Painted buoys hanging on Lincoln street in Sitka Alaska with a grey sky in the background.

Buoys & Art Auction

Gala & Live Auction

September 12, 6pm at Odess Theater

Bid on exclusive in-person buoys

Online Auction

June 24 - September 12, 2026

Bid online! Claim a one-of-a-kind buoy now. Local pickup in Sitka or shipping at buyer's cost.

ONLINE AUCTION

SEE THE 2026 BUOYS

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ONLINE AUCTION

Image of Macroalgae painted on a buoy, a design created for Brave Heart Volunteers' annual buoy fundraiser.

Macroalgae Underwater

Annie Causey - SILENT AUCTION
8" Buoy
I've seen a handful of surreal sights of nature during my time in AK, and on that list includes the view of kelp under clear water glowing gold on a sunny day. I did what I could to replicate that on my buoy. I enjoy partaking in AK wilderness with my husband and 2 dogs.

Sculpin

Laura Kaltenstein - LIVE AUCTION
12" buoy
Laura Kaltenstein has been cleaning up beaches and transforming hard plastic buoys into stunning works of art for years. Long before BHV started this fundraiser, Laura had the vision to create beauty from “trash”. This year Laura generously donated 7 gorgeous buoys to the BHV Buoy & Art fundraiser! All of her buoys need to be displayed inside.

Jellyfish

Bitsy Mosher - SILENT AUCTION
12" Buoy
Since retiring from health care in 2022, I have been exploring ways to engage with a lifelong interest in drawing and watercolor painting. To that end, I have joined on-line and local drawing and watercolor painting workshops. Additionally I have always been impressed by the Brave Heart Volunteer program; I wanted to support their fundraiser BUOY project . I attended the BUOY painting workshop at the Sitka Sound Science Center to see if it was something I could get involved with.

Yellowlegs Shore Birds

Laura Kaltenstien - LIVE AUCTION
9" Buoy
Laura Kaltenstein has been cleaning up beaches and transforming hard plastic buoys into stunning works of art for years. Long before BHV started this fundraiser, Laura had the vision to create beauty from “trash”. This year Laura generously donated 7 gorgeous buoys to the BHV Buoy & Art fundraiser! All of her buoys need to be displayed inside.

Harlequin

Laura Kaltenstein - LIVE AUCTION
9" buoy
Laura Kaltenstein has been cleaning up beaches and transforming hard plastic buoys into stunning works of art for years. Long before BHV started this fundraiser, Laura had the vision to create beauty from “trash”. This year Laura generously donated 7 gorgeous buoys to the BHV Buoy & Art fundraiser! All of her buoys need to be displayed inside.

Red Poppies

Bitsy Mosher - SILENT AUCTION
6" tall Buoy
Since retiring from health care in 2022, I have been exploring ways to engage with a lifelong interest in drawing and watercolor painting. To that end, I have joined on-line and local drawing and watercolor painting workshops. Additionally I have always been impressed by the Brave Heart Volunteer program; I wanted to support their fundraiser BUOY project . I attended the BUOY painting workshop at the Sitka Sound Science Center to see if it was something I could get involved with.

Image of ravens painted on a buoy, a design created for Brave Heart Volunteers' annual buoy fundraiser.

Starrigavan Ravens

Bitsy Mosher - SILENT AUCTION
5" tall Buoy
Since retiring from health care in 2022, I have been exploring ways to engage with a lifelong interest in drawing and watercolor painting. To that end, I have joined on-line and local drawing and watercolor painting workshops. Additionally I have always been impressed by the Brave Heart Volunteer program; I wanted to support their fundraiser BUOY project . I attended the BUOY painting workshop at the Sitka Sound Science Center to see if it was something I could get involved with.

Joshua Tree

Rachel Fox- SILENT AUCTION
12" buoy
This buoy was inspired by my first ever solo camping trip to Joshua Tree National Park. In December 2023, one of my favorite punk bands, Fidlar, was performing near the national park. Unfortunately, none of my friends were available to go with me, so I decided to turn it into a solo weekend trip. I was a little nervous, as I had never camped by myself before, but I was determined to see this band. I loaded up my car and drove two hours into the desert. When I arrived I pitched my tent and then headed off to find the concert venue, Pappy and Harriets. I followed the GPS deeper into the desert and started to lose cell service. Now I'm alone in the middle of nowhere without service, no sense of direction, and unsure of where I would end up. After about 20 more minutes of driving, I saw dim lights in the distance. The venue was just a lone standing, small, wood building. I went inside and was able to get a front row seat to see Fidlar play. IT WAS AWESOME! After the concert, I drove back to my campsite and laid down on the floor of the tent (I forgot to pack a sleeping pad). I just felt so alive and happy. As I was laying on the ground, I decided I wanted to try and wake up early to see if there was a good sunrise. In my opinion, sunrises are much more beautiful than sunsets. The quietness of the world waking up is so peaceful, whereas sunsets can feel a bit too busy. My alarm went off around 6am and I poked my head out of the tent. What I saw was the most beautiful sunrise I have ever seen, and that's what I tried to portray on my buoy. To think I would've missed this incredible moment, missed this incredible trip, if I didn't have the courage to go alone. Now, whenever life presents me with an opportunity to experience something wonderful, even if I have to go alone, I'm going anyway.

