Mount Whitney National
Park
by Rob Alan Martin
GUIDING THE FATE OF AN AMERICAN LANDSCAPE
In the late 1860's, a unique concept began taking shape
in America’s burgeoning West: A network of public
lands to be held in trust for all future generations.
By 1872, this progressive idea had become the foundation
of the National Park System. Collectors that are interested
in this period often do not realize the role that artists
played in this political landmark. Painters like Thomas
Moran and Albert Bierstadt journeyed deep into the back
country of these mythical places with two objectives:
to capture these landscapes upon canvas and to inspire
a nation. These paintings of a once unknown America shaped
the destiny of our country’s appreciation for the
environment and have become some of the most collected
icons of the Western landscape.
THE GRAND VIEW wants to recreate that spirit.
Stefan Baumann, plein air painter and host of PBS’s
The Grand View, is uniting artists to create a national
exhibit that embodies one of the most amazing regions
in America: Mount Whitney and the Alabama Hills. The MOUNT
WHITNEY INSPIRED exhibit will be the introduction of this
National Park campaign, and will include the works of
painters, poets, photographers and filmmakers. The exhibit
will tour American cities in the drive to set aside the
region as Mount Whitney National Park.
“This is an opportunity for collectors to acquire
art that embodies a mission and represents a piece of
American history... this [Mount Whitney Inspired] exhibit
will be collected 100 years from now as one of the pivotal
exhibitions of the early 21st century.” Baumann
states, “We are reaching out to all individuals
who are interested in nature and art. Not since the effort
to designate Yellowstone [as a national park] have artists
been given a greater voice in such a grand endeavor. I
can’t imagine a more inspiring icon to focus our
efforts upon than the largest mountain in the lower 48
states. Our work and our voices will move a nation.”
The exhibit will be a breathing collection and will travel
throughout America; works will be added and released until
the show reaches its final destination of Washington DC.
The call is to artists of all disciplines. All works will
be inspired by the Eastern Sierras including Mount Whitney,
the Alabama Hills, and their collective history. Works
will include plein air, studio, and abstract painting,
poetry, film and photography, and music composition. The
exhibit will feature fifty painters and fifty artists
of other disciplines.
“Most Americans do not realize how many times they
have experienced the Alabama Hills” says Rob Alan
Martin, Producer/Director of The Grand View. “Hollywood
has used this dynamic landscape in hundreds of films including
High Sierra, How The West Was Won, and The Lone Ranger.
In painter and film terms, the region is aesthetically
brilliant, phenomenal for composition and contrasting
color temperature. We want the exhibit to include film
because of the important impact the industry has had upon
the land.”
All proceeds from the final auction will benefit Mount
Whitney National Park.
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