Glacier National Park/Pixabay.

Glacier National Park welcomes artist Amory Abbott from June 3 to June 28 as the park’s first Artist-in-Residence for 2019. 

Abbott specializes in charcoal landscapes, and will create new works in the park as well as engage with the public through outreach programs. Other artists scheduled to participate in this year’s Artist-in-Residence in the park are Chad Farnes (July 8-Aug. 2), and Nic Fischer (Aug. 26-Sept. 20). For more information, see the park’s website. 

The Artist-in-Residence program offers professional artists the opportunity to pursue their artistic discipline while surrounded by the park’s inspiring landscape. Free public programs and workshops will focus on each artist’s experience in the park and may include demonstrations, talks, exploratory walks, or performances. Digital images of selected works produced during each artist’s stay may later appear in park publications, websites, and presentations for education and outreach.  

Abbott’s charcoal landscapes are imaginative and dramatic reinterpretations of the world around us. By combining local history, regional folklore, and global ecological concerns, Amory uses his unique and fantastical style to explore how the deeper experience of place can inform our relationship with the land. 

In his artist statement, Abbott writes, “Through solemn and immense environments, I attempt to re-envision Romantic sublime landscape art by exploring the conceptually ‘dark’ commonalities between charcoal, post-human ecology, and chthonic imagination. To me, the deep, mysterious corners of the world are places imbued with wonder, isolation, and ancient magic....”

Abbott earned his bachelor of fine arts at Indiana University’s Herron School of Art and Design, and his master of fine arts at Pacific Northwest College of Art in Portland, Oregon. He teaches illustration at Emily Carr University of Art & Design in Vancouver, British Columbia. 

People can learn more about Abbott’s work on his website. 

While in Glacier, Abbott will offer three public programs: 

• Meet and Greet the Artist, June 7, 7:00-8:00 pm, Montana House, Apgar Village - Abbott will share his artistic background, process and plans for his time here in Glacier. 
• Youth Drawing Workshop, June 19, 1:00-4:00 pm, Hockaday Museum of Art, Kalispell - Abbott will lead a youth drawing workshop using local folklore as inspiration for developing imagination and a deeper connection with nature. 
• Many Glacier Charcoal Technique Workshop, last week of June (date and time to be announced), Many Glacier Hotel, Many Glacier - Abbott will teach more about his methods while inviting guests to create their own works of charcoal art. 

These presentations are free and open to the public. Please RSVP for these events with the Glacier National Park Volunteer Office at [email protected] or 406-888-7034.