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FINAL WEEK: Apply now to be on the 2026 Arts Walk cover! Have you participated in Arts Walk within the past two years? Do you have 5 images of current work? Consider applying for the Arts Walk cover! Each year two artists are selected and commissioned by the City to create a new, original work of art to be featured in the Arts Walk poster and other event publications. One artist is highlighted for each the fall and spring events. Artists are selected through a call for art that typically takes place in the fall for the following year. Selected artists receive $750 to create a new work that is featured on the Arts Walk cover. APPLY online by November 17, 2025 at 11:45pm. City Seeks to Fill Vacancies on Advisory Boards, Commissions and Committees The City of Olympia is seeking community members interested in being appointed by the City Council to serve on City advisory committees. Advisory committees provide a way for residents to share opinions and perspectives, study issues, develop recommendations, and provide advice from the community perspective to the Olympia City Council. The advisory committee application period is now open and runs until Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, at 5 p.m. Membership terms generally run for three years, with appointments beginning on April 1 and ending March 31. Applications are being accepted for vacancies and upcoming vacancies on the following committees serving the City of Olympia: The Arts Commission, The Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, The Cultural Access Program Advisory Board, Design Review Board, Heritage Commission, Olympia Metropolitan Park District (OMPD) Advisory Committee, Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee (PRAC), Planning Commission and Utility Advisory Committee. Learn more Application link for the Advisory Body recruitments: https://form.jotform.com/252395220070145 Join us at Olympia Parks, Arts and Recreation for some great classes! To register or for more information, please click the link after each class, call 360-753-8380 or stop by to see us at The Olympia Center, 222 Columbia Street NW, Olympia. Performing Arts & Dance Creative Contemporary Dance, Nov 3 - Dec 9 Ukulele Holiday Songs, Nov 12-Dec 17 All About Guitar Chords, Dec 4 Discover Voice Overs!, Dec 9 Visual Arts, & Crafts Fused Glass Art Autumn Celebration, Nov 15 Holiday Pop-Up Cards, Nov 17-24 Dotted Christmas Ornaments, Nov 18-25 Zen Ink Holiday Cards, Nov 22
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South Sound Music Summit 2025 Join us at the South Sound Music Summit - an event for bands/performers and music industry professionals to exchange ideas, make new relationships, learn, share resources and more. Sunday, November 23rd, 2:00PM @ the Olympia Ballroom116 Legion Way SE Learn more Free, all-ages event ---> PLEASE RSVP Saving the Nisqually Delta - Author Talk A new book, Saving the Nisqually Delta, chronicles the decades-long citizen activism that saved the Nisqually Delta from industrialization. Located eight miles northeast of Olympia, Washington, the Nisqually Delta is one of the country's last unspoiled estuaries. Author Janine Gates, an Olympia-based journalist and photographer, is best known for her community news blog, Little Hollywood, at https://www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com. She wrote more than 500 articles between 2009 - 2019, covering issues in the public interest. Gates has lived in Olympia for over 40 years. While several deltas in western Washington succumbed to industrialization in the early 1900s, the Nisqually Delta has survived persistent threats. Gates conducted six years of research and dozens of interviews for the book. Published by Little Hollywood Media, the book features a foreword by former Washington State Governor Daniel J. Evans. "The fight to save the Nisqually Delta was not easy. There have been many attempts to alter it, and even today, the Nisqually Delta still needs to be saved from urban and industrial encroachment, water quality, and water quantity issues." said Gates. Learn more at https://savingnisquallydelta.com Gates has two upcoming presentations: Thursday, November 11, 10 a.m. - 11 a.m., Saving the Nisqually Delta Slideshow Tumwater Valley Golf Club's restaurant, The River's Edge, at 4611 Tumwater Valley Dr. SE, Olympia. Free, public event is hosted by the Thurston County League of Women Voters. Thursday, December 4, 2025, 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM (kitchen will be closed) Traditions, 