Righting a Wrong: Japanese Americans and World War II
Ongoing; Old City Hall
Righting a Wrong poster exhibition traces the story of Japanese national and Japanese American incarceration during World War II and the people who survived it. Young and old lived crowded together in hastily built camps, endured poor living conditions, and were under the constant watch of military guards for two and a half years. Meanwhile, […]
Vintage Vaudevillians
Ongoing; Lightcatcher Second Floor Hallway
Vintage Vaudevillians is a new photographic exhibition, in the Lightcatcher building second floor hallway, highlighting a dozen vaudeville acts that performed in Bellingham in the early 20th century. Originally used to promote the acts, these publicity photos were saved by James Warwick, stage manager at downtown theaters during vaudeville’s heyday. Image credit: Arnold’s Performing Felines, […]
Two Views: Photographs by Ansel Adams and Leonard Frank
February 15 – May 17, 2020; Old City Hall
Two countries – two photographers. This compelling collection of photographs presents two views of internment and incarceration in the early 1940s. The 1942 incarceration of people of Japanese descent in the United States and Canada following the bombing of Pearl Harbor is portrayed through this stunning collection of black and white photographs. Ansel Adams and Leonard […]
Moving Forward, Looking Back: Washington’s First Women in Government
February 15 – May 10, 2020; Old City Hall
This traveling exhibit from Legacy Washington honors the centennial celebration of women’s suffrage and the passage of the 19th Amendment, giving women in the United States the right to vote. Moving Forward, Looking Back: Washington’s First Women in Government follows the lives of 14 women who soared to some of the most coveted offices in Washington […]
partners
Conversations Between Collections: The Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Whatcom Museum
February 1, 2020 - January 3, 2021; Lightcatcher building
The Whatcom Museum is pleased to kick off a five-year exhibition partnership with the Smithsonian American Art Museum, as we present three masterworks from one of the nation’s most treasured collections of American art. Made possible through the support of Art Bridges and the Terra Foundation for American Art, two exhibitions titled Conversations Between Collections […]
docent tours
Take a docent-led tour Saturdays beginning February 1, 2:30–3:30pm and learn more about Conversations Between Collections, a partnership between the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) and the Whatcom Museum featuring three SAAM masterworks in “conversation” with the Whatcom Museum’s permanent collection. Our trained docents will provide insight into the themes of identity and place highlighted in the exhibition. Tours begin in the lobby of the Lightcatcher, last one hour, and are included with admission.
The Global Language of Headwear: Cultural Identity, Rites of Passage, and Spirituality
February 1 - April 26, 2020, Lightcatcher building
The Global Language of Headwear: Cultural Identity, Rites of Passage, and Spirituality presents 87 hats and headdresses carefully selected from a private collection of more than 1300 extraordinary pieces of international headwear. This exhibition features hats from 42 countries across Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and North and South America, and is a tribute […]
docent tours
Take a docent-led tour beginning February 1st to learn more about The Global Language of Headwear. Our trained docents will provide insight into the cultures and headdresses featured. Tours take place Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, 1:30-2:30pm and begin in the lobby of the Lightcatcher. Included with admission/Members free.
partners
People of the Sea and Cedar: A Journey Through the Tribal Cultures and History of the Northwest Coast
Ongoing, Lightcatcher People of the Sea and Cedar, in the second floor gallery of the Lightcatcher building, shares the history and art of the Northwest Coast people, blending both historical and contemporary perspectives. This exhibit features artifacts from the Museum’s collection, such as Coast Salish artwork and carvings, woven blankets, hand-made tools, cedar hats, clothing, […]
The Whatcom Museum has been making connections with linguistics and Native speakers throughout the Pacific Northwest to expand the Native language component of People of the Sea and Cedar. We will continue to develop our Lummi language translations and recordings together with Lummi Nation instructor Smak i’ya’, Matt Warbus, tribal elders, and Lummi Nation students. We look forward to sharing more.
John M. Edson Hall of Birds
Opened March 16, 2017; Ongoing; Old City Hall This new exhibit in Old City Hall provides a glimpse into the local history and culture of the Victorian Era, when taxidermy flourished and mounted animals often decorated interior spaces. For the Museum, this collection of birds is also important to the building’s history. If it hadn’t […]
partners
Join volunteers from the North Cascades Audubon Society in the John M. Edson Hall of Birds on the fourth Sundays of each month. Drop-in between 1:30-3:30pm to learn more about birds of the Pacific Northwest, as well as about migration, conservation, birds in peril, and the importance of studying bird specimens today.
History Exhibits at Old City Hall
Ongoing; Old City Hall The Museum’s 1892 Old City Hall building features a variety of exhibits that tell the stories of the building’s architecture, the city’s early days, logging history, and waterfront industry. Green Gold: Logging the Pacific Northwest Relive the history of logging in our corner of the Pacific Northwest through photographs, artifacts, and […]
