D&R Greenway, Garden St. Watercolor Society Announce Art Scavenger Hunt; Art Installation Outdoors Princeton

      

BEAUTIFUL CREATURES & IN THE WILD

The Garden State Watercolor Society’s (GSWS) 2^nd Annual Art Installation invites the public to participate in “a fun activity for all ages.” The Society has designed a unique, family-friendly scavenger hunt, with their “Beautiful Creatures” exhibit throughout the town of Princeton and Exhibit Scavenger Cards at Greenway Meadows park, surrounding D&R Greenway. Challenged by COVID limitations, these artists have conceived of this socially-distanced and engaging new way of viewing their 50^th Anniversary installation that is part of its “Out of the Wild” juried exhibit. In this family-friendly game, participants will enjoy the hunt for “Beautiful Creatures,” and Scavenger Cards outside, IN the ‘wild’.

Six special prize cards, depicting forests and meadows preserve locally by D&R Greenway Land Trust, can be found hidden at the land trust’s Johnson Education Center campus on Rosedale Road and in the surrounding Greenway Meadows park. D&R Greenway, a partner with GSWS for this celebration of art and nature, preserves and cares for land where real-life beautiful creatures make their homes in wild habitats.

Forty-three GSWS artists created 90 Beautiful Creatures paintings, limited to secondary colors of green, orange and purple. These 5x7-inch paintings were to have been displayed in the D&R Greenway galleries in the Johnson Education Center. Instead, the “Beautiful Creatures,”–as ninety numbered, laminated art cards--, have been placed throughout the town of Princeton and on the grounds surrounding D&R Greenway’s Johnson Education Center, for the public to “seek and find.” Participants are invited to follow safety guidelines and put on a mask, gather family members or travel as a single on a “Beautiful Creatures” safari to find these whimsical creations that are sure to bring a smile. All are encouraged to post their “findings” on Instagram, with the hashtag #gswsbc.

The Scavenger Hunt is open and available from Saturday, August 29 through Sunday, September 13, 2020. D&R Greenway’s Johnson Education Center is located at One Preservation Place, off Rosedale Road, in Princeton 08540. Greenway Meadows park can be accessed from the land trust’s parking lot or directly on Rosedale Road.

“We couldn’t let our Beautiful Creatures go unseen. We have created a delightful show on GSWS’s YouTube channel. For the first time in GSWS’s 50-year history, we will take to the streets!” explains Tess Fields, GSWS President. “I suggest you see the virtual Beautiful Creatures online show before you go out on the hunt. Make sure you have your sound on, to hear our Beautiful Creature’s songs.” 

“What could be more fun than discovering artists’ renderings of beautiful wild creatures while outdoors in nature, learning about wild wonders right in our own backyard,” enthuses Linda Mead, D&R Greenway President and CEO. “Everyone who submits entries will have the added benefit of learning from the prize cards about nearby trails rich in birds, butterflies and maybe even a fox or rabbit.”

Purchase of prints or original paintings may be arranged through D&R Greenway by contacting info@drgreenway.org. Purchases help to support D&R Greenway Land Trust’s active land preservation and habitat restoration.

“Every day, D&R Greenway receives notes from people, telling us how much our preserved lands mean during this challenging time,” says Linda Mead. “We increasingly steward our preserves—with new trails and for the sake of all native species who belong there. This art exhibition and its accompanying installation heighten awareness in visitors of all ages, of the urgency of keeping open space open, for humans and the wild creatures.” She adds that, “Since the beginning of 2020, despite COVID, D&R Greenway has added four more parcels of preserved land, surpassing 310 parcels preserved since our founding thirty-one years ago.”

Information about the scavenger hunt including maps, how to win one of six special prizes and how to purchase prints and original artwork is available at www.gswcs.com and at www.drgreenway.org.

Six prize cards have been hidden among the greenery of Greenway Meadow, surrounding D&R Greenway’s iconic 1900 barn. Find all six prize cards, featuring nearby Preserves. E-mail your name, address, phone number, prize card names and numbers and the locations where each card was found to info@drgreenway.org. The first six correct entries will receive a gift certificate to D&R Greenway’s Fall Native Plant sale; an environmentally-themed book of your choice; or a print of your favorite among GSWS’ 90 Beautiful Creatures. Prizes will be awarded on September 15.

