Seattle Art Museum

"To encounter Diego Cibelli is to discover a rare and unique, almost mythological, creature. He is the proverbial unicorn. His physical presence astonishes with his courageous and bold sartorial choices." – Christian Larsen, Cultural Historian and Independent Curator Diego Cibelli's "Fiori dei miei Habiti / La Montagne Enchantée" is the latest site-specific installation to take residence in SAM's iconic Porcelain Room. Now on #SAMBlog, the exhibition's guest curator Christian Larsen shares his thoughts on Cibelli's breathtaking artwork, prolific practice, and fearlessness in continuing and expanding upon the Capodimonte porcelain tradition. Read it now! https://lnkd.in/gartettE

📷 At SAM, taking photos next to your favorite artworks on view is always encouraged. And in the galleries of “Calder: In Motion, The Shirley Family Collection,” that’s even more true! Get your tickets to see the SAM-curated exhibition now and tag us in your photos for a chance to be featured on our Instagram. visitsam.org/calder [📸 @teyyyv, @abisaimartinezlaredo, @600sqftandababy, @yuhlex, @manishe, and @newguyonbar on IG]

🤡 Which is your favorite clown? In “Jesus in a Crowd (After Ensor)” (1991), Northwest-based artist Jeffry Mitchell humorously reimagines Dutch artist James Ensor’s “Christ’s Entry into Brussels in 1889” (1888). In Mitchell’s interpretation, the chaotic crowds welcoming Christ are replaced by a sea of plaster clowns—alternatively smiling, grimacing, or seemingly melting like pools of whipped cream—while Jesus himself appears as an oversized puppet-like knit doll. Watch this video to learn more about Mitchell’s carnivalesque scene, and its simultaneously ridiculous and sincere view of humanity, from Carrie Dedon, SAM Associate Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art. Then, get tickets to see the work on view for yourself in “Poke in the Eye: Art of the West Coast Counterculture,” on view at SAM through Monday, September 2! visitsam.org/pokeintheeye

🤗 Free museum admission on a Wednesday? We knew we loved hump day for a reason. Beginning Wednesday, August 28, the Seattle Asian Art Museum is returning to a schedule of five days a week, Wednesday through Sunday, from 10 am to 5 pm. As a thank you to our incredible visitors for making this return possible, we're offering complimentary museum admission to all on that day. Not only is admission free at our original home in Volunteer Park, it's also the opening day of our new exhibition "Meot: Korean Art from the Frank Bayley." Join us throughout the day to be one of the first to see this exquisite collection of historic and contemporary Korean artworks on view. Tickets are going fast—reserve yours now before they're gone! https://lnkd.in/gZfZqfC8 [📸 Natali Wiseman]

SAM Remix is tomorrow, Friday, August 23 at the Olympic Sculpture Park! 👗 For inspiration on how to dress for the Avant Garden, our friends at Armoire have curated a custom wardrobe for SAM Remix. Check out the mood boards below for a glimpse at the variety of floral, animal print, formal, casual, boho, and preppy looks Armoire's stylists have pulled together, then visit the link below to shop the entire collection. Plus, SAM Remix attendees interested in joining Armoire can use the code SAMREMIX2024 for 50% off any plan and two bonus items! https://lnkd.in/gRHht_G7

📞 “Poke in the Eye” is off the hook! You’ve got two weeks to see “Poke in the Eye: Art of the West Coast Counterculture” on view at SAM. And if this video doesn’t convince you to make time to see this homegrown exhibition in the heart of downtown Seattle, we don’t know what will. 🎟️ ➡️ visitsam.org/pokeintheeye 

😱 SAM Remix is nearly here! Join us this Friday, August 23 from 8 pm to midnight at the Olympic Sculpture Park for an enchanting evening of art installations that push boundaries, performances that will raise your pulse, fashion displays inspired by the artworks at the park, photo booths where you become the art, DJs, tours, and more. Don't have your tickets yet? 🎟️ Reserve yours now before they're gone. visitsam.org/remix

“The Crinklies… make hash of all the sculptor’s traditional assumptions about color and surface, much as Calder’s earliest wire sculpture demolished all the traditional assumptions about volume and void.” – Jed Perl, Calder Biographer Alexander Calder took a radical approach to color and surface in his objects known as Crinkles. These works, which can be figurative or abstract, are identified by their bent geometrical surfaces with multicolor planes. “Crinkly Crocodile” (1971), on view in “Calder: In Motion, The Shirley Family Collection” at SAM, is marked by its twisted triangular form. A closer look at the sculpture reveals the crocodile’s eyes and mouth. visitsam.org/calder [📸 Alborz Kamalizad © 2024 Calder Foundation, New York / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.]

meot 멋 (noun): A Korean term meaning charm, style, beauty, creativity, and refined aesthetic sensibilities. Featuring over 60 artworks, including an array of ceramics—Buncheong ware, whiteware, and blue-and-white—alongside paintings, photography, calligraphy, and wooden works, "Meot: Korean Art from the Frank Bayley Collection" reveals how Bayley, a generous art patron, embodied the philosophy of meot in his unique collecting vision and close friendships with the contemporary Korean artists featured in the exhibition. "Meot" opens Wednesday, August 28 at the Seattle Asian Art Museum. Reserve your tickets now to be one of the first to see this new exhibition on view! visitsam.org/meot

😍 We love when visitors get creative in our galleries! Many of the artists featured in “Poke in the Eye: Art of the West Coast Counterculture” at SAM transform mundane, everyday objects into new and original works of art. In this art activity conceptualized by SAM’s Interpretation team, visitors can choose from one of four illustrations—a trailer, a toilet, a teacup, and a rotary phone—and transform them from something ordinary into something extraordinary. Since the exhibition’s opening in June, about 6,000 object cards have been transformed! We’ve seen teacups become UFOs, toilets become monsters, trailers become rocketships, and so much more. Browse through the images below for a look at just a few of the submissions we’ve collected from our visitors so far. Be sure to check out the interpretation space for “Poke in the Eye” on your next visit to SAM to participate in this art project and other creative activities! visitsam.org/pokeintheeye  [📸 Chloe Collyer]