PORT TOWNSEND — Artist Sarah Felder’s Wooden Boat Festival poster honors the 100th anniversary of Sound Experience’s schooner Adventuress.
The poster is for the 37th annual festival, which will be Sept. 6-8 in Port Townsend.
Felder, 28, said she has a deeply rooted connection to the boat, having worked as the Adventuress’ first mate for several seasons.
She now is working for Salish Sea Expeditions and will return in July as first mate on the Adventuress, which is operated by the nonprofit Sound Experience in Port Townsend.
Her artwork was selected from more than 30 submissions received in December and January in a contest sponsored by the Northwest Maritime Center and Wooden Boat Festival of Port Townsend.
The public was invited to weigh in on the choice during the February Gallery Walk when the entries were on display at the maritime center.
Felder’s art was the public’s pick as well as the festival selection committee’s choice.
“I am thrilled that the winning poster design ties into the Adventuress’ 100th birthday,” said Jake Beattie, executive director of the maritime center.
“Centennials are really rare and significant events that ought to be celebrated, and the fact that Sarah has such a close tie to the boat seems almost poetic.”
1913 water-breaking
The schooner Adventuress, which is now based in Port Townsend, first splashed into the water in East Boothbay, Maine, on Feb. 1. 1913.
It served as a pilot ship for the San Francisco Bar Pilots Association from 1915 to 1951.
After that, it served in other capacities until it became a floating classroom for the environmental education leadership program Sound Experience in 1988.
In 1989, Adventuress was named a National Historic Landmark.
Felder found out about the poster contest from friends who encouraged her to enter because of T-shirts she’d designed in the past.
She wanted to create an image people would enjoy wearing and that would reflect the “Adventuress community,” she said.
When asked about the significance of the No. 15 on the sail, she explained that when the Adventuress was used as a pilot boat in San Francisco, it was issued that number.
It’s kept on the sail to pay homage to that important time in the boat’s history.
“I’m excited my poster was chosen because it’s a privilege to represent the festival and to the Adventuress in her centennial year,” Felder said.
For more information about the festival, visit www.woodenboat.org/festival.
For more about the Adventuress, visit www.soundexp.org.
