International celebration at West Seattle’s Nantes Park this Sunday

As first reported here last month, Sunday (April 10th) will bring a celebration at Nantes Park (5062 SW Admiral Way) honoring the anniversary of Seattle’s sister-city relationship with the French city after which the park is named. Seattle Parks just announced the details:

The Seattle-Nantes Sister City Association and the City of Seattle, through Seattle Parks and Recreation, invite the community to reaffirm our Sister City relationship with Nantes, France at a park celebration on Sunday, April 10 at 4 p.m. at Nantes Park in West Seattle, 5062 SW Admiral Way. The event welcomes delegates from Nantes and the Pays de la Loire region, and celebrates the Nantes Park Beautification Project that has transformed the park into a fun, family-friendly, and accessible community gathering space.

The beautification project of the park includes sculptures from Claude Ponti (beloved and prolific French children’s author and illustrator), a new paved, accessible walkway with more Ponti art embedded in the cement, and an art tile project embedded into the park seat-wall designed by students in Nantes and Seattle. Some of the work is not yet complete due to the concrete strike, but visitors to the park can see examples of Claude Ponti’s whimsical world and future park features.

Ponti draws on his experience with the Jardin des Plantes and the Parc de la Beaujoire in Nantes and brings his French-influenced art to Seattle’s Nantes Park, symbolizing the intersection of the two cultures. Nantes Park also represents Ponti’s first art installation to be showcased in the United States.

The Nantes Park project is part of a year-long celebration on both sides of the Atlantic recognizing the 42nd anniversary of Seattle’s sister-city relationship with Nantes. The park project is led by the Seattle-Nantes Sister City Association (SNSCA) in partnership with the Admiral Neighborhood Association, and is funded by the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods, the City of Nantes, the West Seattle Garden Tour, and volunteers. More information on the Seattle-Nantes Sister City Association, the Nantes Park project, and the events planned to commemorate the 42nd anniversary can be found at www.seattle-nantes.org.

The park-beautification project mentioned above happened through a community-led process over the past few years.

1 Reply to "International celebration at West Seattle's Nantes Park this Sunday"

  • admiral admirable April 7, 2022 (3:09 pm)

    As someone who lives near Nantes Park, I really wish they’d do something about the wall of blackberries and integrate the park into the neighborhood instead of only facing Admiral. Yes, I made comment to this effect in the appropriate channels.How much nicer would the park be if it were located at the street end of Olga, less than a block away? You’d have incredible views of the Sound and Olympics, instead of the drone of Admiral traffic. Ah well…

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