Programmatic Overview of the NEW

NORDIC MUSEUMSEATTLE, WA USA

MISSIONThe Nordic Heritage Museum shares Nordic culture with people of all ages and backgrounds by exhibiting art and objects, preserving collections, providing educational and cultural experiences, and serving as a community gathering place.

VISIONThe new Nordic Museum is an internationally recognized museum and cultural center where people of all backgrounds are welcomed to be inspired by the values, traditions, art, and spirit of the Nordic peoples.

DESIGN CONCEPTThe Design Concept for the new Nordic Museum integrates the Museum’s need for a diverse array of public spaces and the narrative framework of a new core exhibition with architecture that incorporates both sleek Nordic modernism and the sense of warm community in which the Museum has thrived. The Nordic past, present, and future are celebrated as the visitor moves into and throughout the building.

PromenadeThe Nordic Promenade, set along a pedestrian stretch of Ballard’s Market Street, features continuous glazing at the street level, providing passersby with glimpses of the activity inside. The Courtyard features landscape elements that evoke the Nordic natural environment, fl ags that represent the fi ve modern Nordic nations, and iconic works of art by Nordic and Nordic American artists, commissioned to enhance the Museum’s architecture.

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2Floor plans for the New Nordic Museum

Fjord HallUpon entering the three-story building, visitors will encounter the Museum’s central gathering place — including the Lobby, Kaffestuga, Museum Store, Auditorium, classrooms, and craft room — before continuing to the Fjord Hall. Running nearly the full length of the building, the 4,000-square-foot (471-square-meter) Fjord Hall serves as both the physical and philosophical core of the building, and as the primary orientation space for the visitor’s experience within the Museum. In this large and dramatic space, visitors will be introduced to Nordic and Nordic American cultures, and will be invited to begin their personal voyage of Nordic discovery. A procession of boats suspended along the length of the Fjord Hall will evoke the journeys of Nordic peoples, both ancient and modern. Natural elements of wood, stone, and water will enhance the visitor’s understanding of Nordic life, while a two-story glass wall offers visual connections to the Museum’s Sun Terrace and waterfront setting. Words embedded in the fl oor of the Fjord Hall — nature, perseverance, modesty, egalitarianism, creativity, innovation — will compose a metaphorical river of Nordic values, refl ecting the ideals and attributes that have come to defi ne Nordic character and identity throughout the ages. With its high ceilings and central location, the Fjord Hall will provide a dramatic setting for public programs, civic events, ceremonies, receptions, and social gatherings.

Changing Exhibition GalleryFrom the Fjord Hall, the visitor enters a 4,200-square-foot gallery with state-of-the-art security and environmental controls. Here, temporary exhibitions devoted to Nordic and Nordic American art, design, and culture complement the permanent exhibitions. Treasures on loan from museums of Nordic countries will enhance the

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Museum’s role as a facilitator of cultural exchange between the U.S. and the Nordic region. Exhibitions at the new facility will draw upon recent scholarship in Nordic and Nordic American history, literature, and material culture. The new galleries will enable the Museum to borrow heritage objects and stage exhibitions from the Nordic countries, vastly expanding the range of material available to our visitors.

National Identity Gallery This space will examine the fi ve Nordic nations of today, as well as Sápmi, and the semi-autonomous regions. The exhibit will provide visitors an opportunity to explore the region’s differences and similarities today, and examine national identities and the distinctive characteristics of the Nordic region. Elements will include audio/visual components, interactive displays, and objects that can be updated regularly with real-time developments in the Nordic regions. This gallery will introduce the central themes that will be explored in the Museum’s core exhibition: culture, identity, and international cultural exchange.

Core ExhibitionThe second fl oor exhibition will trace Nordic themes of connection to nature, sustainability, social justice, and innovation from the earliest anthropological records through contemporary Nordic society.

