“Strawberry Series” Celebrates Historic Building’s Legacy

Series kicks off on Friday, May 6 and runs through June 18

–from the Olga Strawberry Council —

Artist Leah and daughter, Maple, caring for the Marshalls

For a sweet taste of old-time island life, don’t miss this spring’s “Strawberry Series,” a celebration highlighting the legacy of the Olga Strawberry Barreling Plant and the rare berries that made it possible. This series is being presented by the Olga Strawberry Council (OSC), the non-profit charged with the mission to preserve the historic building and nurture the culture of art and community on Orcas Island. The historic building is home to the Orcas Island Artworks, as well as the Catkin Cafe and the James Hardman Gallery.

Series Highlights:

• WORKSHOPS BY LEAH GAUTHIER, artist and Marshall Strawberry revivalist. Maine inter-media artist Leah Gauthier, has been dedicating the last 8 years to reviving the almost extinct Marshall Strawberry. She is also an artist whose work explores food from multiple perspectives — including growing, cooking and preserving, as well as the history of food and agriculture; the revival and protection of endangered food plants, and food as cultural identity and agent of social change.
  

  The Marshall Strawberry

  Gauthier will lead a workshop on creating art with food and natural materials on Saturday, May 7 and give a talk on reviving the Marshall Strawberry on Monday, May 9. She will also visit the public school garden and farm to classroom kids on Friday, May 6, to share her enthusiasm and knowledge about the Marshall Strawberry and other farming and food-related subjects. For more information on Leah, visit www.leahgauthier.com and www.marshallstrawberry.com. To learn more about her talk and art workshops, go to www.olgastrawberrycouncil.com/workshops.html

• AN AFTERNOON OF SHARING THE MARSHALL HEYDAY – Also included in the series is “Marshall Memories,” an afternoon of storytelling featuring local elders and historians who experienced the Marshall’s heyday and other tales of the Olga/Doe Bay area on Saturday, May 28, 3-5 p.m., Olga Community Center.

• RESTORING THE BARRELING PLANT – For those curious about the restoration of the building after the fire of 2013, architect Ben Trogden, who led the reconstruction, will give a talk and visual account on Friday, June 10 entitled “Old-Fashioned Modernity: Recovering an Historic Building.” The program includes refreshments in and by the Catkin Cafe.

• THE ARTWORKS ICE CREAM SOCIAL – Topping off the series of events will be the annual ice cream social (the first one since the fire) on Saturday, June 18, put on by the Orcas Island Artworks, Catkin Cafe and James Hardman Gallery. This is a free event featuring demonstrations in art, live music, lemonade and, of course, ice cream.

Information on all events and registration for the workshops is found on the OSC web site: www.olgastrawberrycouncil.org/workshops