Spring for Art

Spring is symbolic of renewal, and as COVID-19 guidelines have recently shifted, more establishments are offering in-person performances and exhibitions. Plus, as the weather clears, it’s a great time to get outside for an art walk. The latest addition to Vulcan’s public art walk, “The Wanderer,” twists and curves through time and space like a playful, mythological sea serpent. See it at Lakefront Blocks along Fairview Avenue off Mercer St.

April and May are full of amazing art opportunities, from exhibitions to music festivals and more. Check out what’s going on in South Lake Union’s vibrant arts community:

Aquarium Daydream, through April 19

Winston Wachter Fine Art, 203 Dexter Ave. N., Seattle

Kim Keever’s underwater photographs take a conceptually simple process to its logical, sublime conclusion. Comprised of works from his Abstract series, Aquarium Daydream magnifies the ephemeral, crashing elegance of chemical interactions through bursting, combusting clouds of paint. Tickets: Contact [email protected] to view the work

P.L.U.A. (Proposed Land Use Action), through April 30

MadArt Seattle, 325 Westlake Ave. N. No. 101

In the current studio exhibition at MadArt Seattle, print artist Jite Agbro reimagines the public housing complex where she grew up in Seattle’s Central District. Agbro thoughtfully places architectural textiles and prints throughout the MadArt studio space to create a fragmented rendering of her former home. Patrons will see large, semi-transparent graphic panels hanging horizontally and vertically throughout the exhibition. Tickets: Free and open to the public by appointment.

“Great Blue Herons,” through April 30

Amazon, Day 1 Playfield staircase

Seattle-based artist Craig Cundiff created this massive anamorphic chalk art mural near The Spheres at Amazon in South Lake Union. Tickets: Free and open to the public

BFA Exhibition, April 1-14

9th Ave Gallery, 2014 9th St., Seattle

View work by Cornish College of the Arts BFA candidates. Tickets: Free and open to the public

Orlando, April 6-10

Alhadeff Studio at the Cornish Playhouse, 201 Mercer St., Seattle

Sarah Ruhl’s adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s classic novel “Orlando” is a wondrous journey toward self-actualization. Our wandering protagonist’s search for fulfillment is a fantastical romp through time, playfully exploring the effects gender expectations have on our lives and loves. Tickets: $10 general admission

“Once,” April 7-10

Cornish Playhouse at Seattle Center, 201 Mercer St., Seattle

An exploration of an unconventional love story between a struggling Irish busker and an unexpected stranger who enters his life, amongst a community of Irish misfits and Czech immigrants who come together to form a community of those lost and found. Based on the award-winning film by John Carney, featuring the music of Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, played and sung by the ensemble. Tickets: $10 general admission

New Plays Festival, April 14–16 and 21–23

Raisbeck Performance Hall, 2015 Boren Ave., Seattle

Enjoy three plays by student playwrights and directors: “Rat Cage,” “Meet Cuter,” and “The Acheron’s Drop.” Tickets: TBD

BFA Showcase: Film April 28–30

Cornish Playhouse, 1000 Lenora St., Seattle

See screenings of films by Cornish College of the Arts BFA candidates.

Tickets: TBD

Spring 2022 Dance Theater, April 22–23

Cornish Playhouse at Seattle Center, 201 Mercer St., Seattle

This program features three short contemporary works created by legendary choreographer Pat Graney and two exceptional Cornish alumnae: Amy J Lambert and Alicia Mullikin. Tickets: $10 general admission

Clarinet Dances, April 29

Emerald City Music, 415 Westlake, Seattle

This program features a pair of remarkable and colorful clarinet quintets. Carl Maria Von Weber’s quintet was designed  so that the clarinetist could travel town to town and gather local musicians to support he four strings parts of this work. David Bruce’s Gumboots is a thematic clarinet quintet that brings to light the brutal labor conditions of South Africa under Apartheid.

Tickets: $55 for general admission

BFA Exhibition, April 29–May 16

9th Avenue Gallery, 2014 Ninth St., Seattle

See design and interior architecture work for Cornish College of the Arts BFA candidates. Tickets: Free and open to the public

Score of Sound Music Festival, May 3–5

Raisbeck Performance Hall, 2015 Boren Ave., Seattle

This three-day music festival features capstone and cornerstone projects and performances from Cornish College of the Arts music majors. Tickets: Free and open to the public

Insomnia, May 13

Emerald City Music, 415 Westlake, Seattle

Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, a student of Johann Sebastian Bach was hired at age 14 to play for Hermann Karl von Keyserling, a 17th-century count who often suffered from insomnia. The count commissioned Bach to write harpsichord pieces for Goldberg to play whenever he could not sleep. Emerald City Music will offer these works arranged for a string trio.

Tickets: $55

“Ansel Adams: Masterworks,” May 28–September 5

Museum of History and Industry, 860 Terry Ave., Seattle

This special traveling exhibit features 48 photographs by Ansel Adams, one of America’s most iconic landscape photographers. Adams considered this collection of photos his best work, and it showcases his reverence for the beauty of the natural world. Sharing the same space is “Perspectives on Place: Photographs from Here,” which features approximately 15 photographs from the collections of MOHA and the Black Heritage Society of Washington State. Tickets:  $22 for adults, $18 for seniors, $17 for students and military, and free for youth aged 14 and under and MOHAI members.