Storm Warnings

Iced Boat © Alan J. Parks

At the end of the Homer Spit, a solemn bronze fisherman keeps watch over Kachemak Bay waters. The Seafarer's Memorial is a moving reminder that fishing is one of the most dangerous professions. The grim realities of Alaskan waters - great distances, restless mercurial weather, high wind and waves, icing conditions, and extreme tides and currents - test a mariner's skills and survival.

Annette Bellamy F/V Bertha, 1984 "You guys, get outta here!"

Pat McBride Skiff, 1987 "Everything was standing four to five feet at the combers…"

Wally Waldorf F/V Cape Chacon, 1983 "It started rollin' over on its side…"

Those who have survived a life-threatening situation know the feeling of helplessness and not being in control of their own life. The mind and body go on autopilot and the world becomes surreal. Individuals who have lost a father, wife or friend at sea know the feeling of a loved one lost forever.

This exhibition explores these experiences and draws a line connecting The Lost and The Found giving a sense to the grieving of what the final moments might have been like for The Lost. The images and soundscape humanize and personalize the tragedies and triumphs that come with this perilous way of life and enlighten those who have little direct contact with the fishing world.

This body of work was inspired by my own experience of surviving and becoming one of The Found. It is a tribute to the individuals who have chosen a life in the Alaska fishing industry, an industry that has the most extreme working conditions of any trade.

-Alan Parks