The Nature Conservancy of Texas

Images of Nature Conservancy preserves in the Lone Star State to be featured beginning May 12 at William Campbell Contemporary Art.

William Campbell Contemporary Art will feature a collection of photographs beginning in May that documents the response of a variety of acclaimed Texas photographers to some of the most wild and beautiful places in the state - places that are being conserved for future generations by The Nature Conservancy of Texas.

"The Last Great Places of Texas: Photographs from The Nature Conservancy's Texas Preserves," opening Saturday, May 12, illustrates the importance of conserving the natural world through the works of 14 celebrated Texas photographers.

"The Nature Conservancy works to protect natural habitat for wildlife and people in Texas and around the world, a goal that is both aesthetically and pragmatically valuable," said Carter Smith, Texas State Director for The Nature Conservancy. "This collection of photographs perfectly conveys the intrinsic value of wild and natural places in the great variety of ways the artists articulate their response to nature."

The works originated as a collaboration between Blue Star Contemporary Art Center in San Antonio and The Nature Conservancy, and were exhibited at the Blue Star in September and October 2005. Curated by Bill FitzGibbons, Executive Director of Blue Star Contemporary Art Center, "The Last Great Places of Texas" comprises works by distinguished Texas photographers Ron Binks, Dan Borris, Melanie Rush Davis, Penny De Los Santos, Margarita Caraballo-Hough, Rick Hunter, George O. Jackson, Jr., Jim Keller, Larry Leissner, Vincent Mariano, Neil Maurer, Bob Maxham, Michael Nye and Trish Simonite, and explores the rich and complex splendor of the Lone Star State's remaining wild places.

The Conservancy invited the artists to visit the organization's nature preserves and conservation projects throughout Texas to document their personal and creative interpretations.

The photographs will remain on sale at William Campbell Contemporary Art through June 23, with a portion of sale proceeds benefiting The Nature Conservancy of Texas and Blue Star Contemporary Art Center.

The works represented in "The Last Great Places of Texas" run a wide gamut of styles and locations. From the rich coastal ecology of Mad Island Marsh Preserve on Matagorda Bay to the stark, desolate splendor of the Davis Mountains in Far West Texas, these "last great places" are vividly rendered by some of Texas' finest photographers.

Pristine plants, native wildlife and even common household objects are all used to draw viewers into the artists' imaginations. Neil Maurer presents an austere composition of a drinking glass filled with smooth river stones partially submerged in a lazy section of Barton Creek at Barton Creek Habitat Preserve in Austin. In Bob Maxham's startling photograph at the Eckert James River Bat Cave Preserve, the first of millions of bats take flight from their cave for their nocturnal hunt.

William Campbell Contemporary Art is located at 4935 Byers Ave. in Fort Worth; (817) 737-9566. Hours of operation are 10 - 5 Tuesday-Friday, 11 - 4 Saturdays, and by appointment.

The Nature Conservancy is an international, nonprofit organization that preserves plants, animals and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive. To date, the Conservancy and its nearly 1 million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped protect more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. In the Lone Star State, The Nature Conservancy of Texas owns 34 nature preserves and conservation projects and manages another 61 projects through voluntary land-preservation agreements with landowners, The Nature Conservancy of Texas protects 250,000 acres of wild lands and, with partners, has conserved close to a million acres for wildlife habitat across the state. Visit The Nature Conservancy of Texas on the Web at nature.org/texas.