'Drift' show to put buoy art around town this summer Show is to increase awareness of marine debris 02/24/10

Story last updated at 8:29 PM on Wednesday, February 24, 2010

'Drift' show to put buoy art around town this summer Show is to increase awareness of marine debris

BY MICHAEL ARMSTRONG

Photo by Michael Armstrong

Buoy art created by Diane McBride and her granddaughter.

Chicago has its cows on parade. Anchorage has teams of huskies displayed around town for Fur Rendezvous. This summer, Kachemak Bay will have its own version of creatively altered objects on exhibit. Instead of cast fiberglass critters, artists will paint, sculpt and decorate salvaged material — buoys.

Sponsored by the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies, "Drift: Buoys Around the Bay," invites artists to pick out buoys from a pile collected last summer at Gore Point. The art show is part of a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Community-Based Marine Debris Cleanup and Prevention Grant Program.

"A large part of the reason we're doing this is to make people aware of the large amount of marine debris we're cleaning up," said Melanie Dufour, CACS office manager.

Through its Kachemak Bay CoastWalk program, CACS has been cleaning up and monitoring beaches around the bay. The buoys collected are the most visible of marine debris — 12-inch or larger buoys from fishing gear lost or abandoned at sea. One of Alaska's catcher beaches, Gore Point collects thousands of pounds of marine debris, including large buoys from foreign or domestic fishing boats rarely seen in Kachemak Bay.

"The Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies hopes to inspire residents and visitors to Homer to contemplate the connection between themselves and the marine environment as they view the outdoor installations around town," CACS said in its call to artists. "As we view the buoys that have been transformed by artists, we might call to mind how the buoys drifted to shore, our impact on marine habitats and our power to protect it."

Photo by Michael Armstrong

Artists can select from this pile of buoys at the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies.

Artists can select up to 10 buoys from the CACS collection, or use buoys they've found on their own. Buoys can be painted, sculpted and decorated, but should remain structurally intact. The finished art should be able to withstand outdoor display.

Works will go on display for First Friday on June 4 at CACS, and then be shown around Kachemak Bay. The Homer Chamber of Commerce, South Peninsula Hospital, Fritz Creek General Store and Kachemak Bay Wilderness Lodge already have agreed to show buoys from "Drift." Other businesses or organizations also can display buoys. A map showing locations of "Drift" buoys also will be printed.

Dufour said artists from out of town have shown interest in the project, and some artists have already picked up buoys and completed works.

"People are really excited about it," she said. "It's something different."

Buoys in "Drift" will be auctioned off during CoastWalk, with half the proceeds going to the artist and half to CACS. Awards will be given for People's Choice and Best of Show.

For more information, call CACS at 235-6667 or e-mail info@akcoastalstudies.org.

Michael Armstrong can be reached at michael.armstrong.@homernews.com.

Homer Alaska - Arts