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News & Notes
Spring 2015
Art, Education, Conservation
Art
Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History
Twan Leenders, President
[email protected] www.rtpi.org
Celebrating Wild America 2015
Exhibits 2015
Natural Connections
May 1, 2015 – June 15, 2015
Nurtured by Nature: Developing as
an Artist in Chautauqua County
Artist’s Reception, Friday, May 1,
2015 7-9 PM
Audrey Kay Dowling was raised on
52 acres on Bemus Creek. Her love of
nature was nurtured by explorations
of the family property, frequent visits
to Audubon, and hiking by the local
creeks, streams, lakes and woods. After
leaving the area to pursue a degree in
art at SUNY New Paltz, she returned to
the beauty of Chautauqua County and
has spent her life since then studying
and using her art ability to interpret
A Bird For All Seasons by Audrey Kay Dowling
regional plants, birds and landscapes
using mixed media, clay and paint. For more information or to view some of Audrey’s pieces, visit portagehillgallery.com.
Wild America
On an April day in 1953, renowned American naturalist, author, and illustrator Roger
Tory Peterson met his British friend James
Fisher, an authority
on seabirds, in Newfoundland. There they
began a strenuous and
thrilling hundred-day
field trip around the
edge of the continent.
Part travelogue, part
epic natural adventure, their richly illustrated record is “the
superlatively good
product of ideal circumstances” (Chicago
Sunday Tribune).
Natural Connections was funded in part by the New York State Council on
the Arts Decentralization Regrant Program with support from Gov. Andrew
Cuomo and the NYS Legislature and administered by the Cattaraugus
County Arts Council.
National Parks and Beyond:
A Solo Exhibition by Thomas Annear
Artist’s Reception, Friday, June 26, 2015 7-9 PM
June 23, 2015 – August 15, 2015
Comprised of more than fifty landscapes painted on location, this
solo exhibition takes viewers on a quintessential American journey—a
journey of discovery, wonder, and contemplation that begins and ends
with our national parks. With scenes ranging from the rugged icecapped peaks of the Tetons to the steaming lava flows of Volcanoes
National Park to the hallowed rolling hills at Gettysburg, the paintings
capture both the grandeur and quiet beauty of our national, state, and
regional parks. More than mere celebrations of wilderness, the paintings
also explore these parks as laboratories of democracy, identity, and
ecological change. Landscapes from Allegany State Park, Zoar Valley,
Grand Teton National Park, Sunset by Tom Annear
and selected sites in Chautauqua County demonstrate that land use,
conservation, and other issues are just as relevant and pressing as they are out west. To complement the paintings, the exhibit will include a series of talks and
painting and journaling classes to educate viewers about these many local and national issues. For more information please visit www.ThomasAnnear.com.
Society of Animal Artists 55th Annual Exhibition
Opening Reception August 28, 2015
The Society of Animal Artists (SAA), of which Roger Tory Peterson was a member, is a world-re
nowned organization that has become the standard bearer of excellence in the field of animal art
and within the greater fine art community. The Society of Animal Artists was founded in 1960 by
the late Patricia Allen Bott and Guido Borghi, two visionaries who sought to reposition animal art
as an important contemporary art form by creating a community of like-minded artists. Since its
inception, the Society has grown by leaps and bounds and has generated tremendous response
through its museum and gallery exhibitions. The annual “Art and the Animal”
exhibition and tour are eagerly awaited events in the art world and provide
artists with the opportunity for greater recognition.
Right - about the artist: Morton Solberg, a long time SAA member, attended
The Cleveland Institute of Art, studying painting and design, and has been
painting full time since 1970.
A Morning Flight of Swans by Morton Solberg
www.societyofanimalartists.com
Education
“For The Birds”
“For the Birds” is an education program based on the children’s biography For the
Birds, The Life of Roger Tory Peterson. Children learn that Roger is most famous for
writing and illustrating A Field Guide to the Birds. He was a renowned artist, writer,
photographer and naturalist who used his gifts to educate millions of people to know
and appreciate the natural world. Author Peggy Thomas’s well-researched text, Laura
Jacque’s beautiful illustrations, related objects and activities allow participants to make
personal, social, cultural, historical and scientific connections to this famous Jamestown
historical figure. RTPI Nature Educator, Tina Nelson-Scherman, has been out in schools
and libraries all winter, and has presented the “For the Birds” program to 52 groups
at 23 sites, reaching over 1,000 children, with more programs scheduled. She is getting
positive feedback, and the kids remember “birds” as one of their first comments! We
think that’s great, and we are planning to share our results with the New York State
Education Department; we know it works, and we want more children to experience
the opportunity to learn about nature and about Roger Tory Peterson.
Conservation
Winter Into Spring
Vernal Pools
Forest Pests
The Wood Frog (Rana sylvatica) is another early spring breeding amphibian common to our region. These explosive breeders utilize vernal pools, just
like spotted salamanders, and their breeding activities are squeezed into
just a few
days. As the
frogs enter
the pools,
males will
take up their
positions
floating at
the surface
of the pool
croaking
their characteristic call.
While they
are calling,
they will often joust with one another, especially if a female is nearby.
These two males had a bit of a tousle, but both went on to call in another
spot ready for females to come their way.
This winter, the RTPI conservation team worked with the U.S. Forest Service,
The Nature Conservancy, WNY PRISM, Jamestown Community College,
Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy and Cornell Cooperative Extension
of Chautauqua County
to address the
problem of forest
pests, organisms
that attack
and kill trees.
RTPI staff and
volunteers provided information and training
to nearly 60
people that
attended our
Forest Pest Information Session in December (collaborative presentation by RTPI and CCE),
Forest Pest First Detector’s Training in February (hosted by RTPI and presented by WNY PRISM), and our various on-site trainings during our surveys.
Staff
Museum of New York (MANY) Annual Conference
The Roger Tory Peterson Institute (RTPI) received a Travel Grant that allowed staff
members Jane Johnson and Linda Pierce to attend a conference at the Corning
Museum of Glass, April 12-14, 2015 presented by the Museum Association of New York
(MANY). The grant from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency, and
administered by MANY, allows RTPI to explore new connections and opportunities
related to development, collections, and exhibitions. The Travel Grants are one of
a series of grants offered to help museums and historical societies to strengthen and
develop their institutions and work with their communities. These grants, administered
by MANY are designed to make it easy for organizations to access professional help
and improve their institutions.
At left, clockwise: Glass blowing demonstration at CMOG, United States Congressman
Paul Tonko with RTPI Communications & Public Programs Coordinator Jane Johnson,
MANY Board of Trustees and staff, Congressman Tonko receives the MANY Legislative
Leadership Award for his work to advance the cause of museums.