Art Works! Salmon Lifelines

The Salmon Lifelines project is a collaborative work of public art, with the markings of a diverse population of hands and voices that care deeply for healthy salmon, orcas and all that lives connected to the lifelines of the rivers. 

The salmon forms are cut out of wood.  We outline the lines of wood grain and growth lines, which create the basic foundational patterns on the salmon.  Artists then paint the abstract spaces between the growth lines with black, red, yellow, and white paint. Not only do they create an eye catching pattern, the growth lines in the wood serve as a visual reference to rivers and streams, and allude to the interdependent relationship between salmon and trees. In a healthy and abundant ecosystem, they nourish each other.

Together, these salmon cutouts are part of a larger art installation that extends beyond the scope of a single event. We imagine this traveling art piece will continue to grow and evolve, and travel to key locations in the Northwest and beyond as a creative, visual way to advocate for a restored, free-flowing lower Snake River.