About
Sharpest Knives exists to break barriers between people and spaces through conversations with arts and cultural leaders.
Based in Seattle, Washington, Sharpest Knives is a podcast created, hosted, and produced by Maris Antolin. Her conversations with arts and cultural leaders explore arts access, advocacy, social, racial, and gender equity, with the intention of breaking down barriers between people and spaces.
Arts shouldn’t be esoteric! Sharpest Knives is an accessible digital space that encourages creative sharing and conversations, breaks down barriers, and creates new safe spaces for ideas and movements to flourish in podcast form.
The intent of this project is to build a free digital archive of one on one conversations with arts and culture leaders to discuss their careers, and current issues like arts access, artist support ($, space, & time), and social, racial, and gender equity. Learn about what drives these arts and culture warriors, what they love about what they do, and their personal testimonies of how they got to where they are.
Sharpest Knives is partially supported by the Seattle Office of Arts and Culture.
Photo: Michelle Smith-Lewis
Maris Antolin
Creator/Executive Producer
Maris hails from the land of bikes, beers, mountains, and lake swimming; Fort Collins, Colorado. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Digital Arts/Graphic Design and Dance at the University of Oregon in Eugene, and holds an MFA in Arts Leadership from Seattle University. Since moving to Seattle in 2014, Maris has been working as a freelance graphic designer and illustrator, as well as in Communications and Marketing roles for Velocity Dance Center, Karin Stevens Dance, and Central District Forum for Arts and Ideas. Maris currently works for Pacific Northwest Ballet. While not at work, Maris spends her time watching reality TV, reading, and with her husband, daughter, and dog.