Greenwood’s Art Gem

To anyone not from the area, Greenwood seems like a neighborhood just like many others around the city: Easy to pass through, easy to ignore, easy to try once then never again. To locals, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

One of their best-kept not-so-secret secrets is nestled on the main strip, one of those joints where if you sneeze, you miss it. With its black façade and nearly hidden door, the Greenwood Art Collective consistently provides passersby with an otherworldly indoor art experience.

Inside hallway upon entering Greenwood Art Collective / The Evergreen Echo

April’s showcase was called “Tease,” an erotic arts exhibit focusing on authors and artisans familiar with kinks, bodies, and challenging our perceptions of what’s permissible in our individual lives. The front rooms displayed works on canvases, mixed media, and crafts galore, including a local author who recently self-published a monster erotica series. In another room, a live performance was given centering on BDSM with a person bound to a wooden X. (Don’t worry, pearl-clutchers: Folks with children were warned with signage which rooms contained which subjects.)

But wait, there’s more! On a regular basis, the entire basement is home to a near-labyrinth of rooms where artists from all walks of life share and sell their pieces. Every second Friday, photographers, performers, jewelers, painters, sculptors, and many more show and tell how they see the world through their media. 

Art of Crapothy displayed in a basement room / The Evergreen Echo

In one large room, at least five artists displayed their works on every square inch of available space, dividing their sections with painted walls, tables, and different lighting. In another, a pole dancing instructor invited guests to try their moves live on camera. One artist sold jewelry in a small section of hallway, while three others packed their canvases in a tucked-away alcove. Some artists were seemingly not present, but all who were were eager to speak with viewers about their work. 

Dusty explains his art and why he shows at Greenwood Art Collective:

For Seattle old-timers, the visage would have reminded one of the old (demolished) 619 building in Pioneer Square; you recall? Six levels of starving artists crammed into every corner serving their best work amidst the cheapest refreshments, no elevator, crowded conditions, and tip jars galore. Back when the art walk there was a hotbed of cultural collaboration, learning, and forever on the cusp of whatever new artistic revolution was surely about to explode from the minds of 20-somethings searching for meaning. 

The Art Collective isn’t quite that big or enmeshed, but a similar vibe unfolds among a true community of artists. Folks might not think something like this would exist in North Seattle (long considered a mishmash of Seattle “suburbs”), but here it is. Consider it the art walk North Pole to Georgetown Trailer Park’s South Pole. 

If you’re in need of a new experience on the second Friday of any month, the Collective will be waiting for you with open arms (or paints?).