Celebrate: Pride on Capitol Hill
No Seattle Pride celebration is complete without a visit to Capitol Hill—the queer epicenter of our city bejeweled with rainbow crosswalks and LGBTQ+ establishments. Pride parades and bar activations abound during Pride weekend (June 24th-June 26th) with PrideFest often dominating Cal Anderson and the neighborhood at large on Saturday, June 25th. We love and support all the events and celebrations that Capitol Hill provides during Pride season, but we have a reverence for a particular community staple: The Wildrose. There are only a few lesbian bars left in the United States and our very own Wildrose is one of them. For the past 34 years, The Rose has been celebrating Pride and this year is no different.
Join The Wildrose this Pride weekend as they welcome a diverse selection of local and regional artists Friday through Sunday. This year, after a two-year hiatus, they’re partnering with Kendall’s DJ and Event (KDJE) and KEXP to curate and manage a robust and dynamic lineup of talent, including Adra Boo, Brittany Davis, Bijoux, DJ Skiddle, DJ Brynn Taylor, and many more. The Rose has ambitious programming for Pride weekend with Friday festivities taking place from 6 pm – midnight, Saturday festivities from 1 pm – midnight, and Sunday festivities from 1 pm – 10 pm. Their weekend-long event also includes dancers, live performances, and multiple bar activations. Snag a single day or full weekend ticket to support your local lesbian bar this Pride season.
June 24th – 26th
COMMEMORATE: REVIVAL: Juneteenth Pop Up Market
Juneteenth is the oldest nationally observed commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. It’s a time for the Black community to celebrate and the nonblack community to self-educate, honor, and embrace Black culture through its art and history (which should be a daily practice). As residents in Seattle, a predominantly white city, arguably one of the most impactful ways we can implement this practice is to support our local Black owned businesses and organizations. This Juneteenth, join the Capitol Hill EcoDistrict at Midtown Plaza for their REVIVAL: Juneteenth Pop-up Market, a celebration of the Black owned business in our community. Connect with their community partners, Arte Noir, the Central Area Collaborative, and Craft3, to uplift Black businesses in the heart of the Central District, a historically African American neighborhood. KEXP 90.3 FM, hosted by Larry Mizell Jr. and DJ Riz, will broadcast live from the event providing music and ambiance while you explore the market. Discover Black retailers, food vendors, and resources from community organizations that specialize in elevating thriving Black communities. Check out Capitol Hill EcoDistrict’s Instagram and Facebook to learn more about their vendors and community partners.
June 19th | 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
SEE: Romare Bearden: Abstraction at The Frye
Our favorite free entry museum, the Frye, is welcoming a large body of work by Romare Bearden on June 25th, featuring over fifty-five paintings, works on paper, and collages. This exhibition is the first to fully explore Bearden’s influential abstract work created between 1952 and 1964. The New York avant-garde artist is not only recognized as one of the most creative and original visual artists of the twentieth century, but he is also celebrated for his work as a writer, social worker, and activist. As an instrumental organizer of the time, he was the first art director of the Harlem Cultural Council, a prominent African American advocacy group, and was involved in the founding of The Studio Museum in Harlem. Fleeing to New York in childhood to escape the Jim Crow South, Bearden studied art and established a thriving career by 1945 then transitioned to non-representational subjects in the ‘50s. A trailblazer of the “stain painting” method, Bearden continually reimagined what artmaking could be, developing additional techniques that incorporated the mediums of casein and collage.
Abstraction will be on display at the Frye until September 18th and is a historically moving exhibit you won’t want to miss. Check the Frye’s calendar for curator tours and workshops surrounding Romare Bearden’s works.
June 25th – September 18th