D&R Greenway’s 1900 barn, the Johnson Education Center, is home to its art galleries in Princeton. The Center is currently closed to ensure health and safety in this time of COVID challenges. Visit www.drgreenway.org to learn about the land trust’s latest news and continuing virtual programs on preservation and art. D&R Greenway Land Trust, One Preservation Place, Princeton NJ 08540

The Garden State Watercolor Society was founded in 1970 by Dagmar Tribble, a noted watercolorist. Over its existence, GSWS has been a beacon whose award-winning artists have inspired generations. The nonprofit organization’s goal is to encourage painting in water media and provide educational and exhibition opportunities for artists and residents of NJ, PA, NY or DE. Please visit www.gswcs.com for updates. View works of Steve Zazenski, exhibit juror, at https://stevezazenski.com/artwork.

D&R Greenway Land Trust, an accredited nonprofit, is close to reaching a new milestone of 21,000 acres of land preserved since 1989. By preserving land for life and creating public trails, it gives everyone the opportunity to enjoy the great outdoors. The land trust’s preserved farms and community gardens provide local organic food for our neighbors—including those most in need. Through strategic land conservation and stewardship, D&R Greenway combats climate change, protects birds and wildlife, and ensures clean drinking water for future generations. D&R Greenway's mission is centered in connecting land with people from all walks of life. 

D&R Greenway Land Trust and Garden State Watercolor Society Announce Virtual Art Exhibit and Scavenger Hunt

Garden State Watercolor Society (GSWS) partners with D&R Greenway Land Trust to mount a wildlife-focused 50th Anniversary Juried Exhibition online 

OUT OF THE WILD

WHEN: August 4 through September 30, 2020. 

A virtual Awards Ceremony will include a special new award on occasion of GSWS’ 50^th Anniversary, the D&R Greenway James Fiorentino Nature Art Award. Opportunities to experience the exhibit include a virtual gallery, a virtual talk with featured artists, and a fun family-friendly scavenger hunt. (Left: It Takes Two by Cynthia Smith)

Art has depicted our place in the world since prehistoric man imprinted hand-prints and animals on cave walls. Now, as then, art is an important tool for sharing our observations and feelings. Current virus restrictions add to our collective cabin-fever and need for connection. This exhibit celebrates the natural world with a sense of urgency to save it from loosened regulations and increasing environmental concerns. It recognizes the value found in the lands of D&R Greenway that have become a critical connection for people, for inspiration and restorative meditation.

Garden State Watercolor’s exhibit Out of the Wild portrays human relationships with the wild landscape, flora and fauna with creative imagination. Artists illustrate natural beauty, as well as the disconnect felt when civilization and nature are out of balance. Whether the trauma of suburban or industrial encroachment or the restorative bliss of land reclaimed to wildflower meadows, this deeply contemplative exhibit will showcase what Out of the Wild signifies to each of us. This exhibit was juried by Steve Zazenski, AWS, who is known for his colorful landscapes depicting coastal New England, Europe and the Caribbean. Art is available for sale online, with part of each purchase a donation to support D&R Greenway’s charitable mission of preserving and caring for land, and inspiring a conservation ethic.

“It has been difficult not to come together in person for this important 50^th Anniversary milestone exhibit,” shares Tess Fields, GSWS’s President. “But we have risen to the challenge and are proud to present our Juried Exhibit virtually for the first time. We are very excited to put out, quite literally, the 

‘Beautiful Creatures’ Scavenger Hunt later in August. These little creatures are sure to engage and delight.”  Speaking of the partnership with D&R Greenway that began at its Johnson Education Center art gallery, she continues, “I want to thank Linda Mead and her wonderful staff for working with us on these projects. I think we make a great team!" (Above: Batsto Lake by Richard Hoffman)

“Every day, D&R Greenway receives notes from people who tell us how much our preserved lands mean to them during this challenging time,” says Linda Mead, D&R Greenway President and CEO. 

“Getting outdoors and looking at art are both activities that calm our mind and provide respite in an uncertain world. Combining those with the unique opportunity to discover art in our community with a scavenger hunt is my favorite aspect of this exhibit.”

Featured in the outdoor scavenger hunt is the second annual mini-art exhibit “Beautiful Creatures” that includes ninety 5”x7” images of earth’s creatures created by 47 artists. Artists were challenged to paint using only secondary colors of orange, green and purple. This special exhibit follows the popular 2019 challenge that focused on primary colors of red, yellow and blue. The community is invited to wear a mask to seek and find this year’s “Beautiful Creatures” as laminated art placed throughout the town of Princeton and at D&R Greenway’s Johnson Education Center campus that includes Greenway Meadows on Rosedale Road. This unique and fun way to learn fascinating facts and enjoy depictions of wild creatures provides an educational activity for school-age children and a socially-distanced outdoor excursion for art and wildlife lovers of all ages.  (Right: Still Waiting by John Wolff)

Start and end dates for the scavenger hunt, along with special instructions and clues, can be found on the organizations’ websites at www.gswcs.com and www.drgreenway.org.

