Artists’ Choice
June 06 - October 11, 2026
See selections from the Frye’s collection in a new light. For Artists’ Choice, we opened the vault to five local creatives working across music, dance, poetry, theater, and beyond—asking which objects resonated with them from their diverse artistic perspectives. Their selections gather around themes of representation and identity, grief and love, solitude and isolation, and even dystopian despair. The resulting juxtapositions are surprising, personal, and occasionally provocative—reminding us that the story of an artwork is never fixed but continually rewritten by all who encounter it.
Guest Curators
Adetola Abatan considers herself a polymath with deep interests in art, science, and history as well as theology, and sees these fields as complementary modes of knowledge to understand our world. Her practice casts a critical eye towards arts institutions and questions their role in preserving stagnant ideas of black and brown inferiority, as well as the role of the Creative in challenging these practices. She also performs in the Brazilian Dance and Music Ensemble Vamo Lá.
Joseph Hernandez is an accomplished dancer, choreographer, and writer. Deeply personal and evocatively emotional, his work addresses the complexities of life and death, love and grief. A major part of his practice extends to supporting other creators by showcasing their work in performances and discussions that furthers pedagogy of contemporary dance.
Jake Prendez is the co-founder and co-director of the Nepantla Cultural Arts Gallery in Seattle. A multi-use, multicultural art space grounded in the Chicana/o arts traditions, the gallery has become a hub for Latinx and Chicanx arts, hosting monthly exhibitions and community events. A celebration of identity, resistance, and empowerment, Nepantla challenges the boundaries of mainstream art while amplifying the voices of those often overlooked in the art world.
Cedar Sigo is a member of the Suquamish Nation. He is a writer and the author of endless books and pamphlets of poetry, including All This Time (Wave Books, 2021), Stranger in Town (City Lights, 2010), and most recently Siren of Atlantis (Wave Books, 2025).
Amaya Zhané is a multidisciplinary artist who specializes in live performance arts in theater as a playwright, choreographer, and director. Her most recent projects include OBSIDIAN featured in On The Boards's NW New Works Festival, Desdemona's Child (blood cry) at Cornish Playhouse, and FAT HAM at Seattle Rep.
Artists' Choice is curated by Adetola Abatan, Joseph Hernandez, Jake Prendez, Cedar Sigo, and Amaya Zhané, with support from Faith Brower, Director and Curator of Collections, and Alexis L. Silva, Curatorial Assistant.
Generous support provided by Frye members.
Seasonal support provided by 4Culture.
Rockwell Kent. Resurrection Bay from Fox Island, 1918/1966. Oil on canvas on board. 28 x 44 1/2 in. Frye Art Museum, Museum Purchase, 1998.010. Rights courtesy of Plattsburgh State Art Museum, State University of New York, USA, Rockwell Kent Collection, Bequest of Sally Kent Gorton. All rights reserved
Matt Browning. Tradition as Adaptive Strategy, 2010. Tree sap and carved wood. 6 x 2 x 2 in. Frye Art Museum, Purchased with funds provided by Cathy and Michael Casteel, 2013.007
Inye Wokoma. Our Blood Is In These Stones: Ama-Ibi Wokoma, 2016. Digital print. 27 x 19 in. Frye Art Museum, Museum Commission, 2016.022.01