Jacksonville, AL – In Paint Rock, art intersects with nature, conservation, and scientific discovery. Eighteen Alabama artists offer their vision of the forested Paint Rock Valley—a place of extraordinary beauty, biodiversity, and significance for the future of North America’s forests, grasslands, and streams.
By Drawing Knowledge from Nature, the exhibition emphasizes the importance of developing a deep understanding of the natural world from multiple perspectives. In this spirit, each artist visited The Nature Conservancy’s Sharp-Bingham Mountain Preserve and engaged with pioneering research supported by the Paint Rock Forest Research Center. Their works interpret those experiences through diverse artistic practices, inviting curiosity, ecological insight, and reflection. Artists became scientific explorers; scientists became artists.
Participating artists include Kendra Abbott, John Abbott, Patrice Anderson, Douglas Baulos, Elaine Booth, Shay Clanton, Doug Clark, Mary Dunn, Sarah Ellis, Beth Finch, Jamey Grimes, Leah Hamel, Bryce Lafferty, Allison McElroy, Celeste Amparo Pfau, Sakora Smeby, John Simmons, and Morgan Worsham.
The exhibition is supported by the Paint Rock Forest Research Center, the Department of Art + Design at Jacksonville State University, and the Alabama State Council on the Arts.
An opening reception will be held on Thursday, August 28, from 5–7 p.m. at Manners Gallery in Hammond Hall. Guests can enjoy gallery talks by the artists and light refreshments.
Earlier that day, from 4–5 p.m. at the Howle Auditorium in Merrill Hall, Bill Finch will serve as guest speaker. Finch is the founding director of the Paint Rock Forest Research Center and a passionate voice for nature and conservation in Alabama. His vision for Paint Rock, shaped in part by his friendship with biologist E.O. Wilson, integrates groundbreaking science with perspectives from the humanities—inviting artists, writers, and thinkers into ecological inquiry.
Finch is the author of Longleaf: As Far as the Eye Can See, a collaboration with photographer Beth Finch that captures the beauty and complexity of one of the world’s most biodiverse ecosystems. His career also includes serving as environmental reporter and editor for the Mobile Press, executive director of the Mobile Botanical Gardens, and conservation director for the Alabama Chapter of The Nature Conservancy.
Organizers invite the community to join Finch’s presentation and explore the exhibition, which highlights the intersections of art, science, and conservation.
Learn more about the exhibition at JSU’s Art Blog and about the Paint Rock Forest Research Center at paintrock.org.
