Every child is naturally curious about nature.
I watch a young boy enjoying a quiet moment at a ponds edge and I see his delighted smile as he finds a water snail. He calls his mother to tell her and I see her turn away without showing any interest. The young boy leaves the pond in disappointment.
That mother was once a curious young girl…
Adults and children alike need to observe the beauty in nature and to interact with it if there is to be any chance of them being interested in wanting to preserve it. As a wildlife artist I am very conscious of this.
It is a problem today in all cultures as we turn inwards focusing on our televisions, computers and smart phones. We miss the light catching a leaf, or the sparkle of raindrops on a birds back.
I recently spent a long time in Oman, Arabia. A wonderful land of contrasts. Lush tropical palm oases and rugged moonscape mountains jutting into clear blue skies, clean fresh mountain pools and intensely hot, sandy desert. Pristine coral reefs teeming with fish and dry rocky wadis. And the nature is complemented by a rich culture and a warm and friendly people.
In Oman, my sketchbook and paints are constantly in use as I try to capture the stark beauty around me. However, in this barren land it is rare to see much wildlife. Most of Arabia’s wildlife is endangered, especially mammals like Leopard, Oryx and Wolf. There are big governmental conservation programmes in place, but the general population knows relatively little about it. Most Omanis now live in cities or towns. As the modernisation progresses, rural way of life is changing and the general population begin to move away from nature. If the new generations don’t interact with nature, their natural curiosity to observe it will eventually be lost and thereby their desire to preserve it.
Historically, wildlife art has not been part of Arabian culture, calligraphy being the traditional art form in the region. There is however a growing enthusiasm for representational art developing in Oman. When I experienced the talent and determination of some young Omani Artists first hand, I realised that it might be possible to introduce wildlife as a genre in Arabia. In close collaboration with Director Maryam Al Zadjali of the Omani Society of Fine Art and the Environmental Society of Oman, I therefore founded Oman Wild Art, an internationally juried wildlife art exhibition for Omani Artists.
The exhibition was announced country-wide and artists from all over Oman submitted a large amount of work. Jurors were flown in from the UK including the Director of Nature in Art Museum, Simon Trapnell.
Oman Wild Art 2012 was launched by its Honorary Patron, the American Ambassador to Oman Richard J. Schmierer and the first exhibition of Oman wildlife by Omani artists thus came to its hugely successful Grand Opening at the Cultural Club in Muscat in May 2012.
The first Oman Wildlife Artist of the Year 2012 was awarded to the young artist Salim al Salami who is now himself running workshops for children painting wildlife. The children will observe nature through art and become familiar with their environment and may even care enough to want to preserve it. Maybe one day, they will smile in delight when their own children happily share the find of a water snail, a butterfly, a funny stone or a shell…
So a seed has been planted.
Observation is the first step to preservation.
Image Credits
All Images Are © Julie Askew
Julie Askew Artist Bio
Julie Askew has been painting, exhibiting, lecturing and teaching all around the globe for over 20 years. She is a Signature and Board Member of the Society of Animal Artists.
With a BA(HON) is Scientific Illustration, her background in anatomy and research coupled with her constant travels to all parts of the world, gives Julie a deep understanding of her subjects and the different habitats in which they live and an inside knowledge of the light and atmosphere of our diverse planet.
Field sketching and Plein-air painting is the all-important foundation for Julie’s painting, she only paints what she has seen for herself. Filling sketchbooks whilst on the move surrounded by her subjects and habitats, helps to bring back a sense of place when working in the studio. Julie works predominantly in Acrylic on Canvas.
As Founder of ‘Oman Wild Art’ Julie has brought Wildlife Art to Arabia for the first time. An Internationally juried exhibition for Omani Artists, Oman Wild Art links art and conservation, a new concept in the region.
Julie is proud to be an ‘Artist Ambassadors Against Poaching’ one of nine International artists invited to Tanzania by the African Wildlife Trust, to create and participate in, ongoing projects highlighting the plight of elephant and rhino in the poaching crisis.
A hardback book ‘A Voyage Round the World in Paintings – the art of Julie Askew’ was published by New Holland Publishers of London in 2008 ( Sold out from publisher )
Julie has work in many prominent collections and private collections including: The Nature in Art Museum, UK, The Royal house of Oman, the Chatham Museum British Army, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
Website/Blogs: Oman Wild Art & Julie Askew – Wildlife Artist & Landscape Painter
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Julie…..you are the epitome of what the soul of a Wildlife Artist should be & truly an inspiration to those of us who believe as you & are striving to add their voice through their work. To wake up the populace to the precious treasures embodied within each country’s unique wildlife species & habitats. That it is they….not humans who maintain the health of our planet. Hopefully enough children will see & learn at an early age to work much more cohesively & faster to correct the horrendous mistakes mankind has made & is still stubbornly making despite the loud outcries for change. That their children’s children will not one day, wake up to a barren & desolate world but to the vast riches of a world where ‘Nature’ & ‘Wildlife’ are honored for their special properties….their unique & sentient intelligence. that fuels such a magnificently rich & renewing circle of life.