ARTS at King Street Station
ARTS at King Street Station is a dynamic space for arts and culture in the heart of the city dedicated to increasing opportunities for people of color to generate and present their work. Housed above Seattle’s historic King Street Station, this 7,500-square-foot gallery and cultural space includes a studio for artists-in-residence and offices for the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture (ARTS).
In 2018, we published a community feedback report drawn from focus groups hosted citywide. It outlines the public's hope that ARTS at King Street Station might serve as an accessible arts space and hub for community-building through the arts with a race and social justice lens as its guiding principle.
"COMPLEXITY" and Youth in Focus Showcase
Boom box by Faust
June 6 - July 20, 2024 - In partnership with The American Graffiti & Urban Art Conservation Project (AMGRAF) and APEX Art & Cultural Center, we are honored to bring the legendary DogTown Collection to ARTS at King Street Station. This is an epic collection of masterpieces created by some of the most influential graffiti writers to have painted over the last 50 years.
Youth in Focus Showcase
June 6 - 22, 2024 - Photographs from Youth in Focus' 2024 Creative Career Cohort, a 6-month internship program for BIPOC youth in grades 10-12.
Learn more about COMPLEXITY and the Youth in Focus Showcase.
ARTS at King Street Station Exhibitions and Events Call
Adé A. Cônnére performs at the opening of IMMINENT MODE: US, photo by Jo Cosme
ARTS at King Street Station is a dynamic space for arts and culture in the heart of Seattle. We invite you to propose exhibitions and events to take place on King Street Station’s top floor, a 7,500 square-foot cultural space, during the 2025 calendar season.
You can propose visual art exhibitions, performances, literary readings, lectures and symposia, screenings, reading groups, debates, sketching and figure drawing, combinations of these formats, and more. You can request funding in set amounts from in-kind (gallery usage only with staff support) up to $7,000.
Please read the guidelines for full details.
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Eligibility
You can apply as an individual or a group of people if:
- You are 15 years of age and older.
- You represent emerging and/or established artists.
Groups and organizations can also apply:
- They can be nonprofit, grassroots, or business organizations.
- They seek support for a project or event involving arts and culture.
- They are NOT required to be dedicated to an arts and culture mission.
- They are NOT required to have 501(c)(3) non-profit status.
Your proposal must:
- Take place onsite at ARTS at King Street Station, 303 S. Jackson Street. The majority of selected programming will take place on the top floor.
- Align with our commitment to race and social justice.
- Have a significant arts and culture component.
- Be free, all-ages, and open to the public.
- Take place during our gallery public hours: Wednesday–Saturday 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.; First Thursdays 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. Sundays and Mondays are not available for events.
Your project must NOT:
- Directly sell materials or post prices, though you may place identification and contact information so buyers may arrange for sales outside of ARTS at King Street Station.
- Use ticket sales. All programs must be presented free of charge to the public.
- Be a for-profit or commercially touring event.
We strongly encourage compensation for labor. ARTS at King Street Station references WAGE (USA), CARFAC (Canada), and NAVA (Australia) recommendations on equitable compensation. Additionally, Seattle’s minimum wage is $19.97/hour.
Funding
Funded proposals will receive in-kind (use of the gallery with curatorial and communications support) or financial support in the following set amounts:
- Exhibitions/Installations: in-kind only, $500, $1,000, $2,500, $5,000, $7,000
- Events: in-kind only, $500, $1,000, $2,500, $5,000
- You may be offered a funding level different from your request.
You can use funding to support direct project expenses: artist fees, marketing and promotional fees, project management and personnel costs, supplies, and equipment rentals or other production-related costs. Funding may not be used for equipment purchases.
We will not fund:
- Fundraising efforts
- Gifts
- Administrative costs not directly related to your proposal
- For-profit or touring event/exhibitions
- The purchase of equipment.
Due Date
The call remains open through 2024 with a rolling deadline. Cycles for review in 2024 have these due dates: June 25, Sept. 10, and Nov. 9.
Please allow ample time to complete your application. Applications submitted after 5 p.m. (Pacific) on each due date will be considered for the following cycle.
Information Workshops
Learn more about this opportunity and how to submit your best application. If you need interpretation, please contact James Coley at (206) 684-4186 or James.Coley@seattle.gov.
Virtual Workshop 1
Wednesday, June 5, 3 - 4:30 p.m. (Pacific)
RSVP to Workshop 1
Virtual Workshop 2
Wednesday, Aug. 14, 5 - 6:30 p.m.
RSVP to Workshop 2
Virtual Workshop 3
Wednesday, Oct. 23, 5 - 6:30 p.m.
