About

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The Vestibule acknowledges that we are on the ancestral land of Native communities including the Puget Sound Salish and Duwamish peoples.

We acknowledge that we benefit from the prosperity of the United States, which was built on the labor of enslaved people. Please join us in expressing our deepest respect and gratitude for the descendants of those who built this country.

about us

The Vestibule is an artist-forward exhibition space in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle. We frequently showcase 3d projects and noncommercial installations. We work closely with artists in collaborative exhibitions, and we invite artists as guest curators. We support the sale of artworks on a low, sliding scale for commission and do not exclusively represent artists.

MISSION

The Vestibule is a micro-cultural center and artist-forward exhibition space that showcases conceptually-drive, 3D, 4D and installation art from the Pacific Northwest. We give space to art that needs space to exist.

VISION

We envision a community of citizens that supports public space for art that needs space.

Art lives in a vestibule, the passage between the private and public life, between inside and out. Vestibule names not only passages in architecture but in the body - eyes, nose, ears and the so ons and so forths. Art passes between. We dream of a culture in which everyone opens the vestibule of their private life to public life. Private life doesn’t have to be the end of life. Public life can be the aim of life. Open access to physical space for art is an essential part of a healthy democracy. Showing up in person for art and culture is essential work of citizenship.

Values

We value open access to physical space for art, showing up in person for art and culture as essential work of citizenship, ephemeral time-specific work, cross-disciplinary and interdisciplinary projects.

The Vestibule brings public art to a primarily residential neighborhood in North Seattle which has few dedicated art galleries. As a nontraditional gallery space, we enjoy exhibiting time-specific work: this might include a performance, a participatory event, community contributions, an artwork that changes over the course of the show.  We hold panels, performances, discussions, and meet-ups. We frequently showcase womxn and nonbinary artists in pursuit of our goal of supporting artists not historically represented by commercial art structures.  We encourage submissions by persons of color and indigenous artists.

To forward this mission and vision, we also sell books, totes, tee-shirts and… art!

non profit sponsorship & funding

The Vestibule is proud to be fiscally sponsored by the 501c3 Northwest Film Forum.

We receive sustained support from 4 Culture and funding from Allen Family Philanthropies Arts through Arts WA.

Give now

Support us and keep the shows low-commission by donating here or contact us to volunteer!, buying books, existential totes and tees and art in person or online.

Vestibule 1.0

Vestibule 1.0 was a place to get intimate with art. You could sleep with art in our Air BnB. During exhibitions visitosa slept inside installations and beside new work by PNW artists. Read about our project in the Seattle Times! 

The gallery supported emerging artists who show work, commission-free; earned income from short-term rental offset the cost of maintaining this space.

Vestibule 3.0

We hope to recreate some of the elements of our original space in our future studio space to be constructed on Lopez Island. Stayed tuned for news on this long-term plan.