Conservation Society Inspires Through Art

At first glance, the Mills Grove Audubon Center may seem to be simply an historic site, first home of naturalist painter John James Audubon. But inside, it is a part of a massive national organization dedicated to preserving not only the memory of the artist, but the very environment he painted. And now that conservation is finally a popular topic, the Audubon Center is gaining momentum and reaching out to Montgomery County residents for support, before the infamous birds in Audubon’s paintings are all that’s left of Pennsylvania’s wildlife.

Last summer, The Audubon Center at Mills Grove received confirmation of its necessary presence in the area when the National Audubon Society analysis revealed threats from global warming and the disappearance of natural habitats and grasslands from suburban sprawl have reduced the population of America’s most common birds by nearly 80 percent. In Pennsylvania alone, the decline of golden-winged warbler, the eastern meadowlark and the wood thrush topped the list with a decline of 62 to 98 percent. The greater disappearance in Pennsylvania was marked by the loss of state’s family farms, which provided large open fields as well as healthy forests and wetlands, an ideal habitat for birds in the area.

To inspire an interest in conservation the center has rapidly taken reins in joining the artistic community by offering gallery space to local artists and inviting others to use their outdoor space. “We use the natural resources that are here, we have 175 acres of ground and we try and make it a living class room for families in the area as well as hundreds of school children,” says Jean Bochnowski, the center’s director.

In April, the center is planning its fourth annual juried art show themed “Drawn From Nature,” taken from a credit line on Audubon’s prints.  Inside the historic barn of a museum will be semi-professional and amateur work from local talent. Last year, the event gathered about 1,000 visitors. This spring the center is hoping for an even better turnout.

During such events, Bochnowski and her staff take time to create awareness for their conservation effort to save the state’s numerous birds that live or migrate to the area yearly. “It’s giving a public a place to look more closely a these wonderful wild creatures and in turn we hope they are so inspired, they will be doing more at home. It’s very important to us people don’t just see Mill Grove as just an art museum, this is a place where they can become engaged in conservation issues, activities and that’s the important thing to us,” says Bochnowski.

After John James Audubon arrived on American soil in 1803 and ended up at Mill Grove, he spent much of his time roaming the green hills and fields of Montgomery County sketching his surroundings. Eventually, Audubon grew proficient painting birds with a lifelike distinction beyond the accomplishments of anyone else and garnered notability with the publication of his work in Birds of America.  Later, Audubon’s interest and passion for wildlife and nature inspired a conservational organization named after him.

Today, the Audubon National Society works to protect America’s natural habitat, shedding light on its decline. The society’s mission is to restore natural ecosystems, with focus on birds and other wildlife, at each of its numerous locations throughout the states. The national network works within an existing community of nature centers and provides scientific and educational programs, which teach how to apply conservational methods to life.

In 2004, The National Audubon Society entered into a private-public partnership with Montgomery County and assumed management of the John James Audubon site, which also houses the largest collection of his work. The county maintains ownership of the land while the society was responsible for raising money for operating funds, which it has maintained through admissions, gift shop revenue and programs at the center, as well as generosity of individual contributors.

The museum and its grounds were renamed the John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove and the museum was to become a conservation hub of the community, as an attempt to save the 175 various species of birds and 400 species of plants that have been identified among the five miles of walking trails surrounding the museum.

The Audubon Center hopes its artistic ventures, such as the small gallery it recently unveiled which will feature the work of local artists during the summer, keep people coming to the museum and, by default, learning about conservation projects. “I think the public in general is much more attuned to conservation issues and they understand what many people have been talking about for generations. It really does impact their daily lives and they need to know what is causing global warming and what is the impact of it on their daily lives, what is the impact on the birds and other wildlife that we share the world with. Thankfully there is a huge interest particularly here in Montgomery County,” says Bochnowski.

In fact, Montgomery County residents voted overwhelmingly in support of the open space referendum and since 1993, the Montgomery County Planning commission has assisted in saving 5,600 acres and nearly 7,147 acres of farmland from development, while in 2003, the county allocated $150 million toward open space programs. Clearly there is an interest in the community to preserve undeveloped land and Audubon center is counting on it. “I think it is a good indicator that there are huge numbers of people who really care about this issue, and when you combine that with the fact that this property is perhaps, the most historic site as it relates to the conservation movement, certainly the birth place of the conservation movement, I think people just have a great renewed interest in what we have here,” concludes Bochnowski.

For more information visit pa.audubon.org.

Alina Makhnovetsky lives in Philadelphia.