RSVP to Workshop 3
Application
Apply online through Submittable.
If you have trouble, check their FAQ for step-by-step guides. You can also contact Submittable tech support at support@submittable.com.
Contact
For information and assistance with the application, eligibility or online technical support, please contact KSS Program Lead, James Coley at (206) 684-4186 or James.Coley@seattle.gov.
We have interpreters who can speak to you in your language, including American Sign Language (via video). Just call us and tell us what language you speak. Expect a short pause while we find an interpreter to join the call.
Visit ARTS at King Street Station
Hours
ARTS at King Street Station is FREE and open Wednesday – Saturday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m, and until 8 p.m. on First Thursdays.
COVID Safety
In accordance with King County Public Health guidelines, ARTS at King Street Station will no longer require visitors to show proof of vaccination or wear face masks when visiting. We ask that you stay home if you feel sick and remain mindful of our community’s varying levels of comfort.
ARTS Administrative Office Hours
Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Getting Here
Plan your trip and don't forget to check the traffic conditions at Seattle Traffic
King Street Station is located at 303 S Jackson St, Seattle, WA 98104. The station is conveniently located where the Downtown Central Business District, Pioneer Square, and the Chinatown / International District all meet (on Jackson Street between 3rd and 4th Avenues South).
There are multiple options for reaching the station using public transit:
- The Sounder regional commuter train stops at the station, as do all of Amtrak's national and international lines.
- The Link Light Rail stops at the International District Station, one block east of the station.
- Many King County Metro Bus lines pass within a block of the station, including 1, 7, 36, 14.
Where do I park? There are multiple paid garages and parking lots in the neighborhood, as well as street parking. You can view the Seattle Parking Map here.
Accessibility
King Street Station has an ADA-compliant elevator that services every level of the station. Access it via the Amtrak level (1st Floor), which is on King Street. The plaze entrance is on Jackson Street and is the 2nd Floor.
ARTS at King Street Station also has ADA-compliant, all-gender restrooms. We have two wheelchairs available in the gallery, and folding stools you can use if you'd like to sit in front of an artwork.
ARTS at King Street Station Advisors
About The Advisors
The ARTS at King Street Station Advisors are a group of community leaders and arts/culture enthusiasts who work with ARTS staff to ensure that the programming at ARTS at King Street Station centers racial equity, represents and welcomes diverse communities, and showcases many creative disciplines. Advisors serve a two-year term.
ARTS at King Street Station Advisors
To come
How We Got Here
King Street Station Programming Plan
ARTS staff worked with the University of Washington Evans School Consulting Lab to produce a research report, "Reimagining King Street Station through a Racial Equity Lens" (May 2018), which is an aspirational document about best practices in cultural space programming.
About King Street Station
King Street Station is a public asset that is an important part of Seattle's history. For over one hundred years it has improved connections, serving as a gateway for millions of travelers coming into Seattle and the Pacific Northwest. The station has spurred economic growth and helped establish Seattle as a major metropolitan city.
King Street Station first opened to the public in May 1906. Reed and Stem, the architectural firm responsible for New York City's historic Grand Central Terminal, designed the station. The San Marco bell tower of Venice, Italy, served as the model for the building's familiar clock tower. The structure was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
King Street Station, located on Jackson Street between Third and Fourth Avenue S., is a brick and granite three-story building with a twelve-story clock tower. The ground floor, accessed from King Street, is clad in granite. The walls of the second and third floors, as well as the clock tower, are faced in pressed brick with decorative terra cotta elements such as cornices and window lintels.
While much of the exterior of King Street Station has remained intact since the building was constructed in 1906, parts of the interior have been substantially altered and others have suffered neglect. Similarly, while nearly half of the facility's original finishes remain intact, most of the significant finishes in the lower portion of the station have been removed. In March 2008 the City of Seattle purchased the landmark building from the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway Company.
Under city ownership, King Street Station underwent a $50 million renovation that achieved the following goals:
- Restore the building's historic character and grandeur
- Upgrade facilities to meet present and future needs of rail and transit users
- Enhance passenger safety and security
- Promote sustainable design with a LEED building certification
- Support efforts to transform the station into a modern transit hub
- The station is served by Amtrak Cascades, Coast Starlight and Empire Builder long distance rail lines and Amtrak intercity buses. It includes convenient connections to Sound Transit commuter rail, local and regional buses, Sound Transit Link light rail, and the First Hill Seattle Streetcar.
- The restoration of King Street Station ensures it remains a critical transportation hub and gateway into Seattle for the next hundred years.