They don’t live on words alone: Voices of our Salish Sea

Saturday, July 13, 9:30 a.m. – 5 p.m., San Juan Islands Museum of Art

— from Diane Martindale for San Juan Islands Museum of Art —

Don’t miss the opportunity to experience legendary speakers on our ocean life in one room on one day. Be the first to preview new films by marine experts on orcas, salmon and the Salish Sea sponsored by the San Juan Islands Museum of Art (SJIMA).

On Saturday, July 13, from 9:30 am-5 pm at the San Juan Community Theatre, SJIMA presents DEEP DIVE: the documentaries which showcases current films about issues unique to our Salish Sea accented by arts that also speak for our endangered wildlife.

Featured works are Artifishal, The Road to Extinction is Paved with Good Intentions, a new film by Patagonia that explores the threats to wild salmon. The Searching For Chinook documentary by PNW Protectors, set out to film the Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW) when they found themselves at the center of developing events involving Tahlequah and her dead calf, public comments on breaching dams, and the drama between scientists and politicians.

Seattle Times journalist Lynda Mapes presents Toxins in the Salish Sea. Dammed To Extinction, written by Steven Hawley and directed by Michael Peterson describe the dwindling numbers of salmon and SRKW in the Pacific Northwest. They depict the life work of Ken Balcomb who says, “Studying whales is science. Removing dams is politics.”

In an interplay of arts, the speakers and films are joined by poet Rena Priest, a dance video depicting stories of SRKW called APEXby Heather Nickelson and Uko Gorter, and the music of renown composer Alex Shapiro.

Blake Budwill and Luke Erickson, a local high school students motivated to save the orcas, show their short film/school project to complete the presentations.

View the full program and register at www.sjima.org under “Learn.” A dialogue follows each showing or presentation with the videographers, directors, or subjects in the film.

In order to make it easy for everyone to attend this important symposium, we have decided to make this a Pay-As-You-Can event. We deeply thank you and appreciate any donations you may make to help cover the costs of this event. Donations of $25 can be made online at www.sjima.org, other amounts can be made at the reception desk at SJIMA during regular hours, or at the door on Saturday, July 13. Doors open at 9 a.m. The San Juan Community Theatre is located in Friday Harbor, WA at 100 Second Street North, within easy walking distance from the ferry.

Attendees should feel free to bring a sack lunch or order meat, vegetarian, or vegan sandwich box from Kings Market by contacting giles7@gmail.com. The box contains a sandwich, drink and a cookie and costs $10.

In DEEP DIVE the finest Pacific NW artists render the stunning underwater life of our Salish Sea and illuminate the threat to the iconic and many threatened species. DEEP DIVE is open until September 16. Hours are Thursday-Monday from 11-5. Tickets are $10 and members and those 18 and under are free.

The exhibition is sponsored by: Honeywell Charitable Fund, Gary and Susan Sterner, Peg Gerlock and Phil Johnson, Alan and Lynn Roochvaarg, Stan and Susan Matthews, Kenmore Air, Western Prince Whale & Wildlife Tours, Islanders Bank, Printonyx, and Harbor Rentals.