Bay views

'Padilla Bay, Early Winter' 10x10" mixed media;
Kathleen Faulkner

'A Winter Day' 12x12" oil pastel; Kathleen Faulkner

'Tideland' 30x30" oil pastel; Kathleen Faulkner

'Islands' 10x10" oil pastel; Kathleen Faulkner

'Looking East' 10x10" oil pastel; Kathleen Faulkner

The Bay, on any given day,

is always different.

every low tide

all the tides

The water is always moving

except

for that small bit of *slack tide.

*what is a slack tide?

vista

'A Winter Day' 12x12" oil pastel; Kathleen Faulkner

I have a good view of Padilla Bay from an upstairs window.

weather and tidal action

always different

always interesting

Later today, I will explore the area in detail

while breathing in all those negative ions!

'Padilla Bay, Early Winter, 10x10" mixed media; Kathleen Faulkner

coming up

'Suite of Trees I-VI, 6x6" each, colored pencil on panel,

$250 ea;

Kathleen Faulkner

These small drawings will be available

along with some jewelry 

at the Museum of Northwest Art store 

through the 2023 Holiday season.

The Arts Alive opening is happening this year on 

November 10th from 1 - 8pm 

and running through November 13th

I will have this piece in the Open Show

'Low Tide, Padilla Bay' 10x10" ink and oil on panel, 

$500; Kathleen Faulkner

Also,

some jewelry will be available at

the Beautiful

Scott Milo Gallery

in my hometown of Anacortes, WA!

'Windletter' earrings 2.5" sterling silver,

$200; Kathleen Faulkner

2024 will start off well!

I am included in a group show 

during the month of January

at the 

Wonderful Perry + Carlson Gallery in 

downtown Mt Vernon, WA

'Drift', ink, oil pastel; Kathleen Faulkner

Last but not least:

I am so pleased to announce my inclusion in

'Silva Cascadia: Under the Spell of the Forest',

a group show at my favorite museum, 

the Museum of Northwest Art

in LaConner, WA

This exhibition will run from 

February 3 through May 12, 2023

Hero of a sort

'Low Tide, Padilla Bay' 10x10" oil on panel;
Kathleen Faulkner

I have watched the ebb and flow of Padilla Bay for 32 years.

I once worked an oil spill there. At the time, I wondered if the bay would ever recover.

It did. It took years. 

In the end, Mother Nature cleaned things up. 

Padilla Bay is known for its immense eelgrass meadow.

Some scientists suggest these meadows sequester atmospheric carbon.

Up to 80% of fish species and marine invertebrates 

use eelgrass during some part of their life cycle.

It is a place of magic. It keeps me hopeful.

perspective

'Hat, Dot, Saddlebag' 10x10" oil pastel;  Kathleen Faulkner

I can see Hat island from my studio. 

 Dot and Saddlebag are hidden behind Cap Sante.

Over on the east side of Padilla Bay 

it's a whole different look.

Better than prozac

'Minus Tide' 24x24" oil pastel;  Kathleen Faulkner

I like to walk along the channel at low tide.  

there is so much to see and hear and smell

The Swinomish Channel connects Skagit Bay, to the south, with Padilla Bay to the north.  It separates Fidalgo Island from the mainland of Skagit County.

Eleven miles long, it was once a collection of shallow tidal sloughs, salt marshes and mudflats known as Swinomish Slough.

During the Depression, the Army Corps of Engineers used dredging and diking to make it a navigable channel.  It is heavily used today by many types of vessels.

I consider it one of the necessary ingredients for mental health.

north by northeast

'Morning' 12x18" oil pastel;  Kathleen Faulkner

I have some good views from my workroom.

I can't see Russia but,

sometimes,

I can see Canada.

Today I could see Bayview.

The Highs and Lows

"High Tide: Padilla Bay" 18x36" oil pastel Kathleen Faulkner

"Low Tide: Padilla Bay" 18x36" oil pastel Kathleen Faulkner

Padilla Bay is on the way out of town.  I've passed by it more times than I can count.  I always look and it's always different. 

Padilla Bay is an estuary.  The bay is filled with sediment from the Skagit River making the bottom very shallow. When the tide is out, the whole bay empties and at high tide it floods.  

One third of Puget Sound's eelgrass grows here.  The bay is covered with it:  nearly 8,000 acres.  Eelgrass is valuable because it is habitat for millions of critters.  It's used as a nursery for salmon, crab, perch and herring as well as home to worms, shrimp, clams and other invertebrates which, in turn, are food for herons, eagles, otters and seals.  It's a whole community unto itself.  

When I'm passing it I usually don't think about all the living that's going on there.  I'm looking at the patterns and contrast and color.  I'm thinking about how beautiful it is and how lucky I am to be able to see it whenever I want.  I'm also thinking of it as my very own personal tide table.