Meet Sarah Miller and 100 Spaces Showing Local Art in Seattle
My girlfriend’s business, Post Pike, located in Capitol HIll and Georgetown, received an email from a Sarah Miller in October, sharing with us she was working on a local guide to spaces in the PNW (specifically Seattle) that show new and emerging artists’ works. On March 1st, Miller delivered a fully realized and actualized copy to me, which can be found in Post Pike Georgetown and many other venues featured in the book. Miller is using her Instagram to note all of the spaces housing her book and looking for local art. I got the inside scoop from Miller as well about her incredible endeavour in creating this catalogue! Stay ‘til the end to get the details on her upcoming book launch.
Julia Monté: This book is a much needed resource for the community of artists who are at any level and awareness of sharing their work. What was the catalyst which compelled you to take on such a project and create this book?
Image of Sarah Miller with her book Show Your Art, provided by Sarah Miller.
Sarah Miller: I wish there was a single defining moment, but this project came together as a mix of different life experiences and need for community connections. My background is in community psychology, teaching (everything from kids’ art classes to English abroad to creative courses for adults), and my day job is marketing for small businesses. I also lived off my art - mainly greeting cards - for about four years.
That said, despite living in Seattle for almost two decades, I’ve often felt quite isolated and have over the years had a strong desire to connect with my creative community. I’ve started food groups, creative writing groups, and visited every museum in this city (and most in Washington state). Through all of my experiences, I’ve developed a pretty deep curiosity of how creative spaces operate.
On another note, as an artist, I’ve worked hard to sharpen my gut instinct, especially to separate it from anxiety and people-pleasing. It only came with age, but I’ve finally learned to listen to “The Muse”. If you’re an artist, you know the muse can be fickle, feverish, or completely absent for months. But this project had me in a chokehold from the start. I’m not exaggerating when I say the train left the station the moment I spoke this idea into existence. I was fully committed from the beginning, and I’ve had energy for it ever since. It’s been unexpected and exciting, and I genuinely love being an artist helper (maybe even more so than being an artist!).
Lastly, and most importantly, the community support has been unreal. Both artists - many of whom I had never met before this project - and businesses have expressed genuine enthusiasm. Every time I felt conflicted about continuing, some form of encouragement would show up like a sign telling me to keep going, telling me “I’ve got something here”. That warmth and support have meant so much, especially since I’m mostly an unknown entity in this space.
JM: The layout is very comprehensive- a glossary of spaces and language associated with art-spaces some might not be well versed in. Have you designed books like this in the past or drawn inspiration from other catalogues?
SM: Great question! This is my first venture into a book like this, but I’ve built dozens of lesson plans, written hundreds if not thousands of articles and social media posts for my day job, probably was a therapist in my past life (ha!), so I understand on a visceral level the importance of writing something that is straightforward, easy to understand, and encouraging.
Image provided by Sarah Miller.
I also realized that while Seattle has many incredible organizations that support artists, whether by promoting them directly or showcasing exhibits, there wasn’t a comprehensive, accessible guide on how or where artists can submit their work. It all felt very secretive or you had to look a thousand places to figure it out. When I was creating this project, I tried very hard to make sure there wasn’t anything like this already out there, and if there was, what could I do to make this project be in its own lane. I’m not trying to step on anyone’s toes, I’m trying to be an accompaniment/complement to other publications, spaces, etc that already support the arts.
The most important thing for me is inclusivity, and I mean this quite literally, as I didn’t want to cater only to one type of venue. This isn’t intended to be a high-end catalog with only galleries that sell works for thousands (there are those too in the book!). This is about showcasing spaces around Seattle that are actively looking to work with artists of all different backgrounds. It can be anything from a well-established gallery who gets hundreds of submissions a year, to a new coffee shop that just opened around the corner that doesn’t know how to find artists. I believe there’s an artist for every space - and art makes those spaces come alive. Art is integral to a city’s vibrancy and identity.
JM: What challenges did you face creating this book? You crowd sourcing for funds reached its goal to publish these books, which is telling of the community’s interest in your endeavor. Did you seek out the local artist grant organizations for funds? I would think they would fund a project like yours.
SM: Man, oh man. Ready for a list?!
JM: Bring it!
SM:
The first big challenge was getting venues to engage with me. I ended up with just over 100 places in the book, but I reached out to more than 400. Most either ghosted me on multiple levels (UGH) or simply weren’t interested. I think it was a mix of me reaching out via cold email, the project not yet being a “proven concept,” and the fact that I’m a relatively unknown entity in the Seattle art scene. It was also really important to me that every venue actively consented to being included. Community buy-in is a huge part of my mission, not just for ethical reasons but to maintain an open line of communication as things change pretty frequently. Without that communication, it would just be a static list that likely wouldn’t be accurate in a year’s time.
