Lori Tobias

Lori Tobias is a journalist of many years, and was a staff writer for The Oregonian for more than a decade, and a columnist and features writer for the Rocky Mountain News. Her memoir “Storm Beat – A Journalist Reports from the Oregon Coast” was published in 2020 by Oregon State University press. She is also the author of the novel Wander, winner of the 2017 Nancy Pearl Book Award for literary fiction and a finalist for the 2017 International Book Awards for new fiction. She lives on the Oregon Coast with her husband Chan and Rescue pups Gus and Lily.

Remembering Ed Cameron, Newport artist, author, and unofficial Mayor of Nye Beach

January 6, 2026Lori Tobias

The 94-year-old was a fixture in the coastal community, a “bridge to the past” famous for his Bloomsday Celebrations, outrageous outfits, and storytelling.

Astoria Arts and Movement Center secures $90,000 in grants to restore ballroom in historic Odd Fellows building

December 15, 2025Lori Tobias

The ballroom in the 1923 building suffered water damage when the roof was lost during a series of storms in 2007.

Best Christmas ever! North Bend’s Liberty Theatre completes 10-year-restoration just in time for holiday shows

November 25, 2025Lori Tobias

The Little Theatre on the Bay presents a double-header of Christmas plays, followed by its ‘Little Ole Christmas Opry,’ in the renovated 1924 theater.

In Newport, ‘The SpongeBob Musical’ at Porthole Players is a community — and family — affair

November 17, 2025Lori Tobias

The extravaganza received help from the Siletz Tribe and Oregon Coast Aquarium. “The county is all-in on this production,” says director Morgan Locklear.

Ten Fifteen Productions: The Astoria theater company that doesn’t shy from the controversial

November 6, 2025Lori Tobias

The theme of the community theater’s next season is “America the Beautiful?” And, yes, the question mark is intentional.

For Serena Dressel, becoming head of the Lincoln City Cultural Center is both a homecoming and a challenge

October 24, 2025Lori Tobias

Dressel, whose parents owned the old Bay House restaurant, says she has big shoes to fill succeeding Niki Price in the role.

Lincoln City Cosmography honors the natural world, as well as the memory of its designer, Robin Brailsford

October 17, 2025Lori Tobias

The LithoMosaic mandala, to be dedicated during a Nov. 1 open house, is the capstone of the Lincoln City Cultural Center’s plaza restoration project.

‘Ziller’s Quilt’ leads North Lincoln County Historical Museum director on treasure hunt into the past

September 16, 2025Lori Tobias

The quilt, made in the 1800s by a Black woman likely born into slavery, is the subject of a talk Thursday and a new exhibit at the museum.

Portland artist Licity Collins wins $74,000 Oregon Community Foundation Creative Heights grant for her opera about grief

September 15, 2025Lori Tobias

Collins says she drew on her experiences during residencies at the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology — including living with a noisy refrigerator — in writing "One Death in Seven Doorways."

Tillamook County Pioneer Museum: Bringing Tillamook to the world, from shipwrecks to service members, from research to a nature reserve

September 9, 2025Lori Tobias

The 90-year-old museum has an archive of more than 55,000 objects and 20,000 photos, as well as stewardship of the 200-acre Kilchis Point Reserve.

Digital nomad Nicole Elyse will recount her adventures abroad in a talk Saturday at the Newport Public Library

September 6, 2025Lori Tobias

From getting robbed at gunpoint in Colombia to relying on the kindness of strangers in Laos, the world traveler says the peripatetic life has been “a thousand times better than I expected.”

Toledo Art Walk: Hello and farewell

July 29, 2025Lori Tobias

The art-savvy town's 30th and final Art Walk will feature the work of the late Cherokee artist Joseph Calhoun, plus Newport artist Marion Moir and others.

‘In Her Wake’: Rebecca Hooper finds artistic renewal via her tapestry of an orca pair along the Coast Highway near Seal Rock

July 29, 2025Lori Tobias

A trip to Europe and a timely request inspire the fiber artist to dump the doormats and work large.

Once garbage, now art: Columbia Basin Basketry Guild transforms trash into baskets for Lincoln City Cultural Center show

July 17, 2025Lori Tobias

Guild members used dog food bags, plastic tabs, and other debris to weave vessels for the exhibit opening Friday.

