Mathews County 250 Committee "Revolution of Ideas" LOVEworks Project Completed

The Virginia Commission for the Arts partnered with the Virginia 250 Commission to provide one-time programmatic support for arts activities that explore the themes of revolution of ideas, capture stories that commemorate the Revolutionary War, and demonstrate the impact of revolutionary ideas on our world today.

The Bay School Community Arts Center partnered with the Mathews County 250 Committee and commissioned two public art installations to be installed at accessible, public locations of cultural or community significance within Mathews County.

A Ribbon Cutting Ceremony was held the afternoon of June 29, 2025 to dedicate the two LOVEworks installations recently commissioned and installed at The Hatchery at Callis Wharf and Williams Wharf.

The finished installations are included on the statewide LOVEworks map to represent Mathews County.  Learn more about Virginia's LOVEworks project.

LOVEworks at The Hatchery at Callis Wharf

At Callis Wharf, Oyster Seed Holdings, Inc (OSH) operates an oyster hatchery, which produces seed oysters for use on commercial oyster farms up and down the east coast. The oyster aquaculture industry, supported by the OSH hatchery, represents the modern evolution of Mathews County's vast fishing and farming heritage. Callis Wharf, once known as a significant landing dock for wild capture fisheries, now hosts a hatchery producing hundreds of millions of oysters per year, as well as a waterside oyster eatery, known as The Hatchery, with a mission to educate people about, and build community around, shellfish aquaculture. The LOVEworks sign selected for Callis Wharf was created by artist Maria-Emilia Borja and embodies both the history and the future of this site and the shellfish aquaculture industry in Mathews County.

LOVEworks at Williams Wharf

The LOVEworks sign selected and installed at Williams Wharf was created by artist Peggy Shifflett to honor and commemorate the rich Revolutionary War history of Mathews County and inspire young people to remember the past and appreciate a legacy that belongs to them and future generations. This LOVEworks installation is a freestanding sculpture on a Mathews County land conservancy. The rich history of one of the nation's first major shipbuilders is depicted through the letters, formed by representations of tools of the trade.