HIGHLINERS

PORTRAITS OF ALASKAN FISHING VESSELS

By Alaskan Artist

Sarah Kennedy
 

About the Artist:

Born in Kodiak, Alaska, I've always been surrounded by fishing boats. Growing up, many of my friends and acquaintances worked or owned fishing vessels themselves.  It wasn't until I was on summer break from attending school at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon that I actually became involved in the fishing industry.  I went salmon tendering in Bristol Bay, King Cove, and Port Moller for two years on the F/V American Way.  After the second year of tendering, the boat was bought back in the Government's "buy back" program.  I drew the F/V American Way that year to commemorate the journey that it had been on, and to capture my own memories.  Later on, in school, I ended up turning the boat drawings that I had started into my senior thesis project.  My fascination with the boats has never ended.
 

Statement:

There is a nostalgia that hovers in Alaska, to a romanticized fishing era gone by.  These days, with more regulations, and rationalization, among other things, many boats stay tied up, haunting the docks.  I want to spark the discourse of these issues.  My goal is to bring to light these powerful vessels, their strife, their journeys, and their beauty.

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