Bloedel Reserve and BIMA are co-producing an exhibition of works by many past Creative Residents and Community Creatives. Running through September 28th, the exhibit is both at BIMA and in the Residence at Bloedel Reserve.

Launched in 2015, the Creative Residency Program at Bloedel Reserve connects the arts and nature in a stunning location. The program began with efforts of a small group of dedicated individuals. Their vision centered on the simple premise that artists and innovative thinkers are vital contributors to our collective well-being, and that being immersed in nature is instrumental to creativity and problem solving.

Ten years later, between 250 to 300 applications are submitted annually for the Creative Residency Program. Ten of those applicants are selected by a panel of independent jurors each year.

The Creative Residency brings writers, poets, performers, composers, painters, scientists, landscape designers, and more to Bloedel Reserve. They come to the Reserve individually, three weeks at a time, to be immersed in nature and pursue their work. Whether participants are at the beginning of their careers or more advanced, the Creative Residency helps them to expand and deepen their work. While the participants find inspiration, respite and insight, we are offered opportunities to learn and to see the Reserve, and the world, in new ways.

Since 2015, the program has brought over 100 creative thinkers to Bloedel Reserve, adding richness to the fabric of our community, and contributing significant creative works from a diverse range of participants. Notable works come from the acclaimed investigative journalist and science writer Zoë Schlanger (The Light Eaters); award-winning writer, editor, and poet CMarie Fuhrman (Cascadia Field Guide); internationally acclaimed composers Pete M. Wyer and Andrea Clearfield; and painters Kimberly Trowbridge and ZZ Wei, to name just a few.

For more information visit bloedelreserve.org

Header image: Kimberly Trowbridge, Hemlock in the Moss Garden, 2024. Oil on canvas, 60″h x 72″w.