Art at Homestream Park
The Spirit, in Steel
Homestream Park is honored to feature the work of the late Virgil “Smoker” Marchand, an extraordinary artist, culture bearer, and member of the Colville Confederated Tribes. Smoker was widely known for his distinctive steel sculptures that capture the spirit of Indigenous life with elegance, strength, and reverence. His work serves not only as public art, but as cultural testimony—offering a powerful visual presence that reminds all who pass through this land that Native people have always been here and are still here.
Left to right: Smoker Marchand, Uncle Gary McClung and Cathy Davis
Smoker’s art doesn’t just represent the past—it reclaims space for Native presence, which has too often been ignored or attempted to be erased. Through clean lines and bold form, he invites viewers into a deeper relationship with place: to see, to remember, and to feel the weight and beauty of Indigenous belonging.
At Homestream Park, Smoker created a collection of sculptures specifically for this place—works that echo the life, movement, and stories of the Methow People. His towering salmon leap toward the sky, recalling the once-abundant runs that sustained Indigenous families for generations. An eagle rises in flight, a symbol of vision and spiritual connection. A fisherman stands at the water’s edge, fishing spear in hand, honoring the traditional knowledge and lifeways that have long shaped this river valley.
Smoker Marchand passed away in 2023, but his legacy lives on in his work and in the hearts of those who knew him. His sculptures at Homestream Park are not only tributes, they are teachings. They speak to resilience, to memory, and to the invitation to walk with respect on this land.
We invite you to spend time with these pieces, to look closely, and to listen.
The art you see here is part of something larger: a continuing story of culture, spirit, and home.