Flowing more than 1,200 miles from the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to the Pacific Ocean, the Columbia River system houses more than 400 dams and is directly or indirectly responsible for nearly 80% of the electricity supplied to the Pacific Northwest. 

For hundreds of thousands of people, it is a source of industry, sustenance, livelihood, and recreation. For painter and Professor of Art and Art History Elise Richman, it is also a source of inspiration.