Meet The Kelp Kraken.
It’s somewhere between 30 and 40 feet long, spanning what used to be a disconcerting cliff between the road and the ferry landing area. That’s why it’s there, to distract people’s minds from wanting to hover over the edge.
If you live here, you know immediately who made it just by looking at it – the skilled, humble Orcas Island blacksmith, Zackarya Leck. His workspace is one of my favorites to visit on Orcas Island’s Annual Artist Studio Tour. To me, his life and craft epitomize and romanticize what it is to live here and build your life working hard at what you love to do.
I went looking for a little information about this gigantic installation and found this informative article by Mark C. Anderson on Orcas Hotel’s website.
I also happened upon this lovely profile of Zackarya by Hudson Lindenberger on Filson.com, a manufacturer of outdoor clothing. Some of the photos are beautiful (the photographer’s name is not mentioned, otherwise I would happily state their name too):
You can’t miss this massive piece of art when entering or leaving the island.
To see more of Zack Leck’s work, visit his beautiful website here. Make sure to read his story. I’d like to put it all here on this post, but it’s better experienced on his site as you dive into the essence of who he is and what he does. If you love to see artists at work, make sure to visit his Instagram account too. It’s fascinating.
