The Oregon Coast Council for the Arts will host the exhibition, “Ode to the Tides,” from August 2 to September 26 in the Upstairs Gallery at the Newport Visual Arts Center. Select works from the statewide traveling exhibit will be shown at the VAC, with additional works on display concurrently in Lincoln County at the Pacific Heritage Maritime Museum and the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport.
The “Ode to the Tides” exhibition, sponsored by The Wetlands Conservancy, includes over 90 Pacific Northwest artists working in an array of mediums, all exploring or depicting Oregon’s coastal estuaries, tide pools and the organisms that inhabit these ecologically important areas. “Ode to the Tides” is part of OCCA’s larger program, “Art 363: Representing the Oregon Coast” during August and September. Opening receptions at the Newport Visual Arts Center will be on Saturday, August 10, from 1-6pm, with “Ode to the Tides” organizers and artists speaking at 2pm.
The Wetlands Conservancy and other project partners have organized the “Ode to the Tides” exhibit to highlight the beauty, and ecological and economic value of near-shore coastal habitats. Estuaries are the rich mixing zones where freshwater from the land meets salt water from the sea. The blend—known as brackish water—creates an environment with abundant life and is a critical link to ocean health through their role in providing high-quality water, fish /shellfish rearing, refuge and production, and habitat for a host of wildlife and plant species. Oregon 22 major estuaries are essential for many fish and wildlife species, including salmon, herring, flounder, crab, oysters, clams, wading birds and ducks. Estuaries gather nutrients from both land and sea, forming an ecosystem that contains more life per square inch than the richest Midwest farmland.
The “Ode to the Tides” exhibit will be arriving in Newport after being exhibited in Seaside and Corvallis. Related events and activities are being planned as well. Lincoln County artists participating in the exhibit include Duncan Berry of Otis, Carol Cassidy, Roy Lowe and Mark Williams of Waldport, Michael Gibbons of Toledo, and Nora Sherwood of Lincoln City.
“The ‘Ode to the Tides’ exhibit is a critical part of the VAC’s artistic celebration of the Oregon coast during August and September,” says OCCA VAC director Tom Webb. “We thank The Wetlands Conservancy—including Sara Vickerman Gage, Esther Lev, and Paul Engelmeyer—for bringing the artistic creations to Newport and the central Oregon coast.”
For additional information, visit https://wetlandsconservancy.org/stewardship/ode-to-tides-art-exhibit/
The Upstairs Gallery is open Tuesday-Saturday, noon to 4pm.