A key narrative feature of the core exhibition is an area known as The Sense of Place. The story begins 8,000 years ago and explores the ways in which geography contributes to cultural development. Large-scale videos, imagery, and soundscapes depict both the beauty and the challenges of the Nordic landscape and convey the experience of life in this environment. The exhibition chronicles the parallel histories of Nordic communities in Europe and North America. Like a Nordic saga, the exhibition journey encourages visitors to reach back into the deep past as

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well as to explore more recent history, focusing on the goals and values of Nordic communities. The Museum’s stories will be modern sagas, crafted from the personal and communal histories of those who left the Nordic region and came to North America, those who stayed in the Nordic countries, and those who returned to their homeland from the United States. A series of bridges span the Fjord Hall; letters and photographs displayed on the bridges illustrate the constant dialogue between the Nordic and Nordic American stories and reveal aspects of individual sagas — such as the diffi culty of leaving home and hopes for a new future.

Exploration: The Nordic Experience provides a sweeping history of the Nordic region, from the foundations of Norse mythology and the saga tradition, through the Viking Age, and into the modern period. In this segment of the journey, the visitor comes to understand the historical and political events and phenomena that have woven the histories of the fi ve Nordic nations together over the centuries. As the journey continues into the 19th and early 20th centuries, connections are made to the Nordic American story — this area explores 20th-century Nordic history, chronicling the development of the Nordic model, the ways in which the Nordic countries are exemplars in the fi elds of social democracy and environmentalism, and the emergence of Nordic design as a cultural distinction of worldwide renown.

First-person narratives illustrate the push and pull of the immigrant experience, leading to The Dream of America and new lives in a new land. The stories also reveal Nordic American contributions to the fabric of American society and the ways in which character and values are carried from the homeland to a new life. The modern stories draw upon concepts found in ancient sagas. Within the sagas are journeys — both geographical and personal — that illustrate such ideas as the impact of individuals on communities and the role of women in society.

The deep-rooted maritime traditions of the Nordic peoples — who for thousands of years have traveled, fi shed, and traded across fjords, lakes, rivers, and seas — are celebrated in the Maritime Gallery. Exhibits examine Scandinavia’s long and varied maritime culture, as well as the ways in which Nordic traditions have survived and evolved in a North American context, particularly in the Pacifi c Northwest. The Maritime Gallery has a framed view across the Fjord Hall out to Ballard’s working waterfront, providing the visitor a space in which to refl ect on continuity and change.

Cultural Resources CenterThe Cultural Resources Center, located at the conclusion of the 2nd-fl oor core exhibit, will be a place of discovery. In this research library and interactive forum, visitors can meet, share, or record stories and explore such themes as heritage, identity, cultural expression, and contemporary Nordic culture. Visitors will have an opportunity to interact digitally with the Museum’s collections, archives, and genealogical resources. It will also be an opportunity to connect in real-time with our Nordic sister organizations.

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EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMSThe Museum will continue its current successful educational programs in the new facility, as well as add compelling and engaging mission-related opportunities.

Adults. Adult Educational Programs will include such well-known favorites as: Scandinavian Language Institute, docent-led tours, and Craft School (cooking classes, woodcarving, knitting, rosemaling, and weaving).

Children and Families. To ensure our relevance to future generations, the Museum will continue to offer engaging programs to children and families. In the new facility we will be able to continue these important programs as well as expand opportunities for this vital demographic. Programs will include a free preschool reading program, LEGO workshops, after-school programs and summer camp, Children’s Christmas in Scandinavia, Barneleikarringen, and Pippi Longstocking events.

PUBLIC PROGRAMSSome of the Museum’s most engaging events include our Nordic Lights Film Festival, Nordic Knitting Conference, Soup & Cinema, and Pecha Kucha programs. The new facility will allow us to expand these highly engaging programs with new compelling mission-related opportunities.

Conferences. The new facility will serve as a platform for discourse relating to Nordic social issues, art, literature, and culture. Conferences will include topics such as migration, genealogy, crafts (knitting, etc.), design, sustainability, business development, and innovation.

Film. The Museum will continue its successful fi lm programs that currently include our Nordic Lights Film Festival in January and our monthly Soup & Cinema program. The new facility will allow us to move our Nordic Lights Film Festival back to the Museum and the new auditorium will be ideal for an enhanced Soup & Cinema program.

