Better than Expected – The Travels of Mary Anne and Steve

Inspired by the region’s natural beauty and rapidly changing city, this exhibition showcases artists who told the raw story of Seattle in the 20th century. By sharing the Pacific Northwest’s perspective through trending art styles—including Social Realism, Surrealism, and Abstract Expressionism—these artists offered a unique take on Modernist art and challenged the “mystic” label ascribed to their works.
Seattle Art Museum

Mark Tobey

1890 – 1976

Vendors and customers at the Pike Place Market

Relics and junk stored and sold at the market

Morris Graves

1910 – 2001

Dismembered horse, empty chair, gas mask. Nice.

Leo Kenney

1925 – 2001

I included this work because it’s done in egg tempera. I find it yields interesting effects.

George Tsutakawa

1910 – 1997

Tsutakawa is as well known for his sculptures as his paintings

Kenneth Callahan

1905 – 1986

Alexandre Hogue

1898 – 1994

Adolph Gottlieb

1903 – 1974

Part of Gottlieb’s Burst series, in which two distinct forms exist in dynamic tension against a white field.

In the Halls

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1 Comment

Wayne Litzenberger

May 30, 2026 9:07 am

Tsutakawa did fountains. One in Seattle near the library, I think. There was one I particularly liked at the Lloyd Center in Portland near the Nordstrom store. It disappeared during one of the many remodels. I miss it.

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