SAM: Don't Call It a Comeback

It seems every blogger in the Pacific Northwest is singing the praises of the Seattle Art Museum after their reopening. It'd be fun to be the contrary voice that slams the whole affair but really, we don't have it in us - we loved the SAM this weekend as well, so chalk this one up in the "yay" column.

As soon as we heard about the fact that SAM was staying open 24 hours, we knew our plan was to be there at two in the morning. We bailed on Tapes 'n' Tapes early to head down, picking up tickets for 1am. All of downtown was abuzz with people coming and going. The ticket system led to an hour before being let in, so we headed to the Alibi Room, which was packed with other people waiting. Actually, so was everything open within walking distance. When are those those blocks ever that full that late if The Showbox isn't letting out? Never, that's when.

Inside, the new space was big, bright, and felt "real." As much as we love the Central Library, it feels like a badass piece of architecture first, library second, while SAM feels like a museum first and foremost. The party was in full swing on the first floor as we arrived, with the crowd making a turn for the more intoxicated/tweaked out as the evening went on. We enjoyed our encounters with a drunk girl who kept exclaiming "Fuck yeah!" at the Renaissance-era pieces. Now that's how you bring art back to the people. Fuck yeah indeed.

The art was impressive, and there was definitely a lot to take in, far too much for one trip, let alone one so late, but we slogged through it. We were especially pleased to see some Superflat representation on the 2nd floor. We heard some minor gripes about there being some repetition from SAM's earlier incarnation, but to those nay-sayers we say, "So what?" There was overlap from recent months at SAAM too, but that didn't take away from the experience. We're fine if the curators spent the last few months getting everything ready to open and not digging through the warehouse. Now that the building's open they can work on rotating the art.

So SAM, you've done good. We're sure we'll toss our snark in your direction soon enough, but for now, we tip our hats to you.