Portland-based curator Gage Hamilton helped identify hometown heroes and renowned international artists alike to produce the murals over the course of three summers. Their ideas and aesthetics now come together in a continuous line of experience, connecting local and global perspectives in one communal creative experiment. The participating artists brought a broad range of backgrounds, styles, and approaches to the project—animated frames, patterns that evoke Native American dance movements, creatures that leap toward distant vanishing points, washes of color, bold graphic lettering, and much more.

SODO Track invited artists to participate festival-style and to work in new ways. Some painted at their largest scales to date and others offered youth workshops or collaborated as teams for the first time.

SODO Track was produced by 4Culture and a coalition of community partners—including the SODO BIA, Sound Transit, and Urban Artworks—all of whom shared a dedication to enhancing the transit experience, upping the ante on urban art in Seattle, and contributing something new to the global street art conversation. The project maximized public investment with economies of scale, grants, private donations, and in-kind contributions from many sources, including several local chefs and restaurateurs.

Spanning from 5th Avenue S between Royal Brougham Way and Spokane Street in Seattle’s SODO (South of Downtown) neighborhood, SODO Track is visible from Sound Transit’s Link light rail line between the Stadium and Beacon Hill Stations as well as from Metro Transit buses 150 and 594. SODO Track can also be seen by foot or bicycle via the SODO Trail, which extends from Royal Brougham to S Forest Street.