Lew is a very talented & dedicated artist working in both photography & paint in a unique way. However, his talent seems to only be equaled by his passion for our nation's rivers & the preservation of them. In fact, Lew has dedicated himself to the rivers & wetlands by raising awareness of them through his work. "Two Rivers-Two Lands: An American Passage" is an ongoing work of Lew's for almost twenty years, in which time he has been photographing & painting rivers across America.
Now, I know that any fly angler who's reading this probably doesn't need to be told about the importance of clean streams & rivers. Our sport is dependent on healthy waters & we know that all too well. However, you don't need to be an environmentalist to enjoy Lew's work - which is the point: He believes that by bringing these beautiful resources of nature to our attention, we might just decide to take better care of them. Boy, what a job he does of that!! Lew's art truly is amazing to look at & shows just how beautiful our rivers are.
For the last 17 years, photographer and painter Lew Wilson has worked on
his series Two Rivers-Two Lands: An American Passage mostly through the
medium of photography, in color and black and white. He hand-painted many
of the images, linking his previous extensive work as an abstractionist landscape painter with his love affair with photographing America's rivers. Through-out his career, Lew Wilson has believed in the power of art to reconnect Americans to the wonders of nature and to foster a more passionate guardianship of our ecological legacy.
Although photography reveals details about its subject which most people think of as the "truth," in reality the data the lens provides does not become truth until the human hand, guided by craft and spirit, reveals the essence of the scene. Consciousness and conscience must work on raw perception before it can become meaningful. Wilson's brand of fusion, evident in his hand-painted photographs, also reflects the interaction between nature and civilization in the rivers he has made the subject of his art. For though he is a committed environmentalist, Wilson, as a career artist and Vietnam era veteran understands that the greatest challenge for conservation is to integrate positively the presence and collaboration of human residence, industry, and commerce in the natural world. That is why America's rivers have offered Wilson a unique perspective on this
guiding theme.
Wilson, noted also for his contemporary paintings that hang in numerous national and international collections, now brings his life's epic experiences to the last of his series journeys, to take place during 2014 and focusing on rivers of the Oregon Trail in Wyoming and neighboring states. These new works in contemporary, one-of-kind, minimal plein-aire watercolors will evidence Wilson's return to pure painting, reflecting in his art the cycles of life, including those of water whose journey across landscape, sea, cloud, and precipitation enables the life of man and nature.
Wilson exhibits and displays his artworks through national non-profit programs and various organs of the press. This allows him personal visits to speak directly to the public in his mission to enhance awareness of how we can sustain our ecological legacy without abandoning progress. Indeed, not just the subject of his art, but the way Wilson has pursued and fused different media, reflect his conviction.
The very way he signs his art, speaks volumes: "With kindest regards, Rivers Have A Message for a Good Earth."
Lew is truly a dedicated person who has put his art & talents to good use for all of us. Thanks Lew!!