Image of a caterpillar painted on a buoy, a design created for Brave Heart Volunteers' annual buoy fundraiser.

Hungry for Life

Rowan Schmitt - SILENT AUCTION
12” Buoy
Only in town for a few months for an internship, Brave Heart Volunteers Buoy painting was one of the first things I stumbled upon, and quickly became one of my favorites. Both the warm welcome I received and the talent demonstrated by the other volunteers perfectly exemplify what makes Sitka such a special community to live in. I’m so grateful to have gotten the chance to join this tradition and leave a bit of my art in Sitka.
My buoy was heavily inspired by the iconic collage work of Eric Carle’s A Very Hungry Caterpillar. I was drawn to the bright, bold colors of his style and thoroughly enjoyed my attempt to translate his collage style into paint. Although the original story may be geared towards children, its themes of transformation as inevitable yet joyful serve as great reminders for us all.

Image of a spaceship shaped buoy, a design created for Brave Heart Volunteers' annual buoy fundraiser.

Nauti Buoy

By Alicia Porter Harris - SILENT AUCTION
13”-13” Buoy
Nauti- Buoy is made from a ghost net my husband I scavenged in Washington state. My husband thought he was going on vacation… bwahahahaha! He was conscripted to watch Netflix and cut up a net so we could get Nauti-Boy a body.

Nauti - Bouy is made from fused glass that was crushed to make glass lace and fused upon each other. The antenna and eyes are dichroic glass, which is the same tech that is used on NASA space ships- there is metal fused to the glass and it changes color as it bakes.

Image of a king crab painted on a buoy, a design created for Brave Heart Volunteers' annual buoy fundraiser.

We Three Kings

By Sandra Butler - LIVE AUCTION
Teardrop-shaped (10” x 23” tall) Buoy
While I consider myself a New England-based artist, I am definitely beginning to feel like a "local", since for the past four years, my husband and I have spent more time in beautiful Sitka than back East, especially when my mother-in-law died last April and we decided to stay on permanently to support his almost 93 year old father. This hard-core, old-timey Alaskan has been the inspiration for this year’s buoy because he just LOVES King Crab! (eating them, I mean.)
Each spring, just after herring season, he’d start inquiring if the “King Crab” sign was up at the roundabout, and when the answer was finally “Yes!” he’d send me down to the boat with the credit card, and get to work setting up the big pot full of water to boil. At first, getting the tasty meat from a spiky crab leg was quite a challenge, but I’ve become more adept with practice.
I learned while researching King Crabs that there are three distinct types; Red Kings, Golden (or brown) Kings, and the much more rare Blue Kings. They are large cold-water crustaceans that live in the Bering Sea, the Gulf of Alaska, and Chatham Strait, and they are voracious scavengers who eat practically everything in which they come in contact. I decided to portray all three types because visually, I found their shapes, colors, and textures intriguing, especially where their spiny legs overlapped each other.
Thanks to my father-in-law I have now gotten to know this uniquely Alaskan creature, inside and out, and appreciate the opportunity to support this year’s Brave Heart Volunteers fundraiser with my giant King Crab buoy.

Image of a mountain scene painted on a buoy, a design created for Brave Heart Volunteers' annual buoy fundraiser.

Summit to Sea

By Magnolia Hirsch - LIVE AUCTION
16” Buoy
I am constantly in awe with the sights of the mountains that surround us here in Southeast Alaska, especially on the clear evenings where the setting sun makes the faces glow. Coming from Colorado, this is my first time living by the ocean, and my work with NSRAA has had me living right on the water in remote inlets on barges for the past two years. I have developed such a deep love for the beauty of the changing tides and the shifting colors of the ocean, that I had to reflect it on my first buoy for the Brave Heart Volunteer program. I had such a fun time working on this buoy during my recent remote project in Crawfish Inlet this year.