Artist in residence at Cunningham Falls State Park will host workshops
Sep. 11—Art has been part of the history of national parks since the 1860s when Hudson River School painters captured the majestic Western landscapes that became our first iconic national parks. Their awe-inspiring works spurred Americans to preserve those lands for future generations. Artist George Catlin, during an 1832 trip to the Dakotas, was perhaps the first to suggest the idea of a national park. Catlin traveled extensively and noted that Indian civilization, wildlife and the wilderness were in danger unless they could be preserved "by some great protecting policy of government ... in a magnificent park ... a Nation's Park, containing man and beast, in all the wild[ness] and freshness of their nature's beauty!"
Today, there are artist in residence programs in more than 50 National Park Service units, which preserve the connection between arts and the parks. Catoctin Forest Alliance manages the local artist in residence program jointly with Catoctin Mountain Park and Cunningham Falls State Park.
Cindy Stockton Moore is the current Catoctin Forest Alliance artist in residence at Cunningham Falls State Park, from Sept. 10 to 24. She is a Philadelphia based artist who works with locally foraged, aqueous media to create multimedia animations, works on paper and site-specific installations. Moore's experimental, often collaborative, videos screen in festivals and exhibitions nationwide and abroad.
