Seattle
- Grunge exploded onto the national stage: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden turned the city into the center of the music world, a status it had never held before and would never quite hold again.
- Seattle became a destination city for young migrants, seeding the demographic shift that would define its next three decades.
- The Seattle SuperSonics, led by Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp, gave the city a basketball identity to match its new cultural clout.
The United States
- Bill Clinton defeated incumbent President George H.W. Bush, aided by Ross Perot's third-party run siphoning 19% of the popular vote. (Reference, Miller Center)
- The Los Angeles riots erupted after the acquittal of officers who beat Rodney King, killing 63 people and causing over $1 billion in damage.
- The Cold War's end left America searching for a new foreign-policy identity - "it's the economy, stupid" was the campaign's defining phrase.
The World
- The Maastricht Treaty was signed, formally creating the European Union and laying the groundwork for a common currency.
- Ethnic cleansing began in Bosnia as Yugoslavia's violent dissolution accelerated; the siege of Sarajevo would last nearly four years.
- The Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro brought world leaders together on climate and biodiversity.
The 1992 poster features "Dancing Raven Spirit" by Plains Cree artist George Littlechild, a resident of Vancouver, British Columbia . Native American perseverance and spirit are brought to life in Littlechild's vibrant paintings, which have been featured in exhibitions in Canada, Germany and the United States. While his themes explore the devastation of indigenous cultures, the tone of his work is positive and inspirational. We feel "Dancing Raven Spirit" captures the essence of the Festival, and would like to express our appreciation to George Littlechild for allowing us to use this work.
Spirit of the First Peoples
Welcome to the 21st annual Northwest Folklife Festival. 1992 continues to bring strong community support for, and national interest in our year-round projects. These projects help expand our contacts with Northwest artists, develop audiences for the traditional arts and provide new resources for Festival programs.
Some of these projects include a multi-ethnic curriculum developed with the Shoreline School District, a summer arts program for at-risk youth presented with the Seattle Housing Authority and the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation, the Washington State jewish Historical Society's Quincentennial Sephardi programs, and Spirit of the First people, which focuses on Native American music and dance traditions in Washington State.
Spirit of the First People is a collaboration between Northwest Folklife, the Washington State Arts Commission and Jack Straw Productions, produced with the assistance of representatives from many of the Tate's Native American tribes and cultural organizations. The result is Festival programs that provide, for the general public, a comprehensive presentation of performing traditions of the first people of this state.
The Northwest is a wonderfully diverse region. Whether this is your first or twenty-first Festival, I encourage you to take the time to learn more about our cultural traditions through programs like Spirit of the First People. The Festival is full of such opportunities to learn about and celebrate our great Northwest heritage.
Scott Nagel
Executive Director