05 Mar The New Foundation Seattle

by Courtney Crockett

This March First Thursday Art Walk is the perfect time to share discovery of The New Foundation Seattle. Having passed by the location at 312 2nd Ave S on any number of occasions since its opening 6 months ago, I made my way through the unassuming doors to find an organization run by 3 outstanding women, all with serious and longtime commitment to the arts.

TNFS Founding DIrector, Yoko Ott and Associate Director, Jessica Powers

The powerful forces behind non-profit TNFS are its President, Shari Behnke, a longtime art collector and benefactor having introduced the Neddy award program to Cornish College of the Arts and the Brink award in conjunction with the Henry Art Gallery. She is a former board trustee for Artist Trust. The Founding Director, Yoko Ott brings her background as both curator and educator having developed programs and initiatives for Bumbershoot, the Frye, the Hedreen Gallery and Open Satellite, and Associate Director, Jessica Powers, is a founding member of curatorial collective TARL and former curator of Seattle University’s Hedreen Gallery.

Yoko and Jessica acted as my guides and it was refreshing when told that TNFS chose Pioneer Square as their destination. In learning about the space I indulged in the glimmer of nostalgia, briefly transported to the way back days when the Square was a center for Seattle’s arts community. Home to the city’s most prominent galleries and replete with artists living and working out of their slightly illegal and affordable studios.

The New Foundation Seattle emphasizes Seattle-based contemporary artists, it contributes to the contemporary art dialogue as well as nurtures the art community through shared events at Town Hall Seattle, University of Washington Jacob Lawrence Gallery and Henry Art Gallery, and On the Boards. For Pioneer Square, TNFS is a cultural resource center providing to the public free events and services in both the library and presentation rooms.

The Library offers access to regularly updated arts and culture periodicals and trade journals inside a comfortable reading room with plush pillows and chairs. Reading material complimentary to current art programming is available as well as suggested reading relevant to works on display throughout the city including the Seattle Art Museum.

The Presentation Room is a collective laboratory for contemporary art featuring exhibitions, lectures, performances and workshops.

Image Still from HOWDOYOUSAYYAMINAFRICAN? Courtesy of Artists

Screening Now – 28 March and 5 March First Thursday Art Walk until 8pm. HOWDOYOUSAYYAMINAFRICAN? Artist Christa Bell and YAMS added to the dialogue of “subjective authenticity” in part by withdrawing their operatic video from the Whitney Biennial in 2014. The central question posed, “What happens to the black body when it is haunted by ‘a blackness’ outside of it?

The New Foundation Seattle Presentation Room

Literary Event Tuesday 10 March at 7pm. Readings by Poets Chris Nealon and Robert Mittenthal. Introduction by Maged Zaher.

Literary Event Friday 27 March at 7pm. Topic Ecopoetics: An Evening of Poetry with readings by Rob Halpern, Angela Hume, Gillian Osborne, Joan Retallack, Evie Shockley, and Jonathan Skinner.

The New Foundation Seattle is open Thursdays – Saturdays from 11am to 6pm. For more information on programs and events visit http://www.thenewest.org/