"As Natural as the World Will Allow" is the story of two young artists who, in the midst of the back-to-nature movement, started a summer camp for kids that grew to become one of the nation's most respected artist residency and workshop programs. Set against the dramatic backdrop of Cascade Head, a rare coastal prairie on the Oregon coast, the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology exists in that fertile zone where river joins ocean, mountain meets sea, and human culture interacts with the natural world. Through the microcosm of this extraordinary place, we meet some of the people whose lives have been changed by time spent here--from a commercial illustrator who found the courage to reinvent herself as a painter of wild places, to a retired couple who hold the record for most workshops taken, to a conservationist (and part-time puppeteer) who recruited an army of volunteers to watch over every mile of the Oregon coast. We also meet Sitka's founders: Frank Boyden, an internationally known sculptor and printmaker, and his wife, Jane Boyden, a gifted musician, who dedicated themselves to creating a community where art and science could peacefully coexist--and to preserving a place of remarkable beauty for generations to come. Accompanying these stories are current and historical photographs, artwork, poetry, and prose by noted Northwest artists. Sitka "is like a wildlife sanctuary for artists. When you come here, you can roam freely, protected from the usual fears and stresses of everyday life. You're here to find out who it is you long to become." Andie Thrams, artist