(PRINCETON, NJ) -- D&R Greenway Land Trust has reopened its Marie L. Matthews Art Gallery at its Johnson Education Center in Princeton with the aptly named exhibit "Recovery" in partnership with the Garden State Watercolor Society. This river-focused 51st Annual Juried Exhibition will be available for reserved timed viewings from August 11 through October 17, 2021. Along with the juried exhibit, in the lobby of the Johnson Education Center, visitors will be greeted with the Garden State Watercolor Society's 3rd Annual Art Installation of over 100 mini-paintings illustrating aspects of the Delaware River, displayed among river stones.
Opportunities to experience the exhibit include in person viewings by appointment only, made by calling 609 558-0207. Reserved timed entries will be available three days a week through the run of the show, with monthly Saturday hours. Visitors will be invited to follow CDC guidelines when they enter the Johnson Education Center to view the exhibit, with masks and social distancing. Entries will be timed so that each visitor and their guests remain separated from others viewing the exhibit. Events had been on hold for over a year and this will be the first returning indoor gallery exhibit.
Garden State Watercolor Society’s “Recovery” portrays the wild landscape, recreation, birds, fish, flora and fauna of the Delaware River with creative imagination. Artists illustrate the natural beauty we all love. The art works showcase what “Recovery” signifies to each of us, in representational or abstract ways.
“This exhibit celebrates what we at D&R Greenway have learned over the past year and a half, that nature heals and helps us recover from isolation and trauma,” shares Linda Mead, D&R Greenway’s CEO and President. “Our founding mission to preserve water quality by saving land along our region’s waterways is reflected in the focus on the Delaware River.” The river is a comeback success story, with progress made in cleaning up the river celebrated in 2020 when American Rivers named the Delaware the “American River of the Year”. The river landscape has long been a place of reflection and beauty for area residents and artists.
Tess Fields, GSWS President declares, “I was delighted when the D&R Greenway Land Trust challenged us with the theme of the Delaware River and its recovery. I grew up on the Delaware and have a great respect and fondness for it. Each season on the river holds its own particular beauty. It can be calm and serene, or, after a storm, it can be dangerous and threatening. GSWS Artists embraced the theme and created a wide variety of wonderful art. I hope that people will come to view the exhibit at D&R Greenway’s Johnson Education Center. GSWS is thrilled to be hanging its first exhibit in two years!”
This special 2021 “Recovery” exhibit by the Garden State Watercolor Society, hosted by D&R Greenway, recognizes the importance of the preservation of water that supplies 15 million people. Wildlife and vegetation benefit from stewardship of the Delaware River and its adjacent land and natural resources in local communities like Lambertville and Bordentown, and in cities that include Trenton, Camden and Philadelphia, PA and Wilmington, DE. The Delaware River’s waters have become a critical resource and connection for people, providing inspiration, safe passage and restorative recreation and meditation. The Delaware remains the longest free-flowing river in the eastern U.S., with the most extensive National Wild and Scenic River protection of any watershed in the country.
Featured as the gateway to the exhibit is the Garden State Watercolor Society’s 3rd Annual Art Installation, a distinctive mini-art representation of aspects of the Delaware River with over a hundred 5”x7” paintings created by GSWS artists. Challenged to paint using only cool colors of blue, green and purple, the collaborative exhibit shows the imaginative creativity of the artists. The installation art celebrates the Delaware River: clean water, return of wildlife and source of scenic landscapes and interaction of nature and people. This installation exhibit follows the previous challenges of “Head and Shoulders” art installation in 2019--in which portraits were done in primary colors of red, yellow and blue only, and “Beautiful Creatures” in 2020--using secondary colors: orange, green and purple, and showing: animals, birds and insects. Both were well-received; this installation is expected to draw much interest as well.
The community is invited to call 609-558-0207 to make a reservation to visit the free installation and exhibit, in person. Artist entry and prizes were juried by Tim Saternow, a Signature Member of the American Watercolor Society whose watercolor paintings explore the lost and forgotten areas on the edges of the urban scene. Art is available for sale. A percentage of each purchase will support D&R Greenway’s mission of preserving and caring for land and inspiring a conservation ethic, now and forever.
An in-person Reception and Awards Ceremony will take place on Friday, September 10 at the Johnson Education Center, outdoors. For more information and to reserve a space, visit www.gswcs.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.
D&R Greenway Land Trust, an accredited nonprofit, has reached a milestone of over 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 the location for this exhibit. It is located at One Preservation Place in Princeton, New Jersey.
IMAGES: (TOP) Cottage on Lewis Island by Carol Sanzalone (MIDDLE) I’Mmm Back! by Jill Crouch (BOTTOM) Portrait of an Eastern Box Turtle by James Fiorentino
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