300 5th Avenue SW, Olympia Saving the Nisqually Delta Slideshow/Panel Discussion with Former Washington State Senator Karen Fraser Port of Olympia commissioner-elect Krag Unsoeld Others to be announced SPSCC Music Department Presents Three Concerts This December The South Puget Sound Community College (SPSCC) Music Department will be performing three concerts featuring SPSCC students this December at the Kenneth J. Minnaert Center for the Arts Main Stage: Silver and Gold, Clippers and Saints, and Fall Jazz. First, the SPSCC Choirs present a night of classical and modern holiday music on Friday, December 5, at 7:30 p.m. in Silver and Gold. The evening's program features works by Benjamin Britten, Chiara Margarita Cozzolani, Gabriel Fauré, John Rutter, and a tribute to the late Quincy Jones, as well as special guests, Timberline High School Chamber Choir, under the direction of Terry Shaw. Next, the SPSCC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Nickolas Carlson, presents Clippers and Saints on Saturday, December 6, at 7:30 p.m. The orchestra is joined by the Saint Martin's University Wind Ensemble, conducted by Laura Harper. The orchestra will play Brahms' buoyant Academic Festival Overture and the first symphony written and published by an American woman, Amy Beach's "Gaelic" Symphony. This symphony is full of passion and evokes the iconic landscapes and cultural richness of Scotland. Then, come share in the celebration of the end of the fall season with the SPSCC Jazz Band and Jazz Combo on Tuesday, December 9, at 7:30 p.m. Admission for each concert is a suggested $15 donation at the door. Entrance is free to SPSCC students, staff, and faculty. The Music Department concerts are sponsored in part by R.L. Ray Violin Shop. More information is available on the college's Arts & Entertainment page. Pizza and Politics: Preparing to Engage in the 2026 Legislative Session Get ready for the 2026 WA State Legislative Session! Join us at the Library for an interactive civics workshop with Michael Bowman from the Office of the Secretary of State's Civic Engagement Program and Corey Paulson from Teach with TVW. We'll demystify how your state government works and give you the tools to understand, track, and effectively engage with the legislative process during the upcoming session. Tuesday, 11/18 @ 6:30pm @ Olympia Timberland Library (313 8th Ave SE, Oly WA 98501) Coming Shows to the Washington Center Seattle International Comedy Competition The competition heats up as the funniest finalists battle for a spot in the championship round! Join us for an electrifying evening of stand-up comedy featuring the cream of this year's talent pool. These semifinalists have already outperformed dozens of competitors and now face their toughest challenge yet. Each performer will have you laughing, thinking, and voting for your favorites. Who will advance to the finals? The judges decide tonight! Don't miss this showcase of tomorrow's comedy stars. Recommended for ages 18+. Price: $31-$51 Thu, November 20 at 7:30 PM Reduced Shakespeare Company's The Ultimate Christmas Show (Abridged) The fruitcakes of the Reduced Shakespeare Company are coming to take you on an irreverent yet heartwarming trip through the holidays. It's festive funny physical family fun as these Three Wise Guys send-up and celebrate your favorite winter holiday traditions. CONTENT ADVISORY: Contains comic depictions of violence, mild innuendo, bawdy language, and the occasional rude word. Thu, December 4 at 7:00 PM Colbie Caillat and Gavin DeGraw: Christmas Tour 2025 Experience the magic of the season with two of music's most beloved voices in an unforgettable evening of holiday favorites and chart-topping hits! Colbie Caillat, the 2X GRAMMY Award-winning songstress behind the 6X Platinum smash "Bubbly" and beloved holiday album Christmas in the Sand, brings her signature warm, West Coast style to the stage. Gavin DeGraw, the GRAMMY-nominated powerhouse known for iconic anthems like "I Don't Want To Be" and the 4X Platinum hit "Not Over You," delivers his distinctive fusion of pop, soul, and folk. Together, these two extraordinary artists-who previously collaborated on the GRAMMY-nominated "We Both Know"-promise an evening filled with holiday warmth, beloved hits, and the kind of musical chemistry that only comes from true artistry. Don't miss this special seasonal celebration featuring two voices that have soundtracked countless memories and will create new ones this holiday season. Fri, Dec 5 at 7:30 PM Olympia Poetry Network November featured poet and open mic