Louisiana is losing a treasure our whole nation values commercially, aesthetically, and environmentally. Twenty-four sq. miles of land per year is silently slipping away. Land that harbors value; land that supports the Cajun culture, history, and music associated with it; land that buffers New Orleans and other coastal cities from hurricanes; land that supports the economic base to all of Louisiana, and supplies our country with products such as seafood, oil, and gas.

Our marsh mission is to bring awareness of this loss to our nation. Through artistic eyes we hope to illuminate this vanishing national treasure.


CC Lockwood, naturalist and wildlife photographer and Rhea Gary, a painter; two artists teamed together to illuminate this problem.

I have been interested in water habitats since I was a young boy. It was my days at LSU that gave me my first taste of crawfish and the experience of fishing in the marsh. In 1973 my photography took me head first into the rivers, bayous, and marshes of South Louisiana. It was love at first sight. Twenty-six years later it's sad to see so much gone. With this mission I hope to use my passion of nature photography to enlighten the rest of the country to our devastating problem.
C.C. Lockwood
I have always found beauty in the common things in nature. When I first experienced the coastal wetlands, it was an instant love affair. For me, our wetlands are both beautiful and mysterious with many faces and moods ever changing with the coastal weather. I hope that the bright, bold and uplifting interpretations I paint will bring much needed attention to what we have in Louisiana and what we are about to lose forever.
Rhea Gary


The paintings of Rhea Gary, the photographs of CC Lockwood and the teachings of Sue Lockwood will be used to fill this web page along with a journal kept by both artists which will be available to the public at 2theadvocate.com as the adventure begins. The images created by both artists will be used in a coffee table art book and then a traveling exhibit and lecture series. Sue's educational web site will be available to teachers all over the nation for years to come.


To really venture into the heart of the problem, C.C. and Sue Lockwood will live aboard a houseboat in the coastal wetlands for most of the next year and Rhea Gary will join them occasionally and explore the marsh on her own to develop ideas to paint both in her studio and on location. The boat, "Wetlands Wanderer" a James Towner JT Crewzer will circle the marsh each season spending time in Southwest, Central and Eastern Louisiana as well as the Atchafalaya Basin.


Click here for Map.
Image provided by USGS


November 2003 Work on the photographs and paintings began.
Web-journal debuted.
Website "MarshMission.com" opened.
September 2004 Work finished on photography and painting.
October 2004 Book materials turned over to press.
Work began on converting web lesson plans to printed versions.
August 2005 Book released.
September 2005 Lectures begin.
October 2005 Exhibit opens at LSU Museum of Art.
March 2006 Exhibit begins traveling show to other cities.
May 2008 Traveling exhibit ends.