Cascadia Art Museum Lands a Game-Changing Gift of Timeless Treasures

More than 75 rare Northwest paintings join the museum’s collection

A timeless treasure, this painting captures a harbor scene with several large ships docked, small boats gracefully drifting in the foreground, and a hilly landscape providing a serene backdrop. It would make for a game-changing gift or find its perfect home at the Cascadia Art Museum.

Robert Alexander Graham (1873-1946), Lake Union, 1931. Oil on canvas. Promised Gift to Cascadia from the Garvey Family Collection.

What did the Aurora Bridge or South Lake Union look like in the 1930s? Probably not the way you picture it. Before tech campuses and traffic jams, Seattle’s waterfront and cityscapes had a different kind of energy — one captured in some of the paintings now headed to Cascadia Art Museum.

Thanks to a major donation, the Edmonds museum will soon house the largest private collection of early Northwest paintings ever gifted to a museum. The collection — more than 75 works — features historically significant landscapes and scenes from Oregon to Alaska, painted by masters such as Sydney Laurence, John Fery, Eustace Ziegler, and William Trost Richards.

A coastal scene unfolds with multiple small boats lined on the shore, a large sailing ship docked, and tents adorning the beach. Buildings rise in the background under a cloudy sky, capturing timeless treasures reminiscent of what one might find at Cascadia Art Museum.

John Fery (1859-1934), Seattle Waterfront, 1892. Oil on canvas. Promised Gift to Cascadia from the Garvey Family Collection.

A majestic snow-covered mountain under a clear sky, with pine trees and grassy terrain in the foreground, evokes timeless treasures reminiscent of a masterpiece you'd find at the Cascadia Art Museum.

John Fery (1859-1934), Mount Rainier, date unknown. Oil on canvas. Promised Gift to Cascadia from the Garvey Family Collection.

A painting of a bridge over water at sunset captures a timeless treasure. The sky and water reflect warm hues, with small structures dotting the surface, reminiscent of pieces from the Cascadia Art Museum's stunning collection.

Sydney Laurence (1865-1940), Aurora Bridge, 1934. Oil on canvas. Promised Gift to Cascadia from the Garvey Family Collection.

The gift comes from Mike and Lynn Garvey, longtime supporters of Northwest art who have spent more than 30 years assembling the collection. Since 1993, they’ve sought out works that capture the region’s history and natural beauty, spanning 150 years of change and evolution. Many of these paintings have never been publicly displayed.

That changes this spring when Cascadia debuts two exhibitions showcasing the collection: Northwest Masterworks from The Garvey Family Collection (April 3-Sept. 7) and Part 2 (Sept. 13-March 15, 2026).

To honor the gift, the museum is naming a permanent space the Garvey Family Gallery. “The Garveys’ deep connection to the Pacific Northwest spans generations, and their generosity is truly transformative,” Executive Director Sally Ralston says.

As Cascadia hits its 10-year mark, this gift makes it an even better place to take in Northwest art. With these paintings on the walls, visitors can see the region through the eyes of the artists who lived it — what’s changed, what’s stayed the same, and what still feels unmistakably like home.