Submitted by Kwiaht staff
A stately figure cloaked in salmon with a huge raven perched on her shoulder just appeared in Lopez Village Park. Standing watch over two storm drains, she reminds us of our inescapable connections with water, fish and wildlife.
Public showing of Raven Woman, sculpted by Lopez artist Nancy Bingham, is the first in a series of temporary water-themed art installations organized by the Lopez-based conservation laboratory Kwiaht this summer. “We call our outdoor art series Village at the edge of the Sea,” says Kwiaht director Russel Barsh. “Salt water is a familiar scenic backdrop for the village, but we often forget that almost everything we do in the village ends up in the bay.”
And who is Raven Woman? Bingham says, “When I hear Raven’s voice, or the sound of wings whipping the air, or when I see Raven’s wild flying acrobatics, I feel a deep and timeless sense of connection to this place.”
Barsh hopes that a summer of public art will lead to serious discussion of ways that homeowners, businesses and the county can contribute to reducing pollution. Kwiaht will offer suggestions at four Farmers Market appearances this summer.
Kwiaht also plans to construct a demonstration street-corner remedial garden this summer, targeting copper from motor vehicles, treated wood, and moss control products. “We have found high levels of copper in storm sewers, Weeks Wetland, and sediments in Fisherman Bay,” Barsh explains, “approaching levels that can kill fish.” Kwiaht received funding for the project from the Captain Planet Foundation.
“Properly designed, a remedial swale can reduce pollution and also function as a park, a landscaped section of a walkway or trail, or garden surrounding public artwork,” says Kwiaht’s design apprentice and University of Washington student Sunni Wissmer, who has also worked with the Cascadia Green Building Council.
Kwiaht landscape ecologist Nathan Hodges and Orcas high school students have already designed and begun construction of a remedial garden in an Eastsound parking lot that will be featured in a forthcoming episode of the PBS series This American Land.
You can learn more about Raven Woman, other Village at the edge of the Sea art installations and managing village drainage and pollution by following Kwiaht on facebook or writing to kwiaht@gmail.com.
