Exhibit Exemplifies Stewardship Through Art

“Plum River Pastoral” by Bonnita Budysz.

Robert Ray Gallery in Algoma is presenting Midsummer Magic: Paintings from Life, featuring work by artists, environmental activists, seasoned adventurers and spouses Bonnita Budysz and Robert Theaker.

Painting for preservation and in side-by-side creative camaraderie, they create art informed and propelled by their visionary Water Dance project, in which they paddle Wisconsin waterways by canoe and kayak, then stop to paint en plein air at the water’s edge. Both remote wild places and more familiar historical locations inspire their artistic choices, and they collaborate with communities, collectors, educators, poets and historians to further a “stewardship through art” ethic. 

An opening reception for Midsummer Magic: Paintings from Life will be held Aug. 5, 5-8 pm, as part of the First Friday Art in Algoma series, and Budysz will demonstrate her painting process Aug. 5, 1-3 pm, near the Ahnapee River.

Donations from the painting demonstration and a percentage of Water Dance painting sales will go to the Friends of Crescent Beach and the Glacial Lakes Conservancy – both organizations that champion water issues.