with Pilchuck Glass School and the Museum of Glass (Tacoma) teaming up to showcase the region’s innovation in the medium. The Corning Museum of Glass will present a special pop-up installation highlighting a contemporary glass artist recently featured in New Glass Review 44.

But while glass art takes center stage, including a Mobile Hot Shop set up at the main entrance where you can watch live glassblowing up close, there are also plenty of satellite exhibitions and community-driven events that round out the experience. 

Earlier this summer, the Museum of Flight debuted The MiG-21 Project, the world premiere of Ralph Ziman’s five-year transformation of a Cold War-era fighter jet into a see-it-to-believe-it work of art which is sure to be a draw for visitors during Art Fair week.

Another exhibit taking place just down the road from Seattle Art Fair is At The Garden, a five-day multimedia art exhibition and film festival hosted by Arrived Creative Collective in partnership with TASWIRA Gallery. The exhibition runs July 16-20 and includes works by 15 artists, with a mission to foster community and support Black and Brown emerging creatives.

We swung by for an early look at the exhibit during a preview event, where the room buzzed as artists discussed their work and shared ideas. Later in the evening, we made our way up a steep staircase to an intimate upstairs screening room, where we were given a preview of the five short films that will officially debut in the days ahead. Beyond the films, the exhibition featured a rich selection of photography, paintings, and sculptures.

The lineup for this exhibit is impressive with artists that include Daniel Seddo, Elissa Gibson, Felix Amenyo, Teni Ayo-Ariyo, Tasanee Durrett, Nifemi Mandarikan, Lara Kaur, Kyla Cantillo, Sanwal Deen, Beniam Yetbarek, Prachy Mohan, Moses Sun, Cheyenne Araujo, Nathan Abia Lawer-Yolar, and Ashley Robinson. 

The official opening for At The Garden is tonight with gallery hours from 12 – 5 p.m. Evening sessions run from 7 – 9:30 p.m. starting with the film screenings on July 17 at 8 p.m. with a filmmaker talk right after. The rest of the week includes daily film screenings, an artist panel on July 18, live jazz performances for Garden Groove Day on July 19, and it all wraps up with an after party on July 20. Check out the full schedule here: https://www.arrivedcollective.co/at-the-garden

It’s sure to be a busy four days as the Seattle Art Fair kicks in. For a full schedule of programming and events check out: https://seattleartfair.com