At the Sou’wester Lodge in Seaview, 30 artists have spent the week creating around a theme organizers hope can bring light and warmth to dark, late winter days.

From March 14 to March 16, the public portion of Sou’wester Arts Week will open with more than 50 performances, installations and studio tours. The annual festival is a conclusion of a weeklong residency hosted by the lodge.

Liz Talley, the festival’s coordinator, sees this year’s theme, “Embers: Darkness to Fire,” as a reflection of both the season and today’s political climate.

An accompanying logo depicts fireweed, a plant native to the Pacific Northwest. Known as a “fire follower,” Talley explained that it grows and thrives in terrain that’s been burned down.

With the theme as a center, the festival aims to bring together an array of artists’ work in different mediums for a gathering of creative expression.

“We try to represent a wide variety of disciplines,” Talley said.

Displayed work will include pieces like textile art, collage and photography. But there’s also a strong interactive component — guests can expect to see all sorts of artwork in action as artists bring their creative pieces to life.

Vivien Wise and Iris Vondell, of Fiber Arts in Portland, are hosting a collective kite-flying show. The pair will launch their kites on the beach and show the creative process of hand-making kites during the studio tour portion of the weekend.

A Portland-based dance troupe, Liminal Bodies, is planning a performance grounded in the coast’s natural habitat. Details are still being ironed out, but it will either be in a wooded area or at the beach, Talley said.

Many participating artists are from Oregon, but a handful come from farther away.

Savannah LeCornu is bringing her art from Ketchikan, Alaska. She honors Indigenous communities and stories through her beadwork and digital creations. Lane Bestold, from Seattle, examines consumerism and reimagines trash in his textile arts using recycled materials.

“There’s going to be so much to see,” Talley said.

The weekend commences with a kickoff at Ilwaco Artworks, the Sou’wester’s sister property, at 6 p.m. March 14, followed by a full lineup of installations and events March 15 at the Sou’wester Lodge and afternoon events at the nearby Wave of the Future Preschool.

“Saturday is the big event at the lodge all day,” Talley said. “There are scheduled performances throughout the day and studio tours people can wander in and out of.”

The Sou’wester hosts artist residencies year-round. The festival is a culmination of one of those annual programs.

Organizers got a record-breaking 162 applications this year, up from 120 submissions in 2024, according to Talley.

Artists this year will take up all of the lodge’s accommodation space, Talley noted, but the lodge has also partnered with local sponsors like Salt Hotel & Pub, the Shelburne Hotel and Snow Peak Campfield to offer discounted rates for festival attendees.