D&R Greenway Land Trust and Garden State Watercolor Society Announce “WILD ART” Virtual Happy Hour with Juror and Prized Artists

Dorris Ettlinger, Eaglets

GSWS 50th Anniversary Virtual Exhibition: Out of the Wild

WHEN: Wednesday, August 26, from 5 until 6 p.m. 

WHERE: via Zoom
ADMISSION: free
rsvp@drgreenway.org

 

D&R Greenway’s virtual happy hours are quickly becoming a popular, healthy way to engage with communities of like-minded new and old friends via Zoom. 

The Garden State Watercolor Society (GSWS) and D&R Greenway Land Trust invite the public to this celebration involving GSWS’ juror and top award winners from Out of the Wild, their 50th Anniversary virtual juried exhibition. Discover which wild settings and what interactions with wild creatures inspired the chosen winners of the exhibit’s top prizes. Be present for the first presentation of the land trust’s new D&R Greenway James Fiorentino Nature Award that evening.

 

GSWS President Tess Fields will discuss the role of art in 21-st-Century Conservation, and address art in the time of COVID. D&R Greenway CEO & President Linda Mead will moderate the nature-focused discussions. She will speak about how the land trust’s management of their preserves uses conservation data to ensure protection of wild creatures. Internationally renowned artist and D&R Greenway Trustee James Fiorentino will speak of bird-watching and bird-banding expeditions with Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey and the Raptor Trust, which inspire his action paintings of New Jersey animals including threatened and endangered species. 

Recovery by James Fiorentino

The watercolors of Out of the Wild were selected by Steve Zazenski, renowned for his own award-winning landscapes. Zazenski will share insights on his process of jurying a show, which intrigues both artists and non-artists. Exhibit prize-winners who will co-create this insightful conversation include Joan Capaldo, Doris Ettlinger and Richard Hoffman. 

 

“Our virtual happy hours are fun ways, in their brief format, to learn about places and people who care about the conservation of land in our region, in our state,” says Linda Mead. “Now that the virtual has become the norm, D&R Greenway is increasing the conservation community through opportunities that prove pleasant, informative, and restorative at the end of complex days. We are told that our happy hours catalyze interesting dinner conversations!”

 

GSWS President Tess Fields looks forward to hearing of the prize-winning artists’ inner realities as they worked on Out of the Wild.  "I always find it interesting to hear stories about how artists create. Feelings, atmosphere and technique combine to produce fresh, sometimes unexpected, results that speak to a specific time and place. This happy hour with our friends at D&R Greenway and their audience will allow artists to connect newly during this time of seclusion."

 

At any hour of any day or night, GSWS’ vivid array of Out of the Wild's intense nature art may be enjoyed, indoors or out, with piano accompaniment, through September 30. http://www.drgreenway.org.

The Garden State Watercolor Society was founded in 1969 by Dagmar Tribble, a noted watercolorist. Over its existence, GSWS has been a beacon whose award-winning artists have inspired generations. The nonprofit organization’s goal is to encourage painting in water media and provide educational and exhibition opportunities for artists and residents of NJ, PA, NY or DE. Please visit www.gswcs.com for updates. View works of Steve Zazenski, exhibit juror, at https://stevezazenski.com/artwork.

D&R Greenway Land Trust, an accredited nonprofit, is close to reaching a new milestone of 21,000 acres of land preserved since 1989. By preserving land for life and creating public trails, it gives everyone the opportunity to enjoy the great outdoors. The land trust’s preserved farms and community gardens provide local organic food for our neighbors—including those most in need. Through strategic land conservation and stewardship, D&R Greenway combats climate change, protects birds and wildlife, and ensures clean drinking water for future generations. D&R Greenway's mission is centered in connecting land with people from all walks of life. 

 

D&R Greenway’s Johnson Education Center, home to its art galleries in Princeton, is currently closed to ensure health and safety due to COVID. Visit www.drgeenway.org to learn about the organization’s latest news and virtual programs. D&R Greenway Land Trust, One Preservation Place, Princeton NJ 08540