Music. The Nordic Heritage Museum is well known for its music programs, from our celebrated Mostly Nordic chamber music series and Ballard Jazz Festival to traditional Nordic folk music (Viking Days and Yulefest) and cutting edge contemporary popular music (i.e. our partnership with KEXP’s Reykjavik Calling and

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Taste of Iceland). Our new facility will offer a more suitable performance space for visiting musicians and allow us to expand capacity for concert attendees.

FESTIVALSFestivals such as Viking Days and Yulefest have served as an important driver in engaging the broader community, sharing Nordic culture and heritage, and generating much needed revenue for the Museum’s operations.

Viking Days. Every summer, throngs of Viking enthusiasts descend on Ballard to attend the Museum’s annual Viking Days festival. The new facility will allow us to improve the visibility of the event and the Museum within Ballard and the larger Seattle area, making transportation to the festival much easier for attendees. This improved location will therefore not only increase Viking Days’ success, but will also have a large impact on the Museum’s outreach and membership initiatives during the festival.

Yulefest. Yulefest is the Museum’s second largest fundraiser and draws more visitation that any other Museum event. In the new Museum, this event will be transformed into a Scandinavian Winter Market with traditional food, vendors, craft merchants, performers, and glögg. The new facility will increase visitor capacity during the festival, as well as provide improved visibility and outreach and membership initiatives.

FUNDRAISING AND CULTIVATION EVENTSThe new venue will provide an excellent opportunity for the Museum and its Development team to host a series of fundraising and cultivation events that will ensure the future fi nancial stability of the organization.

Nordic Lights Auktion. The annual gala Auktion is the premiere fundraising event of the year. The new venue will provide an exciting location for an event that has more recently taken place off site. Not only will attendees see the Museum in a different light as a high-impact location for elegant events, but an onsite Auktion at the new facility will provide a direct link between contributions made at the event and their impact on the Museum.

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Travel. With higher operating costs in the new facility, the Museum must discover and exploit new opportunities for fundraising. For the fi rst time in many years, the Museum is exploring cultural and fundraising opportunities associated with a travel program. Our members and participants in our programs have demonstrated a clear and passionate interest in Nordic culture and arts. Given this audience, we have been able to offer participation in a 14-day, cultural and natural beauty tour of Norway, Denmark, and Sweden.

Dinners. The Nordic Dinner Series brings together Nordics and Nordic enthusiasts for a celebratory evening for each Nordic country, centered on discussing contemporary issues in the Nordic region today and strengthening ties in the Nordic-American community through a meal and program. The series features fi ve dinners, one for each Nordic country and co-hosted by its respective Consul, and features a country-specifi c menu and entertainment. In the new facility, this series will be an integral part to cultivate new donors and supporters.

FACILITY RENTALThe new facility will provide an unparalleled opportunity to develop the existing rental program. Expanded auditorium and classroom spaces — the Fjord Hall, a Sun Terrace, and Rooftop Observatory — will provide unique settings for a broad range of day and evening functions. The central location of the Museum in the heart of Ballard’s business district, and the new building’s waterfront views, will make various rental spaces popular and valuable.

COMMUNITY PARTNERSThe Museum will serve as an important beacon for partners within the Nordic community, both in the Puget Sound region and beyond. Nordic organizations, foundations, and cultural groups will continue to fi nd a home here. The Museum will continue to serve as a venue for events held in conjunction with our partner organizations. The Museum has historically hosted events such as the Finnish Bazaar, Kalavala Days, and Thorrablot and hopes to expand our role in this regard.

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www.nordicmuseum.orgNORDIC HERITAGE MUSEUM

3014 NW 67th Street, Seattle, WA 98117 USA206.789.5707

The Nordic Heritage Museum shares

Nordic culture with people of all ages and

backgrounds by exhibiting art and objects,

preserving collections, providing educational

and cultural experiences, and serving

as a community gathering place.