Third Street Gallery archive: 2012 Exhibitions: Celebrating the Eel River Salmon Run with art by Michael Guerriero

Humboldt State University First Street Gallery presents Celebrating the Eel River Salmon Run with art by Michael Guerriero. The exhibition of works on paper, canvas and mixed-media commemorate the return of higher population levels of salmon in the Eel River watershed. The show will be on display at First Street Gallery from April 3rd to May 13th.   Ten percent of sales from the exhibition will be donated to the Friends of the Eel River whose mission is to restore the Eel River and all her tributaries to a natural state of abundance, wild and free.

Michael Guerriero lives and works out of his home in Bridgeville, California.  His work, which has been widely exhibited and collected, is defined by his interest in the surrounding natural landscapes of Northern California, reflecting his passion for the environment.  In this exhibition, Guerriero has departed stylistically from his previous work, with a new approach that incorporates a playful, exuberant and expressive approach in making his art.

Guerriero is involved in his community, having served on the Bridgeville School Board and on the board of the Friends of the Eel River (FOER). Through his active work with FOER, Guerriero has strived to increase awareness about the conservation of salmon, leading to the creation of the Salmon Run Project.

The Salmon Run Project is a series of workshops designed for children, ages 10-18, living in the Eel River Watershed.  The drawing and screen-printing workshops are delivered by Guerriero with discussions about the watershed, the salmon cycle and restoration. Images made by the young artists during the workshops have been incorporated into Guerriero’s art, in which he combines the children’s naive yet beautiful images with his own, in order to tell the story of the Eel River Salmon Run and to celebrate the recent increase in the watershed’s salmon population.

"Like many rivers on the North Coast, this past year was exceptional for the return of salmon, because of ocean conditions and favorable water on the rivers for the past three years," Guerriero said. "There's evidence that sections of the river are showing some restorative effects. This offers us optimism that our once strong runs of fish can be regenerated. It will be the youth of the watershed who will see to this revival by their willingness to set priorities. I believe that the course may still be set toward a healthy recovery of the watershed.”

A reception for Michael Guerriero will be held Saturday April 7th during Eureka’s monthly Arts Alive event.  Guerriero will present an Artist Talk and Tour of his exhibition at First Street Gallery on May 5th at 3 p.m.  The talk is open to the public and is free. Celebrating its fourteenth year of service to HSU students and to the North Coast community, Humboldt State University’s First Street Gallery is open Tuesday through Sunday from 12 to 5 p.m. and is located at 422 First Street, Eureka, California. Admission is free. Those planning group tours are encouraged to call ahead.  For more information call 707-443-6363.

Watch the Documentary

Celebrating the Eel River Salmon Run

There is an annual celebration of renewal.  The start is signaled by the first rains of Autumn, when the rivers swell and the salmon return for their last swim to begin a new cycle. 

This show of work is product of a combination of interests; my involvement in the revival of the Eel River watershed, teaching a combination of art and ecology to children and my long running interest in screen printing.  It has offered a challenge for me to change my studio routine into a fluid experiment that is open to incorporate all the various fishes that swim my way. 

As of today, I have offered eight workshops to about 140 children who resided in the Eel River Watershed.  They combines an art project; drawing and screen printing, watershed dynamic, salmon biology and restoration, focused on last years productive chinook salmon run.  The workshop is designed for 8-20 students taking place for 1 to 1.5 hours in two sessions. While watching projected images of salmon swimming the student produced several brush drawings. They then produce stencils based on their drawing of salmon.  Each print a set of commemorative flags using all the stencils to decorate their homes with a reminder of the renewal taking place in the river.

There is a frenetic energy that takes over when the ink comes out.  The kids learn the process of printing while trying to design their work with all their friends’ stencils involved.  A naive quality in the drawing of even the simplest of marks takes on the meaning of swimming fish. 

A gathering was held in the summer of 2010 to revive a first people’s tradition, a dance to give thanks and homage to the salmon. 

A fire was lit, 
directions were noted, 
a circle of young dancers with the beat of elders’ drums.
We touched the water.
 
Join this celebration. Visit the river and greet the salmon.  Resolve to help improve the health of the watershed.

Michael Guerriero —  April, 2012