Glimpses of Vashon | First Friday
Published 1:30 am Tuesday, July 7, 2026
The street was closed, the crowd was out and music filled the air as First Friday kicked off a sunny Fourth of July weekend on Vashon.
On Friday, July 3, islanders wandered uptown for the monthly gallery cruise, stopping in storefronts, lingering outside restaurants and gathering under the evening sun. Children gathered around a sidewalk table with iced tea, baked goods and a tip jar, racks of clothes spilled outside local shops and families watched the night unfold beneath an American flag.
The evening coincided with the first round of Vashon Center for the Arts’ Summer Arts Festival, along with openings and receptions at Puget Sound Cooperative Credit Union, Anu Rana’s Healthy Kitchen, the Vashon Senior Center, Swiftwater Gallery, VALISE Gallery and Windermere Gallery.
Together, the night offered a snapshot of island summer: art on the walls, music in the streets and neighbors taking their time.
Kent Phelan is a local photographer who contributed photos and reporting for the first installment of The Beachcomber’s new occasional photo series, “Glimpses of Vashon,” sharing small scenes of island life.
