Drawn to Yellowstone: The Role of Art in the Preservation of the American Landscape

Throughout history, art has served as an agent of change. In the 19th and 20th centuries, several artists played significant roles in efforts to preserve the wildness of the American landscape as it was being lost rapidly. The emerging conservation movement of the late 1900’s was strongly influenced by the inspiration and agency of artists such as Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Cole, and Frederic Edwin Church. Specifically, the story of the creation of Yellowstone, the world’s first national park, is inextricably rooted in the lives and works of several artists – most notably, William Henry Jackson and Thomas Moran. In his presentation, Robert Petty, MFA, Senior Director of Education, Yellowstone Forever, will explore the essential role that artists and their artwork have played in the preservation of the American landscape and wilderness, with a focus on Yellowstone National Park.

This event is co-sponsored by the CWRU Department of Bioethics and the Cleveland Museum of Art.