Arts & Entertainment Community

Community Currents mural brings some big fish to Harborview Drive

A new school of fish appeared in Gig Harbor on Wednesday.

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The fish are made of wood, but they’re colorful.

The Community Currents mural outside Direction Apparel on Harborview Drive in Gig Harbor. The Gig Harbor Downtown Waterfront Alliance distributed wooden fish to community members and organizations before and during Chalk the Harbor in August. TLB Events of Gig Harbor compiled them into a mural, which the alliance unveiled on Wednesday, Oct. 22. Photo by Vince Dice

The Gig Harbor Downtown Waterfront Alliance unveiled the Community Currents mural, located outside Direction Apparel on Harborview Drive. The mural is made up of more than 700 wooden fish, painted by community members and institutions after the Chalk the Harbor festival in August.

Miriam Battson, left, and Rosalyn Rochac-Finnegan of the Gig Harbor Chamber point to their organiztion’s fish. Photo by Vince Dice

The alliance handed out the fish — some big, some small, but all swimming in the same direction — at Chalk the Harbor. People took them home, decorated them and returned them.

Community members decorated the vast majority of the 700 fish. Local nonprofits and other community institutions took care of a handful of the larger swimmers. Here’s Gig Harbor Now’s fish, decorated by columnist Tonya Strickland:

Gig Harbor Now’s fish in the Community Currents mural on Harborview Drive. Photo by Vince Dice

Currents events

Gig Harbor-based TLB Events compiled them into a mural, which the alliance dubbed Community Currents. The finished product went live on Oct. 22, with a small crowd gathering to watch the unveiling.

A creative endeavor grant from the city of Gig Harbor’s Arts Commission helped cover the modest cost of the community art project. The Rotary Club of Gig Harbor also chipped in, and Direction Apparel donated its wall space.

More than 700 painted wooden fish make up the Community Currents mural. Photo by Vince Dice

The mural was a brainstorm of Clare Dunis, the Waterfront Alliance’s special projects and outreach director.

“It’s really cool to know that something that was just a spark of an idea is here now,” Dunis said.

“Each fish represents a unique voice in our harbor community, and together they form a vibrant mural symbolizing the partnerships, creativity, and connection that make Gig Harbor such a special place,” Alliance Executive Director Carrianne Ekberg said.

Gig Harbor Mayor Mary Barber points to the city’s fish in the Community Currents mural on Harborview Drive. Photo by Vince Dice