At the end of each October the Aldo Leopold Foundation concludes the visiting season at the Aldo Leopold Legacy Center northeast of Baraboo, Wis., with its Annual Art Discovery Day, Oct. 29, 2016. The Foundation invites different artists from the Midwest who find their inspiration for artwork from the land to highlight our connection to the natural world.
Aldo Leopold feared the spiritual danger of people becoming disconnected from the land that sustains us with food, fiber, heat and beauty. Art, its techniques and materials naturally create a deeper understanding of and respect for the land, strengthening our connection to it. Fall’s glory and the harvest is an ideal to explore this realm.
From 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Oct. 29 enjoy presentations, demonstrations and interactions with artists that will inspire you to think about your relationship with the land.
- Art will be for sale.
- Admission is free.
Reserve guest room HERE or call us at 608-355-9899.
Getting There
The Aldo Leopold Legacy Center is on Levee Rd., which is Rustic Road 49, a scenic 20 minutes through the Baraboo Hills from the Inn at Wawanissee Point bed and breakfast south of Baraboo.
The Center is an educational and interpretive facility in a renewable-energy-powered building by the Leopold family’s farm with the preserved Leopold Shack, which is listed on the National Register as Historic Places. Browse interpretive, photography and art exhibits with information about Aldo Leopold, the family legacy, the Foundation’s conservation work and the building’s features, one of the greenest in the world and the highest-scoring Leadership In Energy And Environmental Design (LEED®) Certification buildings in the United States. There is no fee to view the exhibits.
- New In 2016: wildlife artist Owen Gromme’s original and never-reproduced painting of a sandhill crane guarding her nest of eggs in a marsh on display. Owen’s son, Roy Gromme, and his wife, Susie, donated Roy’s piece, set from a scene at Roy’s farm, which was located near Aldo Leopold’s shack. Owen painted it as a gift for Roy.
“What we find so inspiring about this particular painting is that it documents the early days of the rebound in Wisconsin’s sandhill crane population, not to mention that the Shack location is in the distant background,” said Foundation executive director Buddy Huffaker.
Oct. 29 is the last day for a guided tour of the Leopold Shack, but self-guided tours of the Shack and the Center continue during winter visitation hours.
Year-round during visitation hours you may also hike the 2.5-mile upland interpretive trail network through 305 acres of oak savanna, wetlands and a dry prairie remnant overlooking the River, critical habitat for grassland birds and sandhill crane staging during migration. You’ll see cranes by the thousands at the end of October.
- Learn about crane congregation tours in our article .
The Center’s visitation hours are:
- Mid April–Oct. 29, 2016: Monday–Friday, 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., Saturday, 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
- Nov. 1–early April: Monday–Friday, 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
Plan your visit to the Aldo Leopold Center at www.aldoleopold.org.
Monitor the changing fall colors in the Baraboo Bluffs by visiting the Inn’s Live Web Cam at the bottom of our home page at www.bestviewinwisconsin.com.
Other Fall Art Exhibits Near The Inn
Oct. 7–29: Direction Art Exhibit by featured artist Nancy Peidelstein of Baraboo, at the Portage Center For The Arts Drury Gallery at 301 Cook St., Portage, 17 minutes from the Aldo Leopold Center, open Wednesday to Friday 1:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m., and Saturday 10:00 a.m.—3:00 p.m. Exhibit details about her paintings forthcoming at www.portagecenterforthearts.com.
Nov. 4–26: Mrs. Pemmett’s Whimsy & Amusements Art Exhibit by featured artist Joan Emmett at the Portage Center For The Arts Drury Gallery at 301 Cook St., Portage, 20 minutes from the Inn, open Wednesday to Friday 1:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m., and Saturday 10:00 a.m.—3:00 p.m. Opening reception Nov. 4. Details forthcoming at www.portagecenterforthearts.com.
Sept. 1–Dec. 5: Impressions Of Hamilton at the River Arts Center in the Sauk Prairie High School, Prairie du Sac, open school days 8:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m. The Hamilton Wood Type and Printing Museum in Two Rivers, Wis., was founded in 2000 and houses the largest collection of wood type in the world, more than 1.5 million pieces in more than 1,000 styles of wood type. This exhibit features several different styles of wood type blocks, specimen posters, antique and vintage poster and advertising blocks, unpublished proofs and more. Also featured are history from Giegerich’s Sons, a generational print shop in Prairie du Sac, Wis., prints from Madison College’s graphic-design program and Sauk Prairie student artwork. Admission is free. Details at www.riverartsinc.org.
Photograph courtesy of the Baraboo Range Preservation Association.
