4 Fun Facts About Monkeyshines in Tacoma

Each year in February, Tacoma experiences the wonder of “Monkeyshines.” This fascinating tradition started in 2003 when a local artist known as “Ms. Monkey” came up with a fun plan to hide some art throughout Tacoma that locals could find and keep. Ms. Monkey and her accomplices decided to make 200 glass balls stamped with a monkey head to hide around the city that year, and a cherished Tacoma tradition was born!

“Tacoma is a quirky, artsy place, and our guerrilla art is perfect evidence of that!” says REALTOR® Anders Ibsen. “I'm proud to live in a city that brings people together with art.”

You might still be confused as to what Monkeyshines exactly is… read on for 4 facts about this annual Tacoma happening!

1. Monkeyshines typically happens at the time of the Lunar New Year. And after 12 years of Monkeyshines and featuring the animals of the Chinese Zodiac, the creators behind it all have decided to embark on another 12 years of Monkeyshines.
2. If you find a Monkeyshine, you get to keep it! The only rule is that each person doesn’t take more than one to keep.
3. People have started leaving out other fun items for others to find. “Marble Man” has been known to leave marbles out for people to find, and others have also made small crafts or other trinkets for people to discover.
4. Keep your eyes and ears open to hear about the exact day to go searching. But no matter when the big day occurs, you’ll want to be sure and wake up early to increase your chances of finding something! This article recommends heading out at 5 or 6am, but sometimes different batches are even hidden on different days.

Anders recommends following the #monkeyshines hashtag on Twitter—people post hints and pictures of their discoveries.

You can read more in-depth information about Monkeyshines here and here, and follow Monkeyshines on Facebook for updates. Have a question about Monkeyshines? REALTOR® Anders Ibsen is happy to chat—you can get in touch here!