Mindport exhibit space, set to close next month, will be showcase for Coast Salish culture
Children of the Setting Sun Productions , a nonprofit, Indigenous-led film company based in Bellingham, will be taking over the Mindport exhibits building to create a gallery, studios and work space for Coast Salish artists.
Mindport's building was donated by an anonymous benefactor to Children of the Setting Sun, according to a statement from Mindport Executive Director Tallie Jones posted Thursday at the Mindport website.
In a statement, Darrell Hillaire, executive director of Children of the Setting Sun, said he was grateful to the benefactor, Jones and Mindport staff for its 30 years of "commitment to creativity, learning and community engagement" at its 210 W. Holly St. gallery.
"For the first time, Children of the Setting Sun Productions will have a space open to the public where we can invite the community and our partners to collaborate and walk with us on this journey to change hearts and minds. We will strengthen, remember, and share Indigenous stories of hy'shqe (the Lummi word for gratitude)," Hillaire said in a statement.
Mindport announced its upcoming Nov. 3 closure earlier this year, citing the loss of a key donor. The gallery opened in 1995 with interactive exhibits that merged science and art, featuring light, kinetic movement and running water.
Whatcom County tax records show that the building owner, Nancy Burnett of Carmel Valley, Calif., gave the building assessed at $1.25 million to Children of the Setting Sun Productions on June 26. Burnett bought the building in 2001 for $325,000.
Children of the Setting Sun, known for its documentary films "The Salmon People" and "Story Pole," is also the recipient of a $2 million Yield Giving award funded by billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott.
In presenting that award in March, Yield Giving said Children of the Setting Sun "empowers Indigenous communities and future generations through multimedia storytelling and leadership development by bridging tribal, environmental, health care and educational sectors and fostering generosity, gratitude, respect and responsibility for unity and transformation."
In the statement posted Thursday, Hillaire said Children of the Setting Sun is developing Setting Sun Labs to create a gallery, digital media production studios, an artist-in-residence program and "maker spaces for Indigenous artists to create and interact with each other and the community."
RMC Architects and Dawson Construction, both of Bellingham, will renovate the three-story building.
Plans call for construction to start next spring, and the new studios and galleries should be open in 2026, the statement said.
