Florida Museum exhibit features sandhill crane portraits

December 12, 2006

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Museum of Natural History will host “In the Open: Sandhill Crane Studies” by Gainesville artist Diane Farris beginning Dec. 14 and running through March 18. This 19-piece exhibit of photography montages is inspired by the sandhill crane, which appears across North America and in Gainesville during the winter months.

Farris also will meet with Florida Museum visitors during Museum Nights from 5 to 10 p.m. on Jan. 11. Farris works in photography and mixed media and has written and illustrated children’s books. Her pieces have been widely exhibited, published and collected, and also may be seen at Shands at UF, the UF Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Institute, and on her Web site, dianefarris.com.

“Sandhill cranes are such an integral part of our winter landscape — we see them on the prairies, we hear them circling overhead — and their stately beauty is always inspiring,” said Darcie MacMahon, Florida Museum assistant director in charge of exhibits. “Diane’s work honors their life story in a unique blending of art and natural history observation. These are the most beautiful sandhill crane portraits I’ve ever seen.”

Hosted by the Florida Museum and Harn Museum of Art, and funded by UF Student Government, Museum Nights is held most Thursday evenings while UF is in session. Check www.sg.ufl.edu/SpecialEvents/MuseumNights/ for a complete schedule.