911 Media Arts Center is a non-profit media arts and access center located in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. 911 Media Arts Center was incorporated on August 14, 1984, to support the expressive use of media tools through training, equipment, and access grants. The organization also provides a forum and venue for those working in the new media disciplines. The center is a member-supported non-profit organization and receives other funding from education tuition and state, city, and county grants, along with grants from private foundations and individuals.

History

Initially known as the Focal Point Media Center, "Nine One One Media" split off from the AND/OR Gallery in Seattle during August 1984. The center was founded by Anne Focke, Heather Dew Oaksen, Jill Medvedow,

Norie Sato Norie Sato (born July 19, 1949) is an artist living in Seattle, Washington. She works in the field of public art using sculpture and various media–including glass, terrazzo, plastic film, stone, and metal–and often incorporating lighting effect ...

, and others. 911 Media Arts Center was originally located at 911 E. Pine Street in Seattle, hence the namesake. The first director of the organization, during 1984-85, was Jill Medvedow who is now director at the

Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston The Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) is an art museum and exhibition space located in Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America. The museum was founded as the Boston Museum of Modern Art in 1936. Since then it has gone through multiple na ...

. The directorship was followed by Glenn Weiss during 1986-88, Weiss is now Manager of Public Art in

Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...

. The current director is art historian, critic and educator Steven Michael Vroom. 911 Media Arts Center has had addresses on both Yale Street and 9th Ave in what is now the South Lake Union neighborhood. The center is currently located at 909 NE 43rd Street Suite 206, in the same building as the

Jack Straw Foundation Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

. In 2011, under the directorship of Steven Michael Vroom, the center received a $50,000 capacity building grant from the

Andy Warhol Foundation Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the Art movement, visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore th ...

Services

The center provides education for professionals, students and youth. Classes and workshops topics focus on media literacy including video, audio, physical computing, image processing, code art and web production. Youth education is a strong focus of the organization. Current partnerships include Coyote Central and

Northwest African American Museum The Northwest African American Museum (NAAM) serves to present and preserve the connections between the Pacific Northwest and people of African descent and investigate and celebrate Black experiences in America through exhibitions, programs and ev ...

. The organization also provides access to equipment resources, such as cameras and editing facilities, as part of its operations. 911 Media also supports civic programs involving media literacy with the

City of Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region of N ...

and greater King County, WA. It also partners with, and aids, other local non-profit organizations such as the

Seattle Art Museum The Seattle Art Museum (commonly known as SAM) is an art museum located in Seattle, Washington, United States. It operates three major facilities: its main museum in downtown Seattle; the Seattle Asian Art Museum (SAAM) in Volunteer Park on Cap ...

Wing Luke Museum The Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience is a history museum in Seattle, Washington, United States, which focuses on the culture, art and history of Asian Pacific Americans. It is located in the city's Chinatown-Internationa ...

and the

Museum of History and Industry The Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI) is a history museum in the South Lake Union neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the largest private heritage organization in Washington state, maintaining a collection of nearly four m ...

Artists and exhibitions

911 Seattle Media Arts Center has hosted and exhibited works by filmmakers and video artists since its founding. In 1990,

Guillermo Gómez-Peña Guillermo Gómez-Peña is a Mexican/Chicano performance artist, writer, activist, and educator. Gómez-Peña has created work in multiple media, including performance art, experimental radio, video, photography and installation art. His fifteen b ...

was invited to perform at

On The Boards On the Boards (OtB) is a non-profit contemporary performing arts organization in Seattle, Washington, founded in 1978. Originally located at Washington Hall in the Central District, the organization moved in 1998 to their current location in Up ...

in partnership with 911 Media. In 1994 the Northwest Cyber Artists partnered with 911 Media Arts Center to create an exhibit of

interactive art Interactive art is a form of art that involves the spectator in a way that allows the art to achieve its purpose. Some interactive art installations achieve this by letting the observer walk through, over or around them; others ask the artist ...

at the

Seattle Center House Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region of N ...

Gary Hill Gary Hill (born April 4, 1951) is an American artist who lives and works in Seattle, Washington. Often viewed as one of the foundational artists in video art, based on the single-channel work and video- and sound-based installations of the 1970s ...

has also exhibited at the center several times since its inception. Among artists-in-residence is director James Longley, who edited the documentary ''

Iraq in Fragments ''Iraq in Fragments'' is a documentary film directed by James Longley. Longley shot the film in Digital Video on a Panasonic DVX100 miniDV camcorder. The film premiered at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival where it won three awards: "Directing Award ...

'' at the center working with producer

John Sinno John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

. The film was nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for the Best Documentary Feature. Other recent recipients of the centers artist-in-residence programs include Margot Knight, whose work has been featured internationally in magazines such as PHOTO France, EFX Art & Design, and Zoom.

Notes

{{Museums in Puget Sound Culture of Seattle Arts centers in Washington (state) Art museums and galleries in Washington (state) Tourist attractions in Seattle 1984 establishments in Washington (state)