Exhibit: “Up Close” By Marian Berger

When:
July 9, 2016 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
2016-07-09T09:00:00-10:00
2016-07-09T17:00:00-10:00
Where:
Volcano Art Center Gallery
Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, HI 96718
USA
Cost:
Free, although Park entrance fees may apply
Contact:
808.967.7565
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'I'iwi upcloseArt For A Cause! UP Close By Marian Berger

April 30th-July 17th

Opening Reception Saturday, April 30th 5-7pm

Volcano Art Center Gallery is proud to announce the return of Marian Berger’s paintings in the upcoming exhibition titled Up Close. Featuring ten, dramatic watercolor portraits of Hawai‘i’s native birds in double elephant folio size with proceeds benefiting the San Diego Zoo Global, Hawaiian Endangered Bird Conservation Program, this is an exhibition not to miss.  On display at the Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, 9am to 5 pm daily, the exhibition is free to the public though park entrance fees apply. The opening reception with Marian is on Saturday, April 30th from 5 -7 pm.

Born in Limerick, Ireland, the daughter of a meteorologist, Marian spent her early childhood on Wake Island and in Alaska where she acquired her father’s love of science, her mother’s artistic bent, and her parents’ mutual love of the outdoors.  “I assumed that art was a natural part of life, a way that everyone expressed themselves,” she says.

During her teens, Marian focused on abstracts until she took a class at Humboldt State University in representational drawing which “opened my eyes,” as she puts it.  After graduating from Humboldt with a degree in wildlife management, Marian moved to the Big Island in 1976.

Palila upcloseMarian had her first one-woman show at Volcano Art Center Gallery and has had several since.  In 1987, she created a series of paintings of Hawai‘i’s endangered birds and plants for the Aston Kaua‘i Resort.  An edition of 2000 prints was published, and proceeds from the sales were given to the Hawai‘i Nature Conservancy.  In 1988, she painted a number of watercolors presented to U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye and U.S. Representative Daniel Akaka for their contributions in preserving Hawai‘i’s native wildlife.  In 2009 and 2010 she won top honors for her entries in the Hawaii Nei shows.  In 2006 she was commissioned to do a series of Audubon style paintings titled Living Endemic Birds of Hawai‘i which she completed in 2011.

Following the success of that exhibition both in Hawai‘i and on the U.S. mainland, and the awareness and financial support the effort provided to Hawai‘i’s endangered bird recovery programs (millions of impressions and more than $300,000), Cliff Hague and Marian Berger began discussing a follow up project to continue the momentum.  Marian’s stunning watercolor closeup of an I’iwi inspired them to consider a series of similar portraits of Hawai‘i’s iconic native birds.  This led directly to the concept for the Up Close collection, which then took Marian more than three years to complete.

Please enjoy the beauty and inspiration of these remarkable paintings.  A significant percentage of the sales of the limited edition giclées of both Up Close and the Living Endemic Birds of Hawai‘i supports the endangered bird recovery programs on Hawai‘i.  And 100% of the sales of the originals of the Up Close collection goes to support San Diego Zoo Global’s roll in the re-introduction of the Hawaiian ‘Alalā this fall, as well as the Volcano Art Center’s public programs.

Up Close is supported in part by the Hawai‘i State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, through appropriations from the Legislature of the State of Hawai‘i.

1 thought on “Exhibit: “Up Close” By Marian Berger”

  1. Please tell Marian I love her !
    I am moving back to Hawaii next year May 2017 after being gone for 20 years. I would love to hear from her and to be in touch.
    This is the 1st site I went to after deciding that I need to be near my hanai family in Mt View. I remembered the dance classes I took in the 80’s with Cathy and was hoping to find yoga and I found Marian instead. No coincidences.
    Aloha,
    Donna

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