Erie Maritime Museum to Host U.S. Coast Guard Art Exhibit

Fifteen paintings by 13 artists of the U.S. Coast Guard Art Program will be on view at the Erie Maritime Museum from April 5, 2011 through September 16, 2011.  These works feature Coast Guard activities on the Great Lakes.  They bring to life the myriad missions the service executes in the region including ice-breaking operations, search and rescue, domestic security patrols and vessel inspections.
This will mark the first ever show of Coast Guard art at the Erie Maritime Museum.  The museum is an apt venue for the art given its role in preserving the region’s rich maritime heritage.  The museum opened in 1998 and provides a wide range of multi-media and interactive exhibits and interpretive programs.
The Coast Guard Art Program (COGAP) uses fine art as an outreach tool for educating diverse audiences about the United States Coast Guard.  Today, more than ever, the service addresses an abundance of challenges as it works to maintain the nation’s security at home and abroad and to execute its 11 statutory missions.  COGAP art provides visual testimony to the unique contribution the Coast Guard makes to the nation in its multifaceted roles as a military, humanitarian and law enforcement organization.
 
Art from the program is exhibited at museums around the country.  It is also displayed in offices of members of Congress, Cabinet secretaries, senior government officials and other military services and Coast Guard locations nationwide. 
 
Coast Guard artists—most of whom are professionals—donate their work to the collection.  Today, the collection comprises over 1,700 works showing the missions performed by the service’s force of 42,400 active duty members.
 
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the art program’s creation.  It is co-sponsored by the Salmagundi Club, a New York City art and cultural center.
 
To learn more about COGAP, visit www.uscg.mil/art .