News & Expert Advice

Cruising Seattle? Consider this gay-interest shore excursion

Berenice Abbot, "Janet Flanner," 1927. Photographic print. 9 1/2 x 7 3/8 inches. Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. © Berenice Abbott/Commerce Graphics, New York. Used with permission of Tacoma Art Museum.

If you’re cruising through Seattle during the upcoming Alaska cruise season, consider a side trip to Tacoma. Where? Yes, Tacoma, the city with which Seattle shares its airport, the “Tac” in Sea-Tac. While Tacoma doesn’t exactly boast the tourism cachet of Seattle, Portland, or Vancouver, up until mid-June the Tacoma Art Museum is hosting the only West Coast exhibit of the Smithsonian’s HIDE/SEEK: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture. The show runs through June 10, 2012.

According to a press release, the exhibit is “The first major exhibition to explore how gender identity and sexual orientation have shaped modern American portraiture, HIDE/SEEK offers an unprecedented survey of nearly 150 years of American art with more than 100 works by masters including Thomas Eakins, John Singer Sargent, Georgia O’Keeffe, Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, and more.”

It’s getting some great press buzz. Check it out at the museum’s website.

Packages for this exhibit are being offered by the gay-friendly, upscale Hotel Murano, which is only three blocks from the Tacoma Art Museum. The hotel has been described as a “museum unto itself with a world-class collection of glass art displayed throughout the property.” Their package includes two tickets to HIDE/SEEK at the Tacoma Art Museum, plus free Wifi, parking, a food/beverage voucher, and a commeorateive HIDE/SEEK book. More info on this package is availabe at the Murano website

The HIDE/SEEK package is available for Wednesday-Sunday stays through June 10, 2012. Rates start at $219, per night, plus tax. To book, call 866-986-8083 or visit Murano.com.