News
‘Foreboding’ takes home President’s Award at ‘Inspired: Arizona Artists Celebrate the Natural World’
(Sept. 8, 2023) - “Foreboding,” Anne Peyton’s painting of a Burrowing Owl, won the President's Award at the “INSPIRED: Arizona Artists Celebrate the Natural World” show in the new Wild Side Gallery at the Phoenix Zoo.
Artwork from more than 50 Arizona-based artists contributed to this showcase unique perspectives of wildlife, conservation and the natural world through a variety of mediums.
The President’s Award was selected by Bert Castro, President and CEO of the Arizona Center for Nature Conservation and the Phoenix Zoo, as his favorite representation for conservation of an Arizona native species.
The show is currently on display at the Wild Side Gallery on the zoo grounds (admission required) Thursdays-Sundays between 9 a.m.-1 p.m. through Jan. 28, 2024.
‘Out of the Blue’ selected for AFC International Exhibit of Nature in Art Show
(Sept. 15, 2023) - Anne Peyton’s original portrait of an Augur Buzzard, “Out of the Blue,” has been selected for the Artists For Conservation “14th Annual International Exhibit of Nature in Art.”
“The Augur Buzzard, an African hawk, spends much of its time soaring while looking for food,” Anne said. “When it sees potential prey it continues to soar while making a slow descent, at times hovering in place. When the buzzard thinks it has the advantage, the hunter will then tip forward and power dive "out of the blue" to make its kill. This remarkable hawk is also known to engage venomous snakes and monitor lizards on the ground, using its broad wings like a matador's cape to entice the snake to strike, then quickly grabbing the head with its talons.
“The decline is due to collisions with electrical infrastructure and cars, electrocutions, habitat fragmentation, habitat loss or deliberate, or incidental poisoning. All of these issues are things that can be fairly easily addressed with some effort.”
The AFC Show opens Sept. 21-24 at the VanDusen Botanical Gardens in Vancouver, British Columbia. The exhibit will travel to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson, Ariz., December 16, 2023 through March 3, 2024
‘Fixation’ selected for 2023 Birds in Art Exhibition
(September 6, 2023) - Anne Peyton’s “Fixation” has been selected for the prestigious Birds In Art 2023 juried show, which opens at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wis., on Sept. 6.
“‘Fixation’ has two meanings,” Peyton said. “First is the single-mindedness of a hunt on the hunt for food. When the bird sees potential prey, it will lock on the target until the time is right to pursue and strike. It knows if a person is nearby, but if you’re not threatening or you’re unaware the hawk is present then it may go after its prey.
“Second is the work that many nations and conservation groups are doing to preserve the ecosystems. Although white hawks are not threatened, they are losing habitat to agriculture and ranching. Habitat loss affects the forest flora and fauna. Many nations are using the charismatic white hawk as an “umbrella species” to protect the forests and and its biodiversity.”
Update: “Fixation” has been selected for the Birds In Art annual tour. Event stops include the Forest Preserve District of Will County, Plum Creek Nature Center, Joliet, Ill., Jan.–Feb., 2024; Newington-Cropsey Foundation, Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y., March–May; Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art, Shawnee, Okla., June–Aug.; and the Wichita Falls Museum of Art, Wichita Falls, Texas, Sept.–Dec., 2024.