One of the sculptures stolen in March.
Volunteers pose at the work party.
Continued from Page 8
The trail was closed in February as a
result. While planning for how to repair
and reroute that trail, the wildlife refuge
experienced another blow when approxi-
mately 75 unique bronze sculptures along
the Art Trail at the old refuge headquarters
site were stolen.
“It wasn’t done all at one time,” Ferrier
said. “It was done slowly, over a period of
a couple weeks.”
A sculpture before the theft.
The refuge is managed by the Fish
and Wildlife Service as part of the Wil-
lapa Complex and cared for by a dedi-
them to the theft in case the metal from the
cated nonprofit group. A group of volun-
sculptures shows up there.
teers with the Friends of Willapa National
“We would love information, if any-
one had it,” Ferrier said. “(The agency and
Wildlife Refuge got together with staff
supporters) were devastated. We just could
members for National Trails Day on June
5 to wrap up final repairs and get Cutthroat not believe it.”
They estimated the loss to be about
Climb Trail ready to reopen the follow-
ing day. The Art Trail also reopened June
$35,000, but that’s only based on the
6, although the art pieces have yet to be
worth of the bronze itself. It doesn’t
replaced.
account for the sentimental or artistic
“It’s one of the most beloved trails on
value of the sculptures. A group of stu-
dents from the University of Washington
the refuge,” Ferrier said. “We’re happy to
Public Arts Program designed, constructed
have it back open for sure.”
and installed the pieces along the curving
The value of art
boardwalk of the trail. The pieces told sto-
ries of the waterway and the species that
The wildlife refuge has not discovered
live there.
the person, or people, responsible for the
One of the most severely damaged
art theft, which happened in early March.
sculptures was a piece titled “Upbring-
Fish and Wildlife Service officers are still
coordinating with the local police to inves- ing,” created by Jacqye Jones, which pro-
tigate the vandalism, Ferrier said. They’ve vided a vertical view of the streambed and
depicted several unusual species including
also contacted local scrap yards to alert
A remaining sculpture, minus its bronze pieces.
western pearlshell mussel, brook lamprey
and tailed frog.
“It was far more than metal to many
people,” Ferrier said, adding $35,000
doesn’t capture “the value of what it will
cost to replace the art.”
Many visitors come to the wildlife ref-
uge each year to see the Art Trail, which
opened in 2003 and was one of the first
wildlife interpretive art trails in the U.S.
It possessed great distinction at the
time, and has continued to be “a different
way to see and appreciate art,” said Char-
lie Pelizza, president of the friends group.
Artwork also provides a way for the pub-
lic to interact with and learn about the nat-
ural environment that is different than bro-
chures or interpretive panels.
While the vandalism was upsetting, the
community’s positive response has been
“the one heartening thing to come out of
this,” Pelizza said. “The public has been
supportive.”
The Art Trail still remains an attractive
site as well, winding along a tidal stream,
through a beautiful forest and past an array
of native plants.
“It’s still a beautiful trail as-is and we
hope in the future to be able to interpret
different parts of the trail with artwork,”
Ferrier said.
Staff and board members are gathering
ideas and reaching out to artists to partic-
ipate in a full restoration of the Art Trail.
Once they have landed on a concept for
the new artwork, they can develop a plan
for fundraising and applying for grants.
“It’s definitely a work in progress,” Fer-
rier said, though she is optimistic about
what will be eventually developed. “No
matter how many times I work with some-
one or work with different artists, I’m
amazed by the ideas they can come up
with.”
THURSDAY, JUNE 24, 2021 // 9