Redmond Library hosts "Portraits of a River" painting & Haiku workshops on 9/13

Local historian, artists, and poets invite the community to celebrate the Sammamish River

4Culture has awarded local Artist A Gaul Culley and her team of artists and poets, one of the Historic Site(s) grants, to host free painting and haiku workshops to honor the Sammamish River, to be held on Saturday, September 13, from 1-4 PM, at the Redmond Library, 15990 NE 85th Street.

Over the last two years, Gaul has been awarded grants through King County Arts Organization, 4Culture. The grants are part of 4Culture’s Historic Sites project. Gaul has been working with the historical societies of Redmond, Woodinville, Bothell, and Kenmore to understand and create artworks inspired from the Sammamish River’s role in establishing these cities.

“Water is the essence of life,” notes Culley. “Rivers throughout history are the origin of where communities were formed. The Sammamish River is no exception. It was the only ‘road’ into richly dense forests that now are home to many people of many cultures.”

Charlie Rathbun, 4Culture’s Art Program Manager has worked with Culley for over two years.

“This project is a great example of an artist bringing a community together to recognize and celebrate the beauty of one of King County’s most significant natural resources,“ says Rathbun. “Gaul’s work over the last two years with the communities along this waterway has revived a sense of history that most of the folks living here now had no idea of.”

Culley is an artist whose practice uses collaborative creative processes and local history as a conduit to create meaningful experiences for the community.

“Over the last five years, my art practice has focused on using my visual art tools to articulate the history and significance of water to the communities in which I have lived. The Sammamish River, now and throughout history, is a symbol of interconnectedness among the cities of Redmond, Woodinville, Bothell and Kenmore. The course of the river, and its properties, have significantly changed over the past 150 years, as have the ways in which people view it. This event will offer members of the community the opportunity to express why the river is special to them.”

Redmond poet laureate Michael Dylan Welch will be leading the haiku workshop with the help of RASP (Redmond Association of Spokenword) board member and poet Laura Lee Bennett.

“I have lived along the Sammamish River for many years. It is a food corridor for fish and fowl, a landing strip for geese, ducks, and heron. Its rocky banks and thick brambles are home to rabbits, muskrat, beaver, and all manner of small birds,” Bennett writes. “I want to give back to the river in words what it has given me in rich, native life.”

Artist Megan Tanner created the poster image, curated the exhibition of Culley’s artwork, and collaborated with the Redmond Historical Society on a timeline of the Sammamish River, currently on display at the Redmond Library lobby.

“Portraits of a River gives our community the gift of exploration through a multidimensional set of activities and events,“ explains Tanner. “It will be incredible to understand the many ways in which people translate their surroundings creatively. My hope is that this event will offer something that appeals to all members of the community, and that we can create a collaborative ‘portrait’ of the Sammamish River.”

Redmond Historical Society co-founder Miguel Llanos writes:

“This project is a fantastic way of bringing art, poetry and history together to build a stronger Redmond community. By inviting locals to take part, we get to better know each other and to better know Redmond.”

Culley’s recent body of work, titled “Portraits of a River,” is on display through October 1st at the Redmond Library. She has inventively used layered newspaper and cardboard as canvasses for her paintings, playing on the idea that newspapers are documents of current events that become history through time.

For more information, please visit the 4Culture website: http://www.sitespecificarts.org/project/portraits-of-a-river/