NPS/D. Sullivan 
NPS/D. Sullivan "I was so excited to be selected to participate in this project to honor glaciers. I have worked at Olympic National Park as an Interpretation and Education Ranger giving programs to visitors and school children about the ecosystems within the park. Glaciers are a part of all the ecosystems and their loss will make a difference one day. "After the artists were selected, we were given the chance to choose a glacier to represent. I wanted to pick a glacier that has a more organic name so I could build a piece that would represent all glaciers. I decided on the 'Ice River Glacier' since that name is descriptive of all glaciers. I was very happy with my choice. "As I was creating the piece many questions about glaciers occurred to me including:
"These intriguing questions led me to trying to incorporate a teaching element to the piece. So, I built the piece in stages. I built the mountain structure first then added layers of wool to represent the build-up of the snow. I stopped working on the piece for a while to contemplate how to show how the glacier looked 100 years ago. I came up with building a pillow of sheep and alpaca wool to represent the ice and snow that has melted. This additional pillow layer is removable so a teacher or park ranger can show how the glacier has changed through time. After the top layer is removed a hanging glacier is visible so a lesson can also include the types of glaciers. I included details of lichens and plants on the glacier so the educator can talk about the role of glaciers in the ecosystem for plants and wildlife. All of these ideas came to me while I was working and inspired me to want to know more. To be able to answer all of my questions and others an entire unit of lessons could be developed using this piece as a teaching tool. My hope is that the piece will also inspire others to want to know more about glaciers and do whatever we can to prolong their existence." -Sherilyn Seyler
Meet the artist: Sherilyn Seyler"I have loved creating artistic things since I was a child. My mother was a teacher and let us explore the world through our emotions and senses. Not only would she take us out into nature to experience it but we would go home and learn more about what we saw using terrariums, buckets full of frog eggs, drawing and art pieces to learn about the processes in nature. I vividly remember the smell and feel of finger paints as I smeared the vibrant colors across the paper to create a representation of what I saw and how it made me feel. "Throughout my life I have used many mediums for my artwork, including acrylics, oils, watercolors, colored pencils, charcoal, wood, glass, clay, and fabric. My latest passion of creating pieces has become fibers. I started with wool at a workshop in downtown Port Angeles about 5 years ago. I watched videos on-line to learn how to form animal figures and branched out from there to wool paintings and other three dimensions creations "I do not consider myself a professional artist since I don’t create pieces to be sold. But I do like making things for my friends and family. I also like to create things to teach children about nature." 
More about Ice River GlacierA remote cirque glacier in the headwaters of Ice River on the steep ridge northeast of Mount Olympus. The Ice River is one of many tributaries to the Hoh River.
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Last updated: August 10, 2023