Art & Ecology: Threatened Species of the Otways

The exhibit Art & Ecology: Threatened Species of the Otways is currently showing in the Nature Gallery of the Conservation Ecology Centre. This exhibit celebrates some of the most rare and fragile inhabitants of the Otways through art. All proceeds of the exhibit go to conservation in the Otways. At the heart of the exhibition you will find a diversity of quality art genres; we feature street art, screen prints, contemporary works, and much more.

Art and Ecology have always cross- fertilized; artistic illustration has been used as a tool for ecological research from the very beginnings of science. The natural world has been an inspiration for art from the first drawings on caves around the world to the present day. Yet, this natural world is under threat; our planet is now in the midst of its sixth mass extinction of plants and animals. More than 40 animals and plants living in the Otways are threatened.

However, there is something we can do. ‘ART & ECOLOGY’  will benefit the ‘Threatened Species Research Network’; a  program led by the Conservation Ecology Centre, which identifies and investigates critical knowledge gaps to chart clear courses for conservation of threatened animals. This network does not just  benefit from the money raised by the exhibition’s sales, but also  from the community’s shared knowledge and  awareness . Curator Karlijn Sas explains: “Ten years ago the Spotted Tiger Quoll was thought to be extinct in the Otways, but due to an attentive individual who reported a sighting, and later confirmation when a quoll was caught on a Parks Victoria camera trap, we now know they are still here.”

On this first edition of ‘ART & ECOLOGY’, we have more than 25 artists exhibiting their works. The exhibit includes a range of media; photography, screenprint, mixed media, sculptures, music, performance, and much more. The common theme throughout the exhibition is the threatened species of the Otways that inspired it.

For more information please visit www.artecology.info