Writing Retreat | The Helen Riaboff Whiteley Center at Friday Harbor Labs

Last summer, my partner (Raymond Krohn) and I were lucky enough to spend time as visiting scholars at the Helen Riaboff Whiteley Center (HRWC) at the Friday Harbor Laboratories (FHL) on San Juan Island. The center is administered by the University of Washington’s College of the Environment. Since its inception in 2000, it has hosted writers, artists, scientists, and other creatives from around the world.

For two weeks, we stayed in a picturesque cottage situated within the evergreen forests and rugged coastlines that are a hallmark of the San Juan Islands. Mornings were spent in quiet contemplation observing the small creatures in tidepools (tiny wonders!) or the occasional harbor seal and otter who sometimes swam close to shore.

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Residency | Cape Disappointment State Park (Long Beach Peninsula)

In May and early June, I spent time at Cape Disappointment State Park as an artist-in-residence in the Sou’wester Artist Residency Program. I spent a week hiking through coastal rainforests, headlands, beaches, and coves on Cape Disappointment and the Long Beach Peninsula.

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Residency | CCC Fund & Surel’s Place

In August, I got to be an Artist-in-Residence at Surel’s Place, an art center in Garden City that hosts artists from around the world.

The center was originally the home of Surel Lee Mitchell, an Idaho-based visual artist who helped create the Surel Mitchell Live-Work-Create District.

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