In 2025 Feiro collaborated with the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center during their “Water Connects Us All” exhibit to host some community listening sessions regarding how we should be integrating art into our new building project. We heard from artists, educators and interested community members, and also conducted some independent research, looking at how art is incorporated into other science facilities. As a result of those studies and conversations, we drafted our very first Art Integration Strategy, which then went out to our listening session participants and the general public for review and comment. We have so much appreciation for the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center staff and all of the participants who offered their guidance to develop this strategy.
After comments were incorporated, this strategy was utilized to request proposal from artists to make a series of digital black and white line illustrations of local species that would be featured both in the exhibits for the new building, but also in our marketing materials and retail items.
Feiro commissioned this work from local artists Paige Anderez and Laurel Black. Drawing inspiration from the region’s rich marine ecosystems, their work highlights plants and animals that define our coastal waters. By commissioning artists from our own community, the project strengthens the connection between art, science, and place.
Paige is a Pacific Northwest illustrator and tattoo artist based in Olympia, Washington. She owns Lowlands, a private studio. Born into a fishing and logging family in Port Angeles, her art blends scientific accuracy with a lifelong connection to the region’s coasts, estuaries, and marine ecosystems. Paige holds a Master’s in Environmental Studies from the Evergreen State College and a BA in Multidisciplinary Studies from Western Washington University, with a focus on landscape ecology and community outreach. Laurel Black is a long time Olympic Peninsula resident and owner of Laurel Black Branding + Communications. She earned her Master of Fine Arts from the University of Oregon, and her illustration clients include Olympic National Park, Merrill & Ring and numerous local and regional businesses, tribes and agencies. She was the creator of Feiro Marine Life Center’s current logo and iconic illustrated copepod, sea star, and octopus signage.
We look forward to showing you more of Paige and Laurel’s art as we launch the new building website on April 8th!
