National Lakeshore Presents Second Artist-in-Residence Program

Date: October 23, 2007
Contact: Lisa Myers, 231-326-5134

Superintendent Dusty Shultz is pleased to introduce the second Artist-in-Residence (AIR) of 2007 at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  Margaret Huddy, a watercolor artist from Alexandria, VA, is living in the Lakeshore for three weeks, immersing herself into the natural wonders of the dunes, forests, beaches and the varied cultural landscapes this national treasure provides.  She will also present a public program highlighting her work on Friday, October 26 at 2:00 p.m.

Huddy was selected from over 25 applicants.  With an innate sense of adventure, Margaret likes to travel around the world sketching and photographing the great sculptural monuments from Western Christianity, European and Jeffersonian neo-classicism to Asian religious sites and national parks.  She has spent many years as a "plein air" painter, during which time she absorbs the color and quality of light, where she paints small, quick watercolors of the local landscape that imprint the essence of the place in her brain so that upon her return to the studio she can recreate the emotion that she experienced.  In her studio, she then works on large scale paintings.  Says Huddy, “I feel I have an important duty to make people aware of the beauty of the world much like a traveler in the nineteenth century on an enlightening grand tour.”

On Friday, October 26 at 2:00 p.m., Ms. Huddy will present an informative program about her artwork and residency.  This one-hour presentation is free, open to the public, and will take place in the auditorium of the Philip Hart Visitor Center on Highway 72 in Empire.  Works of art by previous Artists-In-Residence are on display in the auditorium.

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has sponsored the AIR program for over a decade and it is open, through competition, to American writers, composers and visual artists, whose work can be influenced and enhanced by the outstanding features that are protected by the National Park Service and enjoyed by millions of visitors year after year.  In exchange for the opportunity to live in the park for a short period, Artists-in-Residence donate an original piece of art to the park, interact with visitors while conducting their craft, and offer at least one public presentation of their work in a formal setting.  There are only two sessions (September and October) available each year.  For more details, please call the park at 231-326-5134.