Bring a River Spirit Sculpture to Life

Would you like to help us advocate for a cleaner watershed and community?

Consider supporting our public art project!

The Haw River Assembly is a 501(c)(3) non-profit citizens’ group (website) that seeks to promote environmental education, conservation, and pollution prevention; to speak as a voice for the river in the public arena, and to put into peoples’ hands the tools and knowledge they need to be effective guardians of the river.

Litter is one of our most visible pollutants, and a systemic problem that will take a culture and perspective shift to fix. To advocate for this change, we are partnering with local artists to create a Migrating River Spirit Sculpture made of driftwood and plastic debris collected from Haw River Assembly's Trash Traps!

This sculpture will help further our mission by inspiring folks to take better care of the world around them, spreading awareness about litter and plastic pollution, and bringing attention to our Trash Trap Program and initiatives (learn more here). The sculpture will be traveling to public parks around the watershed and will be exhibited at local events - including a grand reveal at the Haw River Festival on May 4th, 2024!

This River Spirit is being brought to life by renowned and beloved local artists, Jan Burger and Emma Skurnick. Jan is one of the Co-Founders and Directors of Paperhand Puppet Intervention (website), and Emma is a full-time artist and illustrator whose paintings have been exhibited nationally and published internationally (website).

The Michael & Suzanne Stoskopf Foundation (website) has generously offered to match all donations up to $3,000 to support the creation of this River Spirit. The Foundation’s mission is to support scientific inquiry and creative expression relevant to issues impacting the health of the planet’s biodiversity.

All money raised will go directly to support the artists, Jan and Emma.