Yes, I reached just over the crowdfunding goal for the bare minimum needed to get the book published and shipped out into the community. With crowdfunding, local businesses interested in copies to resell, and selling directly, I’ve currently sold over 250 copies! But sadly I’ve broken even on this project so far.
It’s been frustrating and mildly heartbreaking at how many roadblocks I’ve encountered in my attempt to get funding so far. I’ve had meetings with a few grants organizations in which they told me my project is great and much-needed but simply doesn’t fit within their criteria. I really DON’T want to operate as a business, it would be cool to be a future non-profit, but I may need to figure out how to run it as a business if I want to continue going with this project and make more editions.
JM: What was the most surprising research you uncovered as you took on this search. I imagine language around and requirements for showing art in these spaces varies in these vast spaces.
SM: One of the most interesting parts of this project was seeing the huge range in how venues work with artists. Some, like a spa that wanted cheerful local art on their walls, had never worked with artists before, while others were well-established art institutions with three-year waitlists. But across the board, they were all enthusiastic about collaborating with artists.
Image from @showyourartpnw Instagram.
What became clear right away is that as an artist, you really need to have your ducks in a row before reaching out to any of these places. In some spaces, you might be the authority and have a lot of creative freedom. In others, there are strict guidelines and limitations. The best way to navigate this is by being open to new challenges while being honest with yourself about where you are in your art journey. What are you hoping to get out of reaching out to local businesses? Are you looking for connections with your community or just in it to make a profit? (Honestly, there’s no wrong answer - that’s why commercial art exists) However, having clarity on what your goals are makes it much easier to find the right fit.
JM: How has engagement been with your book since publishing and printing?
SM: It's been so refreshing! Even though I’ve lived here forever, I feel like a tourist in my own city. As part of this project, I’m visiting every place in the book, giving them a free copy, and having a chat with each venue. Some of these spots I’ve walked by a million times, but now, with a tangible resource in hand, I’m getting the chance to properly introduce myself and step inside these amazing, artist-friendly spaces for the first time. It’s been such a cool experience to connect with the community in a whole new way.
Interacting with artists directly has been really wonderful too. Just last week, I went to someone’s first-ever art show: an opportunity that came DIRECTLY from the book! My heart!
One thing I wasn’t expecting is that Show Your Art is slowly being picked up by local bookstores and businesses and is now in 10 locations, including Third Place Books. It’s surreal to see my book sitting on an actual bookstore shelf. But beyond that, it means more people in different neighborhoods have the opportunity to discover the resource and that is really exciting.
And finally, this isn’t a vanity project. After mailing out the books, I sent out a survey and got some excellent critical feedback—stuff I never would have thought about. Sometimes you don’t realize the blind spots in something until others point them out, and I’m really grateful that people took the time to share their honest thoughts with me. When and if there’s another edition, I’ll absolutely be carrying those insights moving forward.
JM: What’s next for you? Are you looking to further your journey in discovering and sharing these spaces that show local art?
SM: In a perfect world, I’d love to build a website with an interactive map where venues can contribute directly to the growing list. That would allow me to keep expanding future book editions and make direct connections that cover more of Seattle, Snohomish County, and Pierce County. Eventually, I’d love to include all of Washington—have you seen some of the galleries in eastern WA? Amazing.
Unfortunately, I’m not a wealthy philanthropist nor do I have a rich family member willing to give me the cash, so my next puzzle is figuring out how to fund a website. I’d hate for this project to stall or stop altogether just because of funding, so if anyone has leads or knows someone who’d be into supporting this, I’d be so grateful.
At its core, this project is about inclusivity, not gatekeeping. I want artists to see that putting yourself out there isn’t this impossible mountain to climb. And if you’ve got that artist spirit in you and you’re putting in the work to create, your art deserves to be seen and there are spaces that want to show it.
Image of Author holding Post Pike Georgetown’s copy of Show Your Art in front of Julian Bustamante’s work, provided by Sarah Miller.
An infinite and warm thank you to Sarah Miller for sharing her time and thoughts with me. With any self-directed endeavour, the logistics can be all-consuming. Many challenges she acknowledged reflected back to me during our conversation as we discussed inconsistencies, precarity, and red tape around funding for arts. In the case of this project, the public obviously took interest to make it a reality. Continue to support your local spaces and artists.
Consider donating to the future of the Show Your Art project, here! What a resource and testament to the arts in Seattle this could continue to unfold as if it could take the shape of an online, interactive map…if it could include the whole state! I hope to see it.
Come kick it after the Pioneer Square Art Walk at The HIdeout, 1005 Boren Ave. Find out more on Miller’s expansive project, see local art, meet local artists, yap and live a little.
March 6, from 6pm to late!
See ya out there!
Continue to support Miller’s project, here.
Further inquiries: contact Miller at showyourartpnw@gmail.com and myself at juliaalysemonte@gmail.com.
