Genius / 21 Century / Seattle

Genius / 21 Century / Seattle is an unprecedented, large-scale celebration of exceptional artistic practice in Seattle in the twenty-first century. It features over sixty-five visual artists, filmmakers, writers, theater artists, composers, musicians, choreographers, dancers, and arts organizations.

Genius has no limiting paradigm. It relinquishes the notion of an exhibition that does not change, that has a beginning and an end. It embodies instead a living exhibition that is in constant transformation.

Over a period of 16 weeks, Genius features 25 commissions and premieres, immersive installations, durational performances, collaborations across disciplines, film and literary festivals, music, dance, theater, rehearsals, workshops, and a citizen’s forum on Seattle’s future.

It offers a multitude of perspectives on the social, political, and cultural flux shaping Seattle and the global community. It addresses the complexities, discrepancies, and contradictions of issues such as unrestrained urban growth, social and racial inequity, and the threat of natural catastrophe. It expresses the shared concerns of the artists and citizens of Seattle while imagining alternative visions for the future.

Participating artists were selected over 13 years by Seattle’s artistic community and leading arts writers to be recipients of The Stranger Genius Award. The Frye Art Museum is itself a recipient. 

Genius continues the Frye’s inquiry into the role of the museum in the twenty-first century and its place in the cultural and intellectual life of the city. The museum becomes both platform and project; a Secessionist pandemonium, agnostic and promiscuous, and an antidote against ideological / categorical certitude and conditions of extreme constraint.

Among the distinguished artists, collaborative groups, and organizations participating in Genius are (in alphabetical order): Sherman Alexie, Sarah Bergmann, Matt Briggs, Rebecca Brown, Drew Christie, Web Crowell, Valerie Curtis-Newton, Robinson Devor, Steven Fisk, Ellen Forney, Frye Art Museum, Lori Goldston, Wynne Greenwood with K8 Hardy, Megan Griffiths, Gary Groth, Yussef El Guindi, Victoria Haven, Lesley Hazleton, Implied Violence, Industrial Revelation, C. Davida Ingram, The Intelligence, Chris Jeffries, Marya Sea Kaminski, Eyvind Kang, Ben Kasulke, Jessika Kenney, Lead Pencil Studio, Susie J. Lee, Stacey Levine, James Longley, Heather McHugh, Jeffry Mitchell, Zia Mohajerjasbi, Cary Moon, Charles Mudede, Paul Mullin, On the Boards, John Olson, John Osebold, Pacific Northwest Ballet, DK Pan, Mary Ann Peters, Linas Phillips, Jonathan Raban, Susan Robb, Sarah Rudinoff, David Russo, Scarecrow Video, Alex Schweder, Seattle School, Michael Seiwerath, Shabazz Palaces with Nep Sidhu, Lynn Shelton, Cherdonna Shinatra, SuttonBeresCuller, Rodrigo Valenzuela, Velocity Dance Center, Jim Woodring, Maged Zaher, Jennifer Zeyl, and zoe | juniper.

Genius / 21 Century / Seattle is curated by Jo-Anne Birnie Danzker and Erika Dalya Massaquoi.

#GeniusEvents
genius.fryemuseum.org/calendar

Media contact
Jeffrey Hirsch, T + 1 206 432 8266 / jhirsch [​at​] fryemuseum.org

Support
Genius / 21 Century / Seattle is a Raynier Institute & Foundation exhibition organized by the Frye Art Museum and curated by Jo-Anne Birnie Danzker and Erika Dalya Massaquoi. The exhibition is funded by the Frye Foundation and the Raynier Institute & Foundation through the Frye Art Museum | Artist Trust Consortium. Generous support was provided by the Hugh and Jane Ferguson Foundation, the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, 4Culture/King County Lodging Tax, Douglas Smith and Stephanie Ellis-Smith, Riddell Williams P.S., Nitze-Stagen, and Frye Art Museum members and donors. Seasonal support is provided by ArtsFund. Print media sponsorship is provided by The Stranger. Broadcast media sponsorship is provided by KUOW 94.9 FM.