Before the Wrights or the Shirleys or other local arts patrons began collecting in Seattle, the tiny postwar gallery scene was represented by the likes of Zoe Dusanne and Otto Seligman. And it was from the latter establishment that Francine Seders got her start in the ’60s. She took over Seligman’s artist stable following his 1966 death, moved Francine Seders Gallery up to Greenwood, and until last December represented the likes of Mark Tobey, Jacob Lawrence, Fay Jones, and Guy Anderson. Seders’ French accent and Continental manner set her apart from the new school of gallerists who followed her; she was not only a pioneer in promoting modern art in the Northwest, but also a pioneering woman in the field.

sedersgallery.com

Read all of our picks for Arts & Culture, and explore the rest of this year’s edition of Best of Seattle.