Featured poet: Pat Dixon Pat Dixon's first full-length poetry book, Mending Holes, published last June, follows his chapbook, Arc of Visibility, which won the Alabama State Poetry Morris Memorial Award in 2015. He's been published in numerous journals and anthologies, including the two award winning collections Take a Stand: Art Against Hate, and I Sing the Salmon Home. Past poetry editor of National Fisherman Magazine's North Pacific Focus and a member of the FisherPoets Gathering organizing committee, Pat received an Artist Trust Grant to edit Anchored in Deep Water: The FisherPoets Anthology. His poem "Western Washington November" won Cirque's 2023 Poems of Place competition. Pat writes and photographs in and around Olympia, and serves on the board of the Olympia Poetry network. Wednesday, November 19, 2025, 6:00-7:30 pm Reading live at Traditions, the Gathering Place, 5th & Water Street, downtown Olympia Open mic signup starts 5:30pm All are welcome. Olympia Poetry Network Poetry Workshop with Pat Dixon The Poetry of Work: A workshop using our jobs as poetic source material We will list the jobs we've held, whether we were paid or not, from childhood to present day, then consider which one calls to us to say more. Beginning with a relaxation exercise to access vivid memories, participants will walk through a series of single-word or short phrase individual observations based upon the five senses as well as emotions conjured from those memories. After some time spent writing, the workshop will conclude with a short discussion on "poetic license" and revision. Free for OPN subscribers; $20 for non-subscribers (includes a 1 year subscription to OPN.) Saturday, November 22, 1-3pm Olympia Community Center, 222 Columbia Street NW, room 200 Learn more Olympia Zine Fest 2026 ‼️Save the date‼️ Olympia Zine Fest returns to the Olympia Center on Saturday, May 30 for a day of zines and DIY magic. Stay tuned for more details about our planned events and tabling applications announcement. Learn more Newsletter Roundup Hummingbird Studio Fall 2025 Newsletter Artist Trust Newsletter | November 2025 News of the Week in Downtown Olympia! HQP in November: A Christmas Carol Milestone! Get ready to laugh: Comedy is coming to the Washington Center! Celebrating Growth, Courage, and Community at ASHHO Artists' Gallery November Newsletter Music Director Alexandra opens the score for you Lacey Museum News - November 2025
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Malleable: Artist call is NOW LIVE!
Umpqua Valley Arts is proud to present a call for soft sculpture art! We invite artists from Oregon, Washington, and Idaho to utilize soft sculpture in their artistic practice to submit up to 3 works for consideration in the show.
This is a juried exhibition highlighting the use of soft materials and processes in art.
Call Opens: November 4th, 2025
Deadline: March 27th, 2026
Artists Notified: April 21st, 2026
Exhibit Dates: June 5th - August 14th, 2026
Legal Advice Week in November
Starts on the 17th. Join in this monthly opportunity for artists and arts organizations in WA State to get free advice on specific legal issues. Sign up today for a 30-minute consultation with an attorney.
WLA LAW is open to artists and arts organizations throughout Washington State. LAW Clinics address and support legal issues* related to an artistic discipline and can cover a wide range of areas, such as: Copyright, Trademark, Publicity Rights, Licensing, Fair Use, Business Formation, Contract Review
*Legal issues involving patent, employment, criminal, tax, & family law are not apt for WLA LAW.
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ARTISTS and ARTS ORGANIZATIONS, CLICK HERE TO PARTICIPATE
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The ARCH Digest is a summary of Arts, Culture and History happenings in the greater Olympia area, submitted by the community. Please turn in ArCH Digest listings to [email protected]. Deadline Monday morning, 8 a.m. If you know of anyone who would like to receive the City of Olympia Arts & Culture news, which includes a weekly ArCH Digest, direct them here and have them mark the Arts & Culture box. Disclaimer: Information in the Arts Digest is not vetted through the City, nor is it endorsed by the City. The reader is solely responsible for checking background on any opportunity listed above.
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Contact
Stephanie Johnson, Arts Program Manager
Olympia Parks, Arts & Recreation
360.709.2678
[email protected]
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