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Origins: The Populus Collection
Europa Gallery
401 2nd Ave S, Seattle, WA 98104
June 5, 2025 | 5:00–9:00 PM
Origins offers an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at the creative foundation of Populus Seattle’s living art collection. Featuring original works on paper and canvas created during the hotel’s 2024 artist residency, the exhibition captures the early sketches, studies, and visual explorations that shaped the full collection now installed throughout the hotel.
Produced on-site in the neighboring RailSpur Studios, each piece reflects an artist’s response to place—engaging with the textures, histories, and natural elements of the Pacific Northwest. Themes of transformation, identity, memory, and ecology emerge through process, offering a layered conversation between material and meaning.
Origins is both a tribute to the artists who helped shape the visual language of Populus Seattle and a celebration of creative beginnings—inviting the public to engage with the roots of a living, evolving cultural landmark.
The exhibition features work from:
Amy Bay, Baso Fibonacci, Becca Fuhrman, Brandon Vosika, Cristina Martinez, Dana Blume, Devin Liston, Drew Merritt, Gage Hamilton, Joe Nix, John Black, Juliet Shen, Katherine Homes, Kevin Cosley, Kimberly Fulton Orozco, Pajtim Osmanaj, Patty Haller, Rabi, Safiuchi, Sanoe Stevenson-Egeland, Sean Barton, Soo Hong, Stevie Shao, and Tara Lobo.
From 7:30–9:00 PM, the gallery will host a live performance by Babes in Canyon, a Seattle-based trio whose sound blends folk, pop, and cinematic Americana. Known for their luminous harmonies and nature-infused songwriting, the group brings a sense of warmth, place, and atmosphere that beautifully complements the visual themes of the exhibition.
