We Created 20 Driftwood Art Pieces for the Oceanfront Inn

In 2026, we were commissioned to make a series of 20 hanging driftwood sculptures for the newly-remodeled Oceanfront Inn in Manzanita. This is a behind-the-scenes look at the process.

Looking out a hotel room towards a sliding glass door with views of the beach and ocean on a sunny day, and a driftwood sculpture hanging over the fireplace mantel to the right

Every room with a fireplace at the Oceanfront Inn has a unique driftwood sculpture by Geoff.

Resources

Browse a virtual gallery of all 20 driftwood art pieces
Stay at the Oceanfront Inn in Manzanita
Shop one-of-a-kind driftwood art

Whenever Geoff takes a walk on the beach, he keeps his eyes open for characterful pieces that speak to him artistically.

Geoff walking on a rocky beach with a bundle of driftwood branches strapped to his back with a leather strap

At the workshop, he evaluates each piece individually. Sometimes a piece is no naturally beautiful it only requires careful cutting and mounting. You never know what the weathered gray driftwood exterior surface is hiding: it could reveal a complex wood grain, light or dark colors. The wood in these photos is still raw, but he gives a clear satin gloss to sanded areas to enhance the juxtaposition of surfaces.

Close-up of two pieces of driftwood hanging from a pegboard: one has a gorgeous complex wood grain sanded away from the surface (foreground) and two have a dull gray surface (background)

Some pieces really benefit from a little extra added craftsman detail. He adds details that make animals come to life, interpret the shape, or accentuates or echoes natural features.

Close-up of a piece of driftwood on a workbench with glass in the "eye" cavity of the piece

For art, it's important to know the size of the space where it will hang. For the Oceanfront Inn, we knew the area above each fireplace was a certain size, so we mocked that up on a piece of pegboard. Each piece was held up to the pegboard to find the right orientation and hanging method.

A man holding up a driftwood artwork piece to a pegboard that

Choosing the right hanging hardware, and where to place the hardware, was as unique as each piece. To get the artwork to hang at an angle, or to appear as if it were coming out of the wall, took some time and a few different kinds of hardware.

A large piece of driftwood artwork hanging by a wire on a pegboard

In addition to the artwork, we also made wood artist placards, cut using our laser engraver. We did one final mock-up with the artist placards to make them the right size: big enough to be seen and read but not so big that they distract from the art, and in the hotel's brand font.

A large piece of driftwood artwork hanging by a wire on a pegboard with a wood artist placard in the bottom right

Hotel guests can read an artist statement for each piece on the artist placard. Valerie and Geoff wrote each artist statement as a team. On each placard is a QR code that goes to our virtual Driftwood Art Gallery so everyone can view all 20 pieces.

We also provided an installation service for the hotel. First we picked which room got which driftwood sculpture and then double-checked the placement on the wall before installing the hardware and hanging. Carefully-placed sticky pads help secure it to the wall.

A man wearing a baseball cap with a Hawaiian print is securing a driftwood art sculpture to the wall of the Oceanfront Inn hotel

It was such an honor to work on this project with the folks at Escape Lodging. (Coincidentally, this was a company Geoff had done work for as an architect at Ankrom Moisan in his previous career: his work has come full-circle!) Once the installation was complete, we took our photography from Installation Day and turned it into a virtual gallery for all to enjoy.