NEWS RELEASE

Anchorage, Alaska – May 20, 2003

ANCHORAGE IS WILD ABOUT SALMON

Salmon will soon be running in more than downtown Ship Creek - it’s Wild Salmon on Parade June 6 – August 17, 2003. Twenty-one wildly decorated five-foot fiberglass Wild Salmon statues will be displayed throughout downtown Anchorage. The Wild Salmon on Parade kicks off with the Ship Creek King Salmon Derby in June and ends with the Ship Creek Silver Salmon Derby in August.

The Wild Salmon on Parade is modeled after Cows on Parade in Chicago and the Pigs on Parade in Seattle. The event and surrounding activities will increase community awareness and appreciation of salmon habitat, history and physical properties.

Each salmon is sponsored by a local organization or business and will be displayed at various locations in downtown Anchorage. A walking tour featuring the Wild Salmon locations and the Ship Creek Derbies will be available at the Anchorage Convention & Visitors Bureau (ACVB) Log Cabin and Downtown Visitor Center at 4th Avenue and F Street and several downtown sites.

Wild salmon are a unique resource and immediately identifiable with Anchorage and Alaska,” said Nance Larsen, director of communications for the ACVB. “The Wild Salmon on Parade wraps a local feel around a global delicacy and summertime events that both visitors and locals can enjoy. Plus, it’s a one-of-a-kind format to showcase the creative talents of local artists.”

In addition to the Wild Salmon walking tour and Fish Fry & Buy, the 3-month Wild Salmon event will include many additional activities. Next year the event will evolve into a 3-month Wild Salmon Festival, with Wild Salmon on Parade being the focal point.

A call for entries from local artists resulted in more than fifty submissions. The twelve member juried committee selected twenty-one artisans which include an architect, a teachers, a jewelers and photographer. The salmon will be adorned with everything from aluminum cans and leather to carpet and glass. One of the first Wild Salmon released, decorated by Heather C. Tauschek & Megan D. Tauschek, is wearing a tutu-like skirt made of carpet remnants from Alaska Center for the Performing Arts.

Local restaurants will sponsor a community Salmon Bake in the summer offering wild salmon dishes, wild salmon recipes and healthy reasons to eat wild salmon.

The art community will be featuring wild salmon in many of the galleries downtown with paintings, sculptures and a variety of other salmon themed art.

The Wild Salmon on Parade wraps up with the Fish Fry & Buy, September 13, 2003. The money raised from the fish fry, silent auction and live auction for the salmon sculptures will benefit the Foster Grandparent and Senior Companion Programs of Alaska, the Anchorage Cultural Council, the Anchorage Waterways Council and the Mountain View Arts and Cultural District.

The local artists transforming the fiberglass salmon include: Molly Wilson Perry, Heather and Megan Tauschek, Barbara LaVallee, Virgil England, Jon Van Zyle, the Schanche Family, Hal Gage, Chris Arend, the Color Creek Group, Teri Jo Hedman, Dick and Fran Reed, Stephen Ortland, Inger Deede, Sharon Burden, Carol Morris, Jona Van Zyle, Don Decker, Romney Dodd-Ortland, Cynthia England the Clay Arts Guild.

The Anchorage Convention & Visitors Bureau’s mission is to attract and serve visitors to the Municipality of Anchorage. ACVB’s marketing functions are funded by half of the bed tax collected by hotels. The other half goes to the Municipality’s general fund. ACVB receives no state or federal funds. For information, explore www.anchorage.net.

CONTACTS:

Nance Larsen, Director of Communications
(907) 257-2310
nlarsen@anchorage.net
Explore www.anchorage.net