Photo courtesy of the Alaska Region of the U. S. Forest Service
Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - The application period for the Wilderness Artists in Residence Program opens after the first of the year.
Barbara Lydon is a wilderness specialist for the Alaska Region of the U. S. Forest Service. She said on Action Line that it is a unique program. "It's modeled after the traditional National Parks residency, but with a twist, in that the artists accompanies a wilderness ranger. So instead of staying in a remote cabin they reside in the wilderness."
While there the artists are expected to participate in stewardship projects which might include such things as pulling weeds, counting harbor seals, picking up marine debris, or making contact with visitors.
And they are expected to produce a piece of art, according to Lydon. "In exchange for the residency, artists donate a work of art and provide some sort of community extension. So the artists work with wilderness managers on this finished product to create something that may be used for educational or promotional purposes to highlight Alaska's wild public lands and the work we're doing on them."
A program is coming up this weekend in time for the First Friday event where the Juneau Douglas City Museum will feature the works of artists who have participated in the project in the past. The show runs through April 23.
Information and the application will be available on the agency's website and available for download by January 1. The deadline to apply is March 1.
Lydon explained that the program is a partnership between the Forest Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service so one application will allow artists to be considered for each agency's artist in residence program.

EXPLAINER: How Alaska's unique new election system works
Juneau City Hall discusses waterfront plan changes, public input to follow
US consumer confidence remains high after January downturn
Pfizer begins testing omicron-matched COVID shots in adults
Crimson Bears Butt Heads with Moose on Ice
Assembly committee briefed on City Hall options
CBJ Clerk frustrated with Postal Service answers to ballots not postmarked in Fall election
Alaska continued to gain jobs in December, unemployment rate declines slightly
2020 vital statistics report for Alaska is out
Masked men steal an entire ATM machine from inside Mat-Su business
Trooper prostitution sting nets 22 men in Alaska's two largest cities
Roaming charge: Alaska Nanooks making most of independence