Exhibitions & Events
Folk Art Galleries Reopen
Preview reception June 10, 6-8 p.m.
The Museum’s 2nd-floor galleries of folk art are reopening to feature a new design
and many objects not previously displayed. We invite you to explore folk art, folk
tradition, and identity through the Museum’s extensive collection of folk art from
Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the United States.
Image caption: Reliquary 1796. Gift of Jean L. Berg.
1721–1922: Two Centuries of Finnish Migration to Imperial
Russia
June 11 - August 14
Preview reception June 10, 6-8 p.m.
Two Centuries of Finnish Migration to Imperial Russia, a focus exhibition
in the Museum’s 2nd-floor hallway, explores the eastward migration of Finns to Russia
between the end of the Great Northern War and the early years of Finnish independence.
The vast labor market of the Russian Empire sent many such migrants to the Pacific
Northwest and to Alaska, where Finns played a significant role in industrial and
cultural development. This exhibition is organized by the Åland Islands Emigrant
Institute. Representatives of the Institute will be present at the opening reception
Thursday, June 10 from 6 - 8:30 p.m.
Image caption: Rear-Admiral Alexander Edward Elfsberg (1826–1903) was in Russian-American
Company service 1857–1866.
Somebody's Grandma
July 9 - September 5
Somebody's Grandma, an exhibition developed by the Nordic Heritage Museum,
explores themes of heritage and identity through first-person interviews and portrait
photography.
The title of the exhibition refers to the concept that anyone, regardless of age,
gender, or cultural background is, could be, or will be a holder of culture with
stories, history, values, and heritage to pass down to following generations--metaphorically
"somebody's grandma."
Please join us on for a Members preview reception Thursday, July 8 from 6 - 8 p.m.
Somebody's Grandma is generously supported by the Royal Norwegian Consulate
General San Francisco and 4Culture.
An Evening with Michael Maryk, Author of Sunpath
Wednesday, August 18
7:00 p.m.
Join us for a discussion and book signing with author Michael Maryk, whose novel
Sunpath tells the poignant story of a 10-year-old child at a decisive moment
in history. In fear of annihilation by Russia during World War II, Finland was in
a race to save its children. A 1943 telephone conversation between the wife of Sweden’s
foreign minister and the director of a philanthropic foundation led to a plan for
neutral Sweden to temporarily adopt Finland’s children until the war was over.
Within months, Operation Finska Krigsbarn became the greatest exodus of children
in recorded history.
An Evening with Solveig Torvik, Author of The World’s best
Place; Norway and the Norwegians
Tuesday September 14
7:00 p.m.
Suggested donation: $5.00
Join us for an evening with Solveig Torvik, author of
The World’s Best Place; Norway
and the Norwegians. Year after year, the United Nations ranks Norway as the world’s
best place to live. So what is it really like to live there? In the World’s Best
Place, Torvik, a Norwegian-American journalist, takes an unblinking look at celebrated
and uncelebrated, aspects of life in this socialist welfare state. The book provides
a provocative snapshot of contemporary Norwegian attitudes toward authority, money,
strangers, crime, work, women, alcohol, race and the role of the individual in society.
It focuses particular attention on Norway’s political, health care, judicial, and
economic systems. This event is presented by the Nordic Heritage Museum’s Nordic
American Voices oral history initiative and the Seattle-Bergen Sister City Association.
Arctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is a social network providing experiences to people with Nordic
heritage or with an interest in the Nordic culture. The Arctic Circle organizes
events and programs with an emphasis on contemporary Nordic arts and contributions
to such global issues as environmental sustainability and social justice. For information
about the Arctic Circle, or to sign up for e-mail notifications of upcoming events,
please contact Stina Cowan at
stinac@nordicmuseum.org
or (206) 789-5707 ext. 21
Nordic Knitting Conference 2010
The third Nordic Knitting Conference will take place on October 15-17, 2010. Internationally
acclaimed knitting experts from Scandinavia and the U.S. will lead the three day
conference. The renowned line-up of world-class instructors includes Britt-Marie
Christofferson (Sweden) Ruth Sørensen (Denmark) Beth Brown-Reinsel (U.S.) Evelyn
Clark (U.S.) Nancy Bush (U.S.) and Carol Rhoades (U.S).
The conference will also include a happy hour on Friday night and a banquet on Saturday
night with keynote speech by Nancy Bush on Estonian Lace.
Click
here for more details.