The Lower Sugar River Watershed Association (LSRWA) is pleased to announce an open call for artwork for our fourth annual juried art and science exhibition, fundraiser, and membership event entitled Seasons of the Sugar River—catching the light: cultural edges and transitional spaces. It will be held from January 27 – March 24, 2017 at the Monroe Arts Center at 1315 11th St, Monroe, WI 53566. The opening reception will be held on Friday, February 3rd from 5-7pm at the Monroe Arts Center. The reception will be a chance to meet the artists, see educational and science displays that highlight issues facing the health of the watershed and partake in excellent food and beverage offerings donated by local restaurants.
This exhibition seeks to showcase the scenic landscapes of the Sugar River Watershed from the headwaters region in western Dane County to the lower basin where the river converges with the Pecatonica River in Northern Illinois. A popular feature of the exhibition is the array of science exhibits geared for children and adults that explore and illustrate the geography of our watershed and the role of our natural and cultural landscapes in influencing water quality. (See map of the Sugar River Watershed here.)
With this year's theme — catching the light: cultural edges and transitional spaces—we invite artists to explore the cultural and ecological edges and transitional spaces on our watershed landscape, where field or pasture meet woods, or stream meets wetland, or road meets prairie. These are the edges and transitions that our eye sees regularly on our patchwork landscape, where nature and our cultivated and developed spaces meet and sort themselves out as hard and soft edges. These are the transitions dramatized by light and shadow, and where we often attempt to mitigate and buffer the impact that our developed world has on our natural world.
Through the artistic expression of local and regional artists, we hope to share more broadly the mission of our organization to foster awareness, sense of place, and stewardship of the natural assets of our watershed community. With the support and participation of the Monroe Art Center and our artists, the work of LSRWA will continue to bring people together who love the Sugar River Valley and the rich, productive landscapes of Southern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois that surround the river and its tributary streams, all of which form our watershed and connect us to each other and to the land. We believe the health and abundance of natural assets of our watershed—the deep agricultural soils, the forest, prairie, wetland, and aquatic habitats that support an abundance and diversity of wildlife, and our surface and groundwater resources—are integral to a robust regional economy and culture, and are necessary to sustain our lives. We believe that these assets will benefit from our collective stewardship, now and into the future.
The Seasons of the Sugar River Exhibition is sponsored through a partnership between LSRWA, the Monroe Art Center, and supported by contributions from local food purveyors and merchants.
The Seasons of the Sugar River—catching the light: cultural edges and transitional spaces Call for Art and Artist Entry form are available elsewhere on our website.