Artist Talk by Local Artist Jill Reynolds, Sat Mar 5, 2011

Photo: "Gravity" by Jill Reynolds

Ms. Reynolds is a recipient of the Dutchess County Arts Council’s 2010 Individual Artist Fellowship. She will present an overview of contemporary artists whose work is inspired by science and nature, and will also talk about her own work.

Jill Reynolds received her MFA in Sculpture from Rutgers University in 1996. She has been an Artist-in-Residence at the MIT List Visual Art Center, the Tacoma Museum of Glass, Pilchuck Glass School, and Middlebury College, and an Artist Fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University. Reynolds has been on the faculty at Rhode Island School of Design, SUNY New Paltz, Pilchuck Glass School, and Penland School of Crafts, and been a visiting artist and lecturer at numerous institutions. Her awards include the Corning Museum of Glass Rakow Commission, a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Artist Grant, a Massachusetts Cultural Council Sculpture Fellowship, and a New Works Commission from the University of Washington Henry Art Gallery in Seattle. Jill Reynold’s work is featured in many public and private collections including the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, the Seattle Art Museum, the Corning Museum of Glass, the Carnegie Museum of Art, and the Microsoft Corporation.

While some people think that art and science are mutually exclusive methods of exploring the natural world, Reynolds sees art as a complimentary force to science. “Unlike Scientific discourse which is restricted to the generation of propositions that strive to accurately record the operations of natural phenomena,” says Reynolds, “Art is more concerned with aesthetic appreciation as a way of understanding and experiencing the world.” These artistic methods can be particularly effective at deepening human’s connection and dependence on the natural world, ideas that are not dissimilar to those held by 19th Century painters.

Following the talk, there will be a reception at Gallery on the Green in Pawling where you will also be able to speak with Reynolds and see work by other accomplished artists who are working in the region. The lecture is free but space is limited, so please make reservations by emailing info@artsmidhudson.org or call the Arts Council at 845-454-3222.

About Dutchess County Arts CouncilThe Dutchess County Arts Council, founded in 1964, is a non-profit arts service organization dedicated to strengthening and supporting artists and arts organizations in the Mid-Hudson Valley region. The mission of the Dutchess County Arts Council is to provide the leadership, funding, encouragement, and services necessary for the highest quality of art to thrive in our county and region, and for citizens to value the arts as an important part of daily life, economy, and social fabric of our communities.

Programs and activities include: grants to established organizations, community based projects and Arts in Education programs; folk arts research and presentation; technical assistance, professional development, and cultural community networking opportunities; awareness and advocacy; and community-wide fundraising efforts including the Dutchess County Art Fund. Programs are funded by the County of Dutchess, the New York State Council on the Arts, and private donors.

The Arts Council was voted one of the top Regional Arts Council by readers of Art Calendar Magazine, January 2009.

About Oblong Land ConservancyThe Oblong Land Conservancy, a land trust, is dedicated to the conservation of appropriate open space resources in the towns of Pawling, Dover and their environs. It encourages the conservation of our community’s ecological, agricultural, architectural, recreational, cultural, archaeological, scenic and historical resources by working with appropriate organizations and programs, and by providing educational resources to raise the public awareness of the need for conservation.

The Conservancy will, as appropriate, accept and maintain conservation easements, purchase or improve land for conservation and public access purposes, accept gifts of land to preserve or resell, and support the local government in the protection of recreational, scenic, or ecologically sensitive land. The Conservancy will work with individual landowners and developers to advise and assist them in utilizing suitable methods for conserving their land’s resources while seeking to optimize its economic value. The Conservancy believes in the importance of long range community planning and will advocate economically sound planned development through education and active cooperation with local government and community groups.

The Conservancy believes that the public should enjoy the benefits of conserved land to the fullest extent practical and possible. More information at www.oblongland.org

About Friends of the Great Swamp (FrOGS)

Friends of the Great Swamp is a community group comprised of concerned citizens, public agencies, and local businesses and organizations. Since 1990, it has been an active voice for protection of the functions, values and integrity of the Great Swamp. FrOGS is organized into three committees — scenic and research, education and tourism, and steering — all of which work together to collect and share information, promote education programs, encourage wise land-use decisions, and assist in watershed protection planning. The mission of the organization is to undertake activities “to conserve, protect, and promote the functions, values and integrity of the Great Swamp wetland and its watersheds in Putnam and Dutchess Counties, New York”.

The strength of FrOGS is the active, dedicated volunteers who organize and run the activities and events. More information at http://frogs-ny.org/AboutFrogs.shtml

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