Salmon Culture: Kachemak Bay Connections, a new exhibit celebrating salmon as the common bond across cultures and generations, has opened at Homer’s Pratt Museum through Dec. 17.
The exhibit, which opened earlier this month, features contemporary and historical works of art by more than 33 Alaska Native artists and stories of salmon connections that have helped shape the culture, economy and ecology of the Kachemak Bay area, on the southwest side of the Kenai Peninsula.
“Salmon are gifts, every single one a blessing,” said Erin Gingrich, of Anchorage, an advisor and contributing artist to the exhibit who is of Koyukon Athabaskan and Inupiat descent. “The continuity of their ancient cycle is something we owe to the past, present and future, not just our own future generations but the futures of all that have a part in this ecosystem.”
“Honoring the beauty and the magic of this fish that returns to us in annual cycles,” said Carla Klinker Cope and Nadia Jackinsky-Sethi, the two Homer daughters of salmon fishermen who co-curated the complimentary exhibit. “We are able to answer the questions: What does salmon mean to you? Why should we care about salmon?”
The exhibition is funded through the generous support of The CIRI Foundation, the Alaska State Council on the Arts and The Homer Foundation. The Pratt Museum is a private, nonprofit entity focused on connecting people and places through stories relevant to Kachemak Bay.
