Where others saw litter, he saw a bird: Galveston artist crafts reddish egret from washed-up debris
Julianna Washburn/HPMGalveston artist Evan McClimans shows the eye of his sculpture made out of marine debris on Nov. 25, 2025.When artist Evan McClimans saw broken garbage bins, a discarded kayak and blue bottle caps that littered Galveston’s beaches, he didn't see it as trash. He saw a vision. McClimans transformed the waste bins into what now looks like bird feathers, the kayak came to resemble sand and the bottle caps were made into what looks like ocean water. Sign up for the Hello, Houston! daily newsletter to get local reports like this delivered directly to your inbox. After four months of creating, McClimans finished his work of art. He'd pieced together thousands of pieces of marine debris from Galveston to create a 7-foot sculpture of a reddish egret, the official bird of Galveston and a threatened species nicknamed "Gerde of the Gulf." "It’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears on this thing and I’m just so grateful that I got to do it," McClimans said. The project was part of a partnership between the Galveston Park Board and Washed Ashore, an Oregon-based organization that works to encourage recycling and educate the public about plastic pollution in the ocean. Sculptures are made out of washed-up debris and represent marine life affected by plastic pollution. "When you’re looking at these different artworks, you’re understanding that these are things ending up in the ocean that we use every single day," said Elizabeth Walla, environmental programs manager at the Galveston Park Board. Walla said the Galveston Park Board, which is responsible for maintaining all 32 miles of beach front on the island south of Houston, has a crew of 36 members who clean the beaches by hand every day, picking up trash and emptying trash barrels. "It is hard to imagine, but we are picking up at least 2 million pounds of trash from our beach front every year," Walla said. Walla said marine debris in Galveston isn't just from people leaving trash on the beach, however, as a study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) found that marine debris accumulation rates were 10 times higher in Texas than the other states along the Gulf, because of where Texas sits in relation to wind directions and currents. "When that was released, it made sense to me because a lot of the trash that we see, especially the bigger stuff, has barnacles on it. It has algae on it. You can tell it’s been in the water for quite a while," Walla said. To help create “Gerte,” Walla said in addition to the crew that typically cleans the beaches, volunteers from around the community came together to help pick up marine debris. Items such as lighters, beach toys and sand buckets now help make up the sculpture. Julianna Washburn, HPM“Gerte of the Gulf,” a sculpture made out of marine debris, sits inside artist Evan McClimans’ shop on Nov. 25, 2025.Julianna Washburn/HPMGalveston artist Evan McClimans shows a children’s toy that sits on his sculpture made out of marine debris on Nov. 25, 2025. "My favorite is the Texas volleyball," McClimans said about one of the items on the sculpture. "I have a whole bin full of beach balls that they found out in random places, but that one had Texas on it and since this [sculpture] is staying in Galveston, I thought it’d be appropriate to put that one on there." While each piece of marine debris turned into its own artform, McClimans, who once focused his energy entirely on welding, said creating Gerte changed him, too. "I’ve definitely taken a bigger interest in making sure that I do my part and preach to others to do theirs," McClimans said. "When I go to the beach, I make sure [to] pick up 10 pieces when you’re there, pick up 10 pieces when you leave," McClimans said. At a Galveston City Council meeting in November, "Gerde of the Gulf" was given the 2025 Galveston Planning & Design Award in the environmental category. Gerte will be displayed at Moody Gardens starting Monday, then the sculpture will continue to move to different locations around the island.
The artwork, which will be displayed at Moody Gardens and other locations on the island, was created to increase awareness about plastic pollution in the ocean.
Julianna Washburn/HPM
When artist Evan McClimans saw broken garbage bins, a discarded kayak and blue bottle caps that littered Galveston’s beaches, he didn't see it as trash.
He saw a vision.
McClimans transformed the waste bins into what now looks like bird feathers, the kayak came to resemble sand and the bottle caps were made into what looks like ocean water.
Sign up for the Hello, Houston! daily newsletter to get local reports like this delivered directly to your inbox.
After four months of creating, McClimans finished his work of art. He'd pieced together thousands of pieces of marine debris from Galveston to create a 7-foot sculpture of a reddish egret, the official bird of Galveston and a threatened species nicknamed "Gerde of the Gulf."
"It’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears on this thing and I’m just so grateful that I got to do it," McClimans said.
The project was part of a partnership between the Galveston Park Board and Washed Ashore, an Oregon-based organization that works to encourage recycling and educate the public about plastic pollution in the ocean. Sculptures are made out of washed-up debris and represent marine life affected by plastic pollution.
"When you’re looking at these different artworks, you’re understanding that these are things ending up in the ocean that we use every single day," said Elizabeth Walla, environmental programs manager at the Galveston Park Board.
Walla said the Galveston Park Board, which is responsible for maintaining all 32 miles of beach front on the island south of Houston, has a crew of 36 members who clean the beaches by hand every day, picking up trash and emptying trash barrels.
"It is hard to imagine, but we are picking up at least 2 million pounds of trash from our beach front every year," Walla said.
Walla said marine debris in Galveston isn't just from people leaving trash on the beach, however, as a study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) found that marine debris accumulation rates were 10 times higher in Texas than the other states along the Gulf, because of where Texas sits in relation to wind directions and currents.
"When that was released, it made sense to me because a lot of the trash that we see, especially the bigger stuff, has barnacles on it. It has algae on it. You can tell it’s been in the water for quite a while," Walla said.
To help create “Gerte,” Walla said in addition to the crew that typically cleans the beaches, volunteers from around the community came together to help pick up marine debris. Items such as lighters, beach toys and sand buckets now help make up the sculpture.
Julianna Washburn, HPM Julianna Washburn/HPM
"My favorite is the Texas volleyball," McClimans said about one of the items on the sculpture. "I have a whole bin full of beach balls that they found out in random places, but that one had Texas on it and since this [sculpture] is staying in Galveston, I thought it’d be appropriate to put that one on there."
While each piece of marine debris turned into its own artform, McClimans, who once focused his energy entirely on welding, said creating Gerte changed him, too.
"I’ve definitely taken a bigger interest in making sure that I do my part and preach to others to do theirs," McClimans said. "When I go to the beach, I make sure [to] pick up 10 pieces when you’re there, pick up 10 pieces when you leave," McClimans said.
At a Galveston City Council meeting in November, "Gerde of the Gulf" was given the 2025 Galveston Planning & Design Award in the environmental category. Gerte will be displayed at Moody Gardens starting Monday, then the sculpture will continue to move to different locations around the island.