ArtCity Tacoma: Mapping Our Creative Community

Join artists Anida Yoeu Ali and Jesi Vega for a special presentation about their year-long research to map Tacoma’s art scene over the past
About this Event

ArtCity Tacoma: Mapping Our Creative Community

Join artists Anida Yoeu Ali and Jesi Vega for a special public gathering at the Main Library’s Olympic Room, where they will present the full scope of the ArtCity Tacoma Mapping Project. This event invites Tacoma’s vibrant arts community to come together in celebration, reflection, and dialogue around the city’s rich creative ecosystem.

Attendees will be introduced to the research and discoveries behind the project, which explores Tacoma’s artistic landscape, bringing to light stories, connections, and histories that have often remained unseen. Ali and Vega conducted 16 interviews with a diverse, intergenerational group of Tacoma-based artists. Their goal is not only to illustrate the deeply interconnected nature of the city’s arts communities, but also to begin documenting the stories, relationships, and knowledge that have largely existed within informal and fleeting conversations. As this work continues to grow, they invite additional voices to help expand the project—welcoming the insights and lived experiences of all Tacoma artists.

As part of the program, four featured guest panelists: Umi Wagoner, Katy Evans, Joy Muhammad, and Tony Gomez will share their perspectives and experiences as artists and contributors interviewed for the project.

ArtCity is a collaborative initiative dedicated to strengthening, unifying, and celebrating Tacoma’s diverse arts community. By honoring its history, uplifting its achievements, and nurturing relationships locally and globally, ArtCity seeks to foster a more connected and thriving creative environment.

The ArtCity Mapping Project grew out of a desire to better understand and document Tacoma’s arts ecology, making its rich and layered histories more visible and accessible to artists, cultural workers, and arts enthusiasts alike.

This event is free and open to the public and all are welcome to attend, learn, and engage.

Contact [email protected] for more info.
The ArtCity Mapping Project was generously funded by The City of Tacoma's Community Arts Project and Tacoma Creates.