PORT ANGELES — Today, the Arthur D. Feiro Marine Life Center is celebrating the beginning of its summer season, as well as a new entryway featuring a giant octopus and a new exhibit.
Admission will be free to the party from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the center on City Pier, 315 N. Lincoln St.
An 18-foot-by-4-foot copper and stainless steel creation by Clark Mundy will be unveiled.
The sculpture, which will be visible from the Waterfront Trail as well as from Front Street, will create a new entryway for the marine life center.
Lucy the octopus
It features Lucy, a giant copper octopus, which is accompanied by four Elwha River chinook salmon, a copper crab and human hands held in a gesture of welcome.
The $10,798 sculptural sign — funded by both the marine life center and the city of Port Angeles — also includes the name of the center in 12-inch-high letters.
Other highlights of today’s party will be a performance by the Elwha Klallam Singers and Dancers, refreshments and the debut of the Feiro’s new logo.
Inside the Feiro Marine Life Center, Port Townsend artist Larry Eifert has created 12 interpretive panels telling the story of the Elwha River — which will be freed of two dams beginning in September and returned to a wild state.
In his mural, Eifert shows how the nearshore — where river and sea commingle — could flourish after the nearly century-old dams are gone.
The center’s hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week.
For more information, visit www.FeiroMarineLifeCenter.org or phone 360-417-6254.