Art: Local and Public Art

A general research guide about art for students at UW Bothell and Cascadia College.

Finding Seattle and Pacific Northwest art information

This page provides links to additional useful resources for researching art in public spaces, and information about art in the Seattle area.

Seattle Art Resources

Seattle Art Museum (SAM)
The Seattle Art Museum opened in 1933. Our collections include Asian, African, Ancient American, Ancient Mediterranean, Islamic, European, Oceanic, American, modern and contemporary art, and decorative arts and design.
Seattle Asian Art Museum
The Seattle Asian Art Museum resides in our landmark 1933 Art Deco building in the Olmsted-designed Volunteer Park in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle. While Chinese and Japanese art remain the largest areas of our renowned collection of Asian art, our holdings of art works from Korea, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Himalayas, and the Middle East have also grown significantly, and we actively collect contemporary Asian art.
Olympic Sculpture Park
The Olympic Sculpture Park features works from SAM's collection, sculpture commissioned specifically for the park, loans, and changing installations. The artistic program reflects a range of approaches to sculpture, past and present, and is designed to respond to evolving ideas about sculpture in the future.
Frye Art Museum
Located in Seattle’s First Hill neighborhood since 1952, the Frye is the city’s only free art museum. The Founding Collection of primarily late-nineteenth and early-twentieth-century European art was gifted in perpetuity to the people of Seattle by prominent early-twentieth-century Seattle business leaders and art collectors Charles and Emma Frye.
Henry Art Gallery
Located at the University of Washington Seattle campus. The Henry’s permanent collection includes both historical and contemporary artworks, collected since the museum’s inception in 1926. The collection now contains more than 28,000 works of art.
Seattle Public Art
City of Seattle Office of Cultural Affairs site, with images of Seattle's public art, suggestions for walking tours, and videos.
Artist Trust
Artist Trust is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that supports working artists of all disciplines in Washington State. We fuel our funding and other programs for artists through fundraising, partnership, and community engagement. Recognized as a national model for direct funding and professional development for working artists, we have invested over $15 million in individual artists since our founding in 1986.
Center on Contemporary Art
CoCA serves the Pacific Northwest as a catalyst and forum for the advancement, development, and understanding of Contemporary Art. CoCA has been a vital part of contemporary art in the Northwest since 1981, and has operated galleries and produced events throughout the Seattle area over that time.
Chihuly Garden and Glass
A comprehensive collection of Northwest artist Dale Chihuly at Seattle Center. Includes an Exhibition Hall, a Garden installation and a Glasshouse. Through its community partners, Chihuly Garden and Glass supports opportunities for education and involvement in the arts.

Find news articles on public art and artists

Newspaper articles can be a good source of information about the contemporary art scene and public art. You can find newspaper interviews with artists, as well as articles about specific works of public art.

Access World News
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Includes full-text articles from hundreds of US and international news sources. (Change the focus from international to US-only using the "shortcuts" in the left column.)

US Newsstream This link opens in a new window
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Washington State, national & regional newspapers, 1980 - present

Public Art Resources (Seattle & beyond)

Public Art Network
"Americans for the Arts Public Art Network (PAN) develops professional services for the broad array of individuals and organizations engaged in the diverse field of public art. PAN is the only professional network in the United States dedicated to advancing public art programs and projects through advocacy, policy and information resources to further art and design in our built environment."
Public Art Archive
"The Public Art Archive™ is a free, online resource for comprehensive data and rich media, employing a standardized framework to catalog public art. The Archive allows collection stewards to share their artworks with new, broader audiences; helps explorers find information about public art in their world; and aids in the sharing of best practices in public art for researchers and stakeholders. The database was launched in 2009 and continues to grow both in content and also features." (Description from 'About' page)
Public Art Review
"Public Art Review, published by Forecast Public Art, is devoted exclusively to the field of contemporary public art. Published bi-annually for 24 years, the magazine is the premier source for public art information around the world." (website description). Some material available only through subscription. Material available in full online may be ordered via interlibrary loan (http://www.lib.washington.edu/ill/).
4 Culture King County
4Culture takes a unique approach to serving our region. Our four program areas—arts, heritage, historic preservation, and public art—put public resources to use all over King County. We work to ensure access to cultural experiences for all, from museum collections to theater productions to artists showing work in our gallery.