FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Arthur Pearson, CEO
Telephone: 773-844-1022
Email: apearson@rtpi.org
Website: https://rtpi.org/
ROGER TORY PETERSON INSTITUTE OPENS EXHIBITION OF AWARD-WINNING NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY
Exhibition Features Winners of NANPA Environmental Impact Award
Jamestown, NY –RTPI announces the opening of Knowing Where to Stand, the first-ever exhibition of all current and past award-winning Environmental Impact Award-winning photography projects, awarded by the North American Nature Photography Association.
An opening night celebration for the exhibition is scheduled for Friday, August 8, from 5:30 to 8 pm. In addition to lite bites, beverages and live music, the evening will feature a brief program by RTPI’s CEO, Arthur Pearson, and the exhibition Curator, Rachael Kosinski. The exhibition runs through March 2026.
The exhibition also marks a reunion between RTPI and NANPA. In addition to his worldwide fame as artist and author of the Peterson Field Guide to Birds, Roger Tory Peterson was an accomplished nature photographer. In the early 1990s, he invited 100 fellow nature photographers to RTPI to discuss the future of nature photography. That meeting sparked the founding of the North American Nature Photography Association in 1994.
“We are thrilled to be reunited with NANPA,” said Pearson. “Their Environmental Impact Award is a powerful affirmation that Art Matters to the Planet.”
The title of the upcoming exhibition, Knowing Where to Stand, takes its cue from renowned nature photographer, Ansel Adams, who famously quipped that “a good photograph is knowing where to stand.” The award-winning photographers featured in the exhibition at RTPI also know where they stand on the critical conservation challenges of our time.
Among the award winners who will be featured in the exhibition is James Balog, whose documentary film, “Chasing Ice,” has screened in more than 170 countries and is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Doc Award, which celebrates films that have made the greatest impact on society. Other featured winners include Daniel J. Cox (Arctic Documentary Project), Tom Blagden (The Grand Canyon), Krista Schlyer (The Borderlands Project), Clay Bolt (Protecting North America’s Native Bees), Michael Forsberg, “Platte Basin Time Lapse), Carlton Ward, Jr., Mallory Dimmit and Joe Guthrie, (Florida Wildlife Corridor), Nial Benvie and Clay Bolt (Meet your Neighbors.)
The exhibition will feature, too, the 2025 Environmental Impact Award winner, Amy Gulick for “The Salmon Way: An Alaska State of Mind.”
“I’m honored to receive the Environmental Impact Award,” Gulick recently shared. “I’m grateful to all and for the opportunity to continue to make the case for Life on Earth.”
The exhibition also affords the opportunity for RTPI to reunite with its former chief executive, Twan Leenders. In addition to authoring his own field guide for the reptiles and amphibians of Costa Rica, Leenders is an accomplished nature photographer, whose work features prominently as part “Meet Your Neighbors,” one of the Environmental Impact Award-winning projects. Some of Leenders’ photos will be featured in the exhibition, as well. Leenders also plans to conduct a photography program during the run of the exhibition.
The exhibition is sponsored by the Nature Photography Foundation (formerly the NANPA Foundation.)
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Home to the largest collection of Peterson’s original artwork, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute is the living embodiment of the Peterson Field Guide. Through art exhibitions and programs, RTPI illuminates the beauty of nature, challenges us to confront the critical conservation challenges of our time, and inspires us to preserve the earth’s biodiversity. For more information, visit https://rtpi.org/.
The North American Nature Photography Association promotes the art and science of nature photography as a medium of communication, nature appreciation, and environmental protection. NANPA provides information, education, inspiration, and opportunity for all persons interested in nature photography. NANPA also fosters excellence and ethical conduct in all aspect of our endeavors and especially encourages responsible photography in the wild. For more information, visit https://nanpa.org/.
Supporting Conservation and Education through Photography, the mission of the Nature Photography Foundation is to raise funds and provide resources to advance awareness and appreciation of nature through photography. Our vision is to support education, conservation, photographic opportunities, advocacy, and ethical practices in nature photography. For more information: https://www.naturephotographyfoundation.org/.
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