Trish Beckjord, program manager of the Fox River Initiative of the Conservation Foundation, discusses the Art of the Fox project at the Kiwanis Club of Aurora Tuesday at the Prisco Center in Aurora. The Art of the Fox project features paintings by Joel Sheesley, a Professor Emeritus of Art at Wheaton College. He joined The Conservation Foundation’s Fox River Initiative as an artist-in-residence for the Art of the Fox program. The goal of the Fox River Initiative is for Sheesley’s paintings to instill in residents a love and respect for the Fox River ecosystem and the many values: Cultural, social, economic and ecological, that it provides. In 2014, Sheesley spent a year painting the landscapes of the Lincoln Marsh Natural Area in Wheaton, which The Conservation Foundation helped preserve. His artwork was the inspiration for Art of the Fox. His commitment to landscape painting grows out of his love of nature, art, the outdoors, and painting. More information is available at Artofthefox.org.
Jason Crane/The Voice