PORT ANGELES — A walk among the towering trees beside the Hoh River inspired this summer’s show at the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center.
Those trees epitomize the “backcountry,” Jake Seniuk believes.
And they, along with poet Gary Snyder’s book The Back Country, gave him the title of the art exhibition that will open July 10 at the center at 1502 E. Lauridsen Blvd.
Now, Seniuk is putting out the call to artists to contribute to “The Back Country.”
He’s seeking “art that speaks to the physical wilderness at our backyard, as well as to more metaphoric and symbolic ‘backcountries’ of the mind and spirit.”
The deadline for submissions to the show is Monday, May 23, though Seniuk welcomes calls and emails much sooner.
“Art of all media will be considered, bounded only by your imagination of what the backcountry might be,” he noted.
‘Renewed awareness’
“The impending removal of the Elwha River dams brings to the foreground a renewed awareness of the Olympic backcountry that will again be open to returning salmon runs,” he said.
“Trees, peaks and fast water will certainly play a major role in the art that finds its way into the show.
“But what of other backcountries?” he said. “Where are the wildlands of the psyche and the intellect?”
Seniuk and the fine arts center can be reached at 360-457-3532 or pafac@olypen.org.