Niki Price, who led the transformation of an old school into a thriving arts center, moves on

July 11, 2025Lori Tobias

After 14 years as the innovative executive director of the Lincoln City Cultural Center on the Oregon coast, Price will step down Aug. 31. A search is on for her successor.

At Florence children’s theater group C.R.O.W., family is a big part of the fun

July 6, 2025Lori Tobias

Children’s Repertory of Oregon Workshops — C.R.O.W. — offers low-cost classes in dance, musical theater, and performance — not to mention The Tutu Dads.

Postcards to the Future asks: ‘What would you want to share with the future about your life today?’

June 24, 2025Lori Tobias

The Lincoln County Historical Society project, to be exhibited over the July 4 holiday in Newport, has drawn correspondence from around the world.

‘Neskowin: A Book of Found Photos’: Artist Michael Schlicting’s quest to uncover the history of his Hawk Creek Gallery building leads to book

June 21, 2025Lori Tobias

The book, due out this summer from the Neskowin Historical Foundation, captures 100 years of life in the small Oregon Coast town.

Trail’s End Art Association: In Gearhart, a fellowship of artists

May 16, 2025Lori Tobias

The club, which offers an egalitarian welcome to artists ranging from painters to needleworkers to gourd-crafters, is celebrating its 75th anniversary.

Ada Limón closes her tenure as U.S. Poet Laureate with May 20 appearance at Sitka Center for Art + Ecology

May 12, 2025Lori Tobias

The poet, a MacArthur “genius” grant and National Book Award winner, has made her signature project to connect poetry to the natural world via installations in national parks.

Every dog has its day in Jessica Poundstone’s new book, ‘Museum of Dogs’

May 1, 2025Lori Tobias

The Portland artist and author will be at Powell’s Books on May 10, followed by visits to Cloud and Leaf in Manzanita, and A Sometimes Gallery in Portland.

Manzanita-based North Coast Squid grows from a tiny newspaper insert to glossy literary journal with a ‘bigger reputation’

April 23, 2025Lori Tobias

The 10th edition of the publication will accept written and art submissions from those with "strong connections" to the North Oregon Coast starting May 1.

Rick Bartow Art Studio finds a new home at Yakona Nature Preserve & Learning Center

April 17, 2025Lori Tobias

The tiny building when the beloved Newport artist worked will be reconstructed at the preserve, giving the arts program the home base it has lacked.

‘You Can’t Be Serious’: Andrea Parson’s solo show inspired by her sister’s death comes to Astoria and Hillsboro

April 14, 2025Lori Tobias

The choreographer will present her award-winning performance of dance and storytelling May 2 and 3 at Ten Fifteen Productions.

North Lincoln County Historical Museum exhibit tells stories of past Oregon post offices through letters and photographs

April 1, 2025Lori Tobias

Visitors are invited to read from their own old letters during the April 3 opening reception in Lincoln City.

Crystal Meneses: Raising ‘A Thousand Hands’ for art as spiritual healing

March 24, 2025Lori Tobias

The Lincoln City artist honors her Pacific Islander heritage and relationship with Kuan Yin in an exhibit opening April 4 in Newport.

For three decades, Newport Paper & Book Arts Festival has been doing things by the book

March 18, 2025Lori Tobias

The three-day festival in April offers 10 workshops on a range of paper arts — and the opportunity for bookmaking friends to reconnect.

Tolovana Arts Colony: Nurturing the Cannon Beach arts scene for 20 years

March 12, 2025Lori Tobias

The nonprofit sponsors this week’s comedy festival and Get Lit at the Beach in April, as well as an autumn celebration of Indigenous heritage, art classes, concerts in the park, and a mini-golf fundraiser.

North County Recreation District: From a pool to plays, Nehalem’s hub serves coastal community

February 12, 2025Lori Tobias

Based in a school designed by A.E. Doyle, the 30-year-old NCRD is home to concerts, lectures, an art gallery, and soon, a new $16.4 million aquatics center.

Sea fever: Big Blue Film Festival brings 34 films about the ocean to Newport

January 22, 2025Lori Tobias

The Jan. 24-25 festival aims to raise awareness about challenges facing the ocean while fostering hope in viewers.

Oregon ArtsWatch