Olympic Driftwood Sculptors 10th Lavender Festival Show
10 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Sunday, July 20-22
Sequim Middle School, 301 W. Hendrickson Road
Admission free with donations accepted
Ten years in and Tuttie Peetz, co-founder of Olympic Driftwood Sculptors, says the amount of talent that turns out for its annual Lavender Festival Art show always surprises her.
“It’s always fun for me because you’re never sure what people will complete and bring in,” she said.
Some club members work on dozens of driftwood art pieces a year while some meticulously work on only a few.
This year, more than 150 driftwood sculptures will be on display from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., July 20-22, at the Sequim Middle School Cafeteria, 301 W. Hendrickson Road. An in-city shuttle stops in front of Sequim High School, at Second Avenue/ Washington Street and at Carrie Blake Community Park for the Sequim Lavender Festival’s Street Fair. Admission is free with donations accepted for club operations.
The driftwood show features one-of-a-kind items to view and for sale along with a raffle for an unnamed driftwood piece. Peetz said seven artists worked on the driftwood sculpture for two-three weeks each.
“You never knew what they were going to do before passing it along,” she said.
Raffle ticket sales continue through the club’s September meeting. Last year, they raised $2,000 for a college scholarship for a student pursuing art or art education.
Interest in driftwood in Sequim has remained high in 10 years.
Peetz continues to offer driftwood classes but because the interest has grown so much with people coming to Sequim from as far as Gig Harbor or Canada she has a wait list.
A key part has been the club’s encouragement of experimenting, i.e. using woods with metals.
“The big thing is that we’re so excited to not have any limitations on creativity,” Peetz said. “People are doing all kinds of fun things and we have a huge diversity of people in their 30s-80s and everywhere in-between.”
Peetz feels experimenting with art might be one reason the club has grown from 13 members to 95 since starting in 2008. Three of the founding members continue to participate, too.
“It’s amazing how much it’s grown,” Peetz said. “It feels fabulous and rewarding.”
At the show, a boutique features original driftwood pieces for sale, and visitors can take their photo with a large heart driftwood piece.
For more information on Olympic Driftwood Sculptors, visit www.olympicdriftwoodsculptors.org/ or contact Tuttie Peetz at 360-683-6860.
Reach Matthew Nash at mnash@sequimgazette.com.
Seven artists worked two-three weeks each on this driftwood sculpture for a raffle at the Olympic Driftwood Sculptors’ Lavender Festival Art Show July 20-22. Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash
