She Bends: Redefining Neon Legacy
Redefining Neon Legacy features artists of historically under-represented communities in neon alongside the women who taught them, and explores how the evolution of teaching methodologies over the past two decades has affected neon as a process-driven fine art form.
Neon is a master-apprentice trade; those holding the knowledge control to whom it is passed. This exhibition tells the story of this evolution playing out in real time, as custodians of the neon craft become more intentional with how, and to whom, they pass their torches. The pedagogy of technical skills infused with material and conceptual investigations, authored by women educators, signals a paradigm shift in the neon pipeline that redefines its legacy. In this way, neon moves from an agent of capitalism to a conduit of expression for cultural identity and diverse narratives. The artists express their voices in luminous form and breathe life into meditations on identity, existence, memory, and healing.
Featuring works by Sarah Blood, Carissa Grace, Kacie Lees, Stephanie Lifshutz, Victoria Ahmadizadeh Melendez, Lily Reeves, Meryl Pataky, Daniella Thach, and Jude Abu Zaineh.
Stephanie Lifshutz, “You’ve Been Getting More Than What You Paid For”
Saturday, February 11
The museum will open to the public at 10am on Saturday, February 11th. Curators and artists will lead exhibition tours and the hot-shop will host blown glass and neon bending demonstrations. No RSVP necessary
Opening Celebration, Doors open at 5:30pm
Join us for an evening of live neon bending demonstrations in the Hot Shop, curator-led tours of the exhibition, and more.
Dinner will be available for purchase from a food truck located in the Museum Plaza, and drinks can be purchased from the cash bar in the Grand Hall.
Exhibition runs until October 2023
tacoma + Seattle neon
This space is dedicated to the local Tacoma and Seattle glass communities. Here, we are sharing artists and shops we love, available workshops and the iconic signs of the area. We have made a list and corresponding map of our neon picks below.
Radiant Neon :
Owned by an exhibiting artist of SB, Alleson Buchanan, this neon shop and school creates custom work and hosts workshops to learn how to bend. Visit www.radiantneon.com for more info.
Pilchuck Glass School:
An international center for glass art education. The school was founded in 1971 by Dale Chihuly, Ruth Tamura, Anne Gould Hauberg, and John H Hauberg. Pilchuck offers one, two, or three week resident classes each summer in a broad spectrum of glass techniques as well as residencies for emerging and established artists working in all media. Visit www.pilchuck.org for more information
The Pink Elephant:
Designed by local Seattle artist and OG woman in neon, Beatrice Haverfield, in 1956, “The Pink Elephant” as it’s called, bathed at the Super Car Wash of Seattle for more than half a century. Haverfield has designed other signs around the area. There were two elephant signs from the 6th Avenue and Battery Street location. A larger one was given to Seattle's Museum of History and Industry. The second, smaller sign, was given to Amazon who worked with Western Neon Seattle (also on our list!) to refurbish and install the sign. It took over a year to refurbish and is now installed just two blocks from its original location. It is now officially a Seattle historical landmark.