Seattle, WA – September 30th 2023 – What is culture? What is healing? Is it food, music, language, dance, art, massage, qi gong, yoga, community, a vibe? Is it a life-changing force that harmonizes, inspires and guides our soul’s path back to our ancestors? On Saturday, Sept. 30th, 2023 (12 p.m. – 8 p.m.), the 2nd annual Future Ancient Soul Healing Festival will host more than 100 cultural workers and healers who have joined forces to demonstrate what a healthy community looks like when people share their gifts and listen, see, and connect. The festival will take place at Judkins Park and invites community to reconnect to their ancient and modern cultures through healing arts, cultural performance, and sneak-peeks into two local documentaries about the Chinatown-International District and Seattle Black Panther Party, works that explore the lesser known but important history of Seattle’s Black and Asian communities from 7-8 p.m. The Future Ancient Soul Healing Festival is free, open to the public and family friendly.
Healing Activities (12-3pm)
Inspired by the Black Panthers community programs, the festival invites attendees to receive and participate in free healing activities. Get a massage from the Holistic Healing Coalition and Yele Yemoja (she/her) of Okan Vitality LLC; practice Qi Gong with Heru T’Chaas Amen, as well as diverse lineages of Yoga (Kemetic with Danston Kaunda, Shaolin Vinyasa with Che Sehyun and Yoga Nidra with Sophia Haddix), try acupuncture (Jordan Voss of CommuniChi, get some Physical Therapy from Allison Lieb or a haircut from Klip Dacio Coiffeeur LLC.
Cultural Sharing (3-7)
The festival will feature cultural workers from around the world as well as local gems, such as Ibrahim Arsalan, a Mandingo Jeli; King Khazm, hip-hop artist and leader of 206 Zulu; traditional Korean dance, stories and songs from the West Papuan Community; a fashion show by local Vietnamese elders; Nehaan, a T’lingit traditional artist; Rohena Alam Khan, Bangladeshi dance performer; and DJ Neebor bringing the soul healing vibes on the 1s and 2s—and more!
All Day—kid zone and vendors (food and culture)
Featuring two bouncy houses, face painting, and outdoor games, kids and families have a welcoming, safe community. Alongside will be various cultural craft and food vendors, such as Jamaican chef, Andrew Hype and his Caribbean food; Ralph and Anna of Whitefoot Fish with Native smoked salmon, Black Bookfairy with Hella Black Books, Kiara Hall of Mahaba Moss will provide super nutrient packed sea-moss based drinks and more!
Power of Community
The 2023 Future Ancient Soul Healing festival is brought to you in partnership with Seattle Parks & Recreation, Arts Fund, 4Culture, Interim Community Development Associations and other non-profits, but was born out of a 2020 public art partnership with Seattle Art Museum (SAM) and the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture during the height of a historical pandemic and the largest civil rights movement of our time: #BlackLivesMatter #GeorgeFloyd and countless others. Che Sehyun, a Seattle based multidisciplinary artist, Experience Education founder behind the Future Ancient, was the first local artist to serve as a curator with SAM in its 89-year history. In 2020, the Future Ancient public art project employed hundreds of cultural workers and engaged tens of thousands of people in the community. Now, the Future Ancient has launched the Annual Soul Healing Festival so community members can experience, in-person (and via livestream starting at 3 p.m. (TheFutureAncient.org)), cultural arts, stories, healing, and community building.
“Our cultural heritage is our inheritance,” said Sehyun. “It’s the wealth, wisdom, teachings, and ways of life that’s been passed down from generation to generation, over thousands of years, to give us the lifestyle and way of seeing and being that brings out our best. It’s our duty to learn from, give back more than we get, and share the culture.”
Sehyun noted that in America, and in Seattle, social norms meld diverse people into the “American way” of life, shedding the old self and reactively donning a new cultural cloth out of “alienation from our own nakedness.” But this “cultural theft and foreign garb creates a fundamental disconnection with the reality of our interdependent lives, and is the fundamental source of disease and conflict in society.” The cultural workers collaborating to produce the Soul Healing Festival believe that centering their cultural future and collective liberation heals the divisions and transforms conflict and trauma. That’s why each part of the festival soaks attendees in a nurturing bath of a Future Ancient cultural experience that resonates with our beautiful diversity.
“Many cultural communities are still living in silos by themselves. They don’t necessarily mingle with other communities,” said Cynthia Yongvang, cultural leader, artist, and the executive director of the Hmong Association of Washington. “What’s special about the Soul Healing Festival is it’s not just about bringing more visibility to the diverse cultures and community but that it really builds community by intentionally bringing different marginalized communities together.”
In that space of connection, the Future Ancient Soul Healing Festival is a catalyst for creating a radically compassionate, healing, and grounded experience, a hopeful step towards collective liberation.
“People in power think and work globally,” Sehyun said. “Embroiled in complex systems of oppression where power extends beyond borders, identities and individuals, we’re disconnected from our ancestors, culture and land—often unconsciously reproducing our suffering. The Future Ancient empowers people to experience a healing vibe and holistic community to make a meaningful shift. Wherever we are, we create the future of our culture — but what culture and what future are we creating?”
The Future Ancient Soul Healing Festival is free and open to the public. It will take place on Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, (12 p.m. – 8 p.m.) at Judkins Park (2150 S Norman St, Seattle, WA 98144).
Learn more, get free tickets, and stay connected at TheFutureAncient.org where you can also check out last year’s live-stream and highlights.