Opening Reception for a new exhibit by artist Toma Villa

Join us for an opening reception honoring our new guest artist in the Fort Vancouver Visitor Center: Yakama artist Toma Villa. A temporary exhibit featuring works by Villa will premiere at this event, but the centerpiece will be a new, permanent art piece in the main lobby of the Visitor Center.

Villa has spent the last year working on the sculpture for the park’s Visitor Center, in honor of the National Park Service’s centennial year. Villa calls his work a “Spirit Pole.” Carved from a single cedar log, the work also includes glass sculptural components. The Spirit Pole symbolizes the harmonious dance that creates balance in nature, as well as the resources of the Pacific Northwest that have sustained people here for thousands of years. The Spirit Pole is also a touchable artwork, so visitors of all ages can experience it both visually and through texture.

“We are very excited to bring this piece of art to our Visitor Center as a permanent installation,” said Curator Theresa Langford, “In addition to being a beautiful sculpture, the message behind the work and its ties to the elements that characterize life in the Northwest, are undeniably powerful.”