PORT ANGELES — There will be a reception for “Beauty and Resilience: From Dismantling to Ecosystem Recovery” from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday at the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center, 1203 E. Lauridsen Blvd.
The opening reception is free, with donations welcomed; light refreshments will be available for purchase.
The exhibit also will be open from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday during the Port Angeles Second Saturday Art Walk.
The exhibit is based on the removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams and the subsequent restoration of the Elwha River ecosystem.
The center invited artists to share work that was inspired by the beauty, resilience and power of the river.
Many of the artists on display are habitat recovery advocates.
“From advocating for dam removal, helping replant trees, revegetating the land, to lecturing about the removal from across the country, everyone was touched by this monumental undertaking,” said Stacey Rekkedahl, the exhibit curator. “All of the artists in this show have been touched by the river and created work that tells a part of the story.
“To visually tell the story of the revegetation process allows the viewer to intimately experience the power and sublime beauty that nature has to offer. From photographs taken in planes to macramé weavings to wood carving, this exhibit invites the viewer to go along the journey the land has taken.”
The exhibiting artists are Kristian Brevik, Jeanne Edwards, Roger Fernandes, Shelley Jaye, Larry Eifert, John Gussman, Cat Brimhall, Darrell Charles, Jessica Plumb, John McMillan, Flora Melcer, Kristi Nakata and Sebastian Kennerknecht.
Beauty and Resilience combines 32 pieces of art in a variety of media including photography, weaving, wood carving, dried flora and fauna, oil painting and mosaics.
Most of the works on display also will be available for purchase.
“Beauty and Resilience: From Dismantling to Ecosystem Recovery” will be on exhibit in the Esther Webster Gallery at the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center, 1203 E. Lauridsen Blvd., from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays through Sept. 8.