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Monday 10am - 6pm Tuesday 10am - 6pm Wednesday 10am - 6pm Thursday 10am - 6pm Friday 10am - 6pm

Northwest Folklife

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Northwest Folklife

For the time being, any that activities within our office will be by appointment only.*
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Northwest Folklife is an independent, non-profit arts organization [501(c)(3)] that celebrates the multigenerational arts, cultures, and traditions of a global Pacific Northwest, 365 days a year. Northwest Folklife is an independent arts organization that celebrates the intergenerational arts, cultures, and traditions of a global Pacific Northwest, 365 days a year.

*Due to the concerns of COVID-1

9, the Northwest Folklife office will not be open for walk-in meetings or visitors for the foreseeable future.

08/22/2026

Three months ago, we celebrated the 55th annual NWFL festival!

As the summer comes to a close, we will be slowly planning the 2027 festival, so we hope you’ll come out and celebrate with us again in 8 months!

The footage used in this reel was taken from GZR’s youth media team.

08/20/2026

Threads of the People aimed to highlight sustainable and reusable fashion and empower us all to find our own style creatively and responsibly.

Audience members cheered on local designers and their collections, bought their new favorite piece from the vendor space, or traded their clothes at our clothing swap for second-hand treasures.

So, we wanted to share these beautiful looks by Bangkok by Sunrise Couture during the Threads of the People Fashion Show at our 2026 festival.

Mother (pattern designer) and daughter (fashion designer) wanted to express the Thai traditional clothes in the new generation where people could see the beady and the meaning!

The photos used in this post were taken by William Munoz.

08/18/2026

To close out our 2000s NWFL Festival Archives series, we are highlighting local Caribbean current day artists and small businesses like the Seattle Steel Pan Project and Dingolay!

The Seattle Steel Pan Project is the culmination of over 30 years of steel pan educational programming and performance in the Pacific Northwest.

The Seattle Steel Pan Project (SSPP) is managed under the administrative direction of Oriana Estrada and the artistic direction of Michael Shantz and promotes steel pan culture through: Public performance, K-12 school based steel pan curriculum, after-school and summer camps, public community classes and workshops, as well as private lessons.

SSPP has a professional performance ensemble featuring some of the most seasoned steel pan performers and musicians in the Pacific North West. Available for hire at festivals, community or corporate events, private parties, weddings and more.

Dingolay means to dance, twist and turn in elaborate movements, symbolising the culture and language of the ancestors of the people of Trinidad and Tobago.

Founded by Shannon K. Dudley, UW Chair of Ethnomusicology, Dingolay is a result of his deep study of the steel pans and the music and cultures of Trinidad and Tobago.

08/17/2026

Open Space for Arts & Community is part of Folklife's Our Big Neighborhood, and they would love for you all to support their Blessing Bled Chimanga show this Thursday at 7:30pm on Vashon Island!

An internationally acclaimed Zimbabwean musician, singer, and songwriter, celebrated for his electrifying stage presence and remarkable talent as a multi-instrumentalist. A virtuoso on the marimba, drums, and vocals, Blessing seamlessly blends Afro-jazz, traditional Zimbabwean sounds, and contemporary rhythms to create music that resonates globally.

This performance will also feature Vashon guitarist Bruce Phares, so we hope to see you there at Open Space!

08/14/2026

To close out our 2000s NWFL Festival Archives series, we are highlighting local Caribbean current day artists and small businesses like Pam’s Kitchen and local Steel Pan groups!

From our 2026 Community Foodways Kitchen, Pam’s Kitchen is known for introducing many guests to Trinidadian food for the first time in a warm, family-centered setting.

Please consider donating to her Go-Fund Me or sharing the link as her restaurants face eviction: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-save-pams-caribbean-kitchen.

Steel pan music is a vibrant style of Caribbean music played on the steel pan.

In the dual photo post, the first photo on top is steel.rain253 and the second photo on the bottom is phinneyridgesteelband!

Each group has played together and separately at Pam’s Kitchen. They both aim to spread education through the joy of music, serving the community with steel pan music!

08/13/2026

In an attempt to expand our relations when working with the youth, we piloted a Youth Media Team for the 2026 Festival.

We worked closely with one high schooler, Jada Wambua, who was interested in producing an interactive map where you can click on the different musical hotspots and listen to actual festival performances of that specific location.

Check out the map for yourself at https://view.genially.com/6a336a69c273733ff0f18089!

08/11/2026

Threads of the People aimed to highlight sustainable and reusable fashion and empower us all to find our own style creatively and responsibly.

Audience members cheered on local designers and their collections, bought their new favorite piece from the vendor space, or traded their clothes at our clothing swap for second-hand treasures.

So, a big highlight we wanted to share from our 2026 festival are these looks by Bangkok Sunrise Couture during the Threads of the People Fashion Show.

Mother (pattern designer) and daughter (fashion designer) wanted to express the Thai traditional clothes in the new generation where people could see the beady and the meaning!

The photos used in this post were taken by William Munoz.

08/06/2026

At the festival in 2000, Northwest Folklife presented “Pan, Calypso and Mas’ of Trinidad.”

This video features Ray Holman, an internationally known steel pan composer and arranger.

He began playing pan at the age of 13 and participated in many steel pan orchestras, often consisting of more than 50 musicians!

These groups are most known for performances during the Trinidad & Tobago annual Panorama competitions held during Carnival season.

Stay tuned for next week as we will close out this 2000s NWFL Festival Archives series!

#2000

08/05/2026

Hannah is the new intern at the Seattle Center Cultural Programs office!

She supported the coordination of the Let’s Play SEA '26 activation and she is excited to help support Festál festivals as well as Winterfest. Through this internship, she is hoping to highlight the diversity within our city and strengthen connections across cultures.

You can check out our CCWD homepage at https://nwfolklife.org/programs/ccwdinternships.html to meet our new interns and to learn more about the program!

08/04/2026

At our 55th annual festival, we hosted Malia Peoples in our Makers Space!

Malia Peoples is an interdisciplinary artist, educator, and cultural practitioner based in Seattle.

She reimagines the Indigenous Hawaiian barkcloth tradition of kapa making within a contemporary context.

Malia practices and teaches art in ways that honor her ancestors, embracing her kuleana to create uplifting creative experiences that foster cross-cultural connection.

Her work emphasizes unity and solidarity among marginalized communities.

Her festival workshop was also supported in part by a grant from 4Culture.

Address

305 Harrison Street
Seattle, WA
98109

Opening Hours

Monday	10am - 6pm
Tuesday	10am - 6pm
Wednesday	10am - 6pm
Thursday	10am - 6pm
Friday	10am - 6pm

Telephone

(206) 684-7300

Website

http://www.nwfolklife.org/

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