Cindy Pease Roe’s Whale Tail Sculpture Project To Debut At Southampton Arts Center On Earth Day

North Fork artist Cindy Pease Roe is teaming with the Southampton Arts Center (SAC) for an upsculpting project that combines upcycling and sculpture to create environmentally conscious art that will be unveiled at a special Earth Day event on Saturday, April 22, from 2 to 5 p.m.

Pease Roe has always had an artistic inclination, but she truly found her calling once upon a boat sailing from Cape Cod to the Caribbean. She has focused her efforts specifically on the inspiration she obtained from the sea.

“I have seen dramatic changes in and on the sea over many years, from a body of water that was pristine and teaming with life to an ocean that is under a lot of stress,” she noted. “Marine plastics are one of the many issues that the oceans are facing today. The flotsam and jetsam has changed since I was a kid from sea glass and shells to one-use plastics and derelict fishing gear.”

Steel and forgotten lobster traps retrieved from the Long Island Sound have been revamped to resemble a whale tale. In Pease Roe’s exciting new artistic homage to Earth Day and environmental awareness, the artist’s Whale Tail Sculpture Project will be filled and surrounded with marine debris collected by the artist, herself. She invited the community to join with her in achieving her artistic goal during open studio hours.

“We are so fortunate to be able to work with Cindy on this exciting sculpture project and to have the opportunity to share it with the community along with other incredible partners on Earth Day,” noted Southampton Arts Center Director of Programs, Amy Kirwin. “This initiative is perfectly in line with the type of programming we want to offer at Southampton Arts Center, and it is vital to be part of the solution to today’s environmental challenges.”

This UpSculpt Project has been made possible through the generosity of the Richard King Mellon Family Foundation, Cornell Extension’s Marine Removal and Prevention Project – who aided in the collection of debris, and a number of local businesses that will be present at the unveiling of the finished piece.

During the extraordinary Earth Day event, hosted by the Southampton Arts Center, you can learn what it feels like to go 0 to 60 mph in 2.5 seconds without a drop of gasoline during a Tesla test drive, learn about sustainable fisheries from Cornell Cooperative Extension Marine Program’s Fisheries Team, create and decorate a native “bee hotel” using upcycled and natural materials with Perfect Earth Project, craft imaginative creatures out of recycled marine debris during an UpSculpt workshop, bring your #5 recyclables for collection with April Gornik for Gimme 5, meet representatives of the Surfrider Foundation East End Chapter, Riverhead Marine Foundation, and Montauk Oceans Institute, find out about the beauty of bees with Bee Keeper and advocate Mary Wolk of The Bee’s Needs and Nancy Miller of Plan Bee Balmsm and more. Southampton’s Union Cantina and Matcha Bar will provide refreshments.

The event is free to the public.

Southampton Arts Center is located at 25 Jobs Lane in Southampton. For more information, call 631-283-0967 or visit southamptonartscenter.org.