Welcome to Allied Arts of Whatcom County!
Creating a vibrant community connected through the arts
EXPLORE OUR EVENTS & PROGRAMS
Holiday Festival of the Arts
Our Full Sized In-person Art MarketThe Holiday Festival of the Arts is an indoor and online, 5 week-long festival featuring over 100 artisans from our region.
Reuse Thrift Store
Re-used Products and Materials for Creating ArtItems for sale are collected through donations, and sold at low cost. We sell some knick-knacks, drawing supplies, fabrics, crafts etc.
Exhibits
The Best of Whatcom County Art Displays and ExhibitionsArts Education Program
Professionally Taught Art Education ProjectsEach year our program conducts workshops in dance, theatre and the visual arts in the Bellingham schools and throughout Whatcom County.
Arts & Culture Guide
A Comprehensive List of the Bellingham Art SceneFeatured in local hotels, tourism and visitor centers, libraries, bookstores and other locations; as well as in all the locations featured on the map.
Arts & Culture Guide
A Comprehensive List of the Bellingham Art SceneFeatured in local hotels, tourism and visitor centers, libraries, bookstores and other locations; as well as in all the locations featured on the map.
Reuse Thrift Store
Re-used Products and Materials for Creating ArtItems for sale are collected through donations, and sold at low cost. We sell some knick-knacks, drawing supplies, fabrics, crafts etc.
Arts Education Program
Professionally Taught Art Education ProjectsEach year our program conducts workshops in dance, theatre and the visual arts in the Bellingham schools and throughout Whatcom County.
VISIT OUR GALLERY
Now Showing …
September: Caregivers
Caregivers
September 4–26, 2026
Gallery Hours: Wednesday – Saturday 11am – 4pm
Opening Reception: September 4th, 6pm-9pm
1213 Cornwall Ave, Bellingham, WA 98225
At some point in our lives, nearly all of us experience what it means to give care, receive care, or witness someone we love navigate change. Caregivers creates space to reflect on those moments—the relationships we hold onto, the memories we preserve, and the quiet acts of compassion that often happen outside of view.
Visitors will encounter the sculptural work of Francie Allen, whose five life-size figures transform Allied Arts’ new multi-use room into an intimate environment for reflection and storytelling. Installed alongside the community stage, Allen’s sculptures create a setting where visual art and personal narrative meet. During the exhibition, Allen will share selections from her memoir, bringing voice and lived experience into conversation with the work.
Continuing into Artist Alley, viewers will experience paintings by Margot Clemens and Ann Chaikin. Presented in a more intimate gallery setting, their works offer personal reflections on memory, relationships, and the spaces and moments that shape our connections with others.
More than an exhibition, Caregivers is an opportunity for conversation. Through sculpture, painting, and personal storytelling, the artists remind us that caregiving is not only about loss or responsibility—it is also about love, resilience, presence, and the connections that remain.
The exhibition and opening reception are free and open to the public. Artwork will be available for purchase, with proceeds supporting both the exhibiting artists and Allied Arts’ nonprofit mission to strengthen Whatcom County’s creative community.
The exhibition and opening reception are free and open to the public. Artwork will be available for purchase, with proceeds supporting both exhibiting artists and Allied Arts’ nonprofit mission to strengthen Whatcom County’s creative community.
A LITTLE ABOUT US
For over 40 years, Allied Arts of Whatcom County has been a leader in fostering and supporting the local arts scene and serves more than 50,000 people annually.
Allied Arts has improved the cultural health and vitality of the community through community events involving visual artists and musicians, its sponsorship of exhibits and programs focused on local artists, its extensive arts education in local schools and its public advocacy for the arts. Read More…
What’s Next for Allied Arts – A Letter to Membership
Dear Allied Arts Community,
Five months ago, I stepped into the role of Interim Executive Director with a simple goal: listen first.
Since then, I’ve had conversations with artists, volunteers, business owners, teachers, performers, nonprofit leaders, parents, students, and longtime supporters across Whatcom County. We’ve hosted community discussions, shared ideas over coffee, and heard from people who love Allied Arts and want to see it thrive for the next generation.
One thing became clear: our community is looking for more ways to connect.
People want places to meet fellow creatives, discover opportunities, share ideas, learn new skills, bring their families, hear live music, make art, and feel part of something bigger than themselves.
So that’s where we’re headed.
This August, Allied Arts will begin testing a new chapter for our downtown space. Following our July exhibit, we’ll be rearranging the building to make room for more of what the community has asked for: workshops, performances, gatherings, exhibitions, creative retail, and new opportunities to connect. Some ideas will work beautifully. Others we’ll learn from and improve. That’s the exciting part.
Rather than trying to be everything to everyone, we’re focusing on what Allied Arts does best: bringing people together and helping creativity flourish across Whatcom County.
You’ll start seeing more collaborations, more opportunities to participate, and more reasons to stop by and see what’s happening. Whether you’re an artist, musician, writer, performer, maker, student, parent, retiree, arts supporter, or simply someone who enjoys being part of a creative community, we want you here.
The future of Allied Arts won’t be built by one person, one board, or one organization. It will be built by the people who care about the arts and believe they make our community stronger.
Thank you for being part of that future.
I hope to see you soon.
Meredith Patten
Interim Executive Director
Allied Arts of Whatcom County
THANKS TO OUR SUPPORTERS
