Tucson teen takes top honors in statewide nature photo contest

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A 15-year-old Tucson girl has won the statewide “Adventures in Nature” Photo Contest with her shot of a snowy scene in the Catalina Mountains.

Arianna DuPont took home the $5,000 top prize for capturing the tranquil beauty of a “Rare March snow in Sabino Creek,” which was selected over more than 300 other photos from almost 200 teenage photographers.

“I’ve always been so drawn to capturing the beauty of our surroundings, and I’m so fortunate to live in such a beautiful city (and an) amazing state, where we have all these beautiful things to capture,” DuPont said in a written statement, after celebrating the award with her family and her photography teacher, Amy Haskell, at the Gregory School.

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Malia Means, 16, of Phoenix, took second place — and $2,000 — for a photo of the Superstition Mountains called “Towering Rocks Peeking Through Low Clouds.”

Corbin Rouette, 18, of Tucson, captured third place — and $1,000 — for a striking black-and-white image of “Saguaros Watching the Clouds.”






Corbin Rouette, 18, of Tucson won third prize in the statewide “Adventures in Nature” Photo Contest with this picture called “Saguaros Watching the Clouds.”




The 10th annual contest was put on by Arizona Highways magazine, The Nature Conservancy and Cox Communications.

“Our mission at Arizona Highways is to get people off the couch,” said Robert Stieve, the magazine’s editor. “We’ve been a proud co-sponsor of this photo contest for many years because it goes to the heart of what we’re trying to do.”

The judges for this year’s contest were Arizona Highways photo editor Jeff Kida, Phoenix-based professional photographers Suzanne Mathia and Mark Skalny, former Arizona Daily Star photo editor Rick Wiley and acclaimed photographer John Schaefer, who previously served as president of the University of Arizona.

Seven participants earned honorable mentions and $250 each. They are: Gibson Gallares for “Golden Hour with Bird Taking Flight,” Grace Shepard for “Fog Floating Through the Valley Alongside the Peak of Mt. Lemmon,” Faiza Tasnim for “Horseshoe Bend During a Semi-Cloudy Day,” last year’s first-place winner Kaden VanDuyne for “Sycamore Falls Evening,” Tobey Yamashita for “Portrait of a Red Fox,” and Aidan Yu for two entries, “Natural Elements of the Salt River” and “The Great Roadrunner.”

“Photography provides a purpose for these kids — it makes them think about what they’re seeing and experiencing,” Stieve said. “And even if their photos don’t finish in the Top 10, they’re already winners for having had the experience of being outside.”

Winning photographs from this year’s contest are expected to be featured in Arizona Highways and in promotional materials for future contests.

The water is running high in Sabino Creek in the Sabino Canyon Recreation Area. Snowmelt from the upper reaches of the Santa Catalinas has the creek flowing over the bridges along Sabino Canyon Road. Video Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star

Kelly Presnell



Contact reporter Henry Brean at [email protected] or 573-4283. On Twitter: @RefriedBrean



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Nature’s beauty, protection inspires ‘Made in NY’ artists

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AUBURN — Many of artists featured in “Made in NY 2023,” which opens March 25 at the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn, have been inspired by nature.

For some, such as Maureen Church, of Rochester, the goal with her piece “Erie Canal at Dusk” is to capture the beauty around them.

“These paintings are part of a series based on my recent plein air landscape works,” Church said in her artist’s statement. “I use rich colors and wild brushwork to represent the beauty I see in nature.”

Other artists focus on a particular aspect of nature. Henry J. Drexler, of Norwich, still lives near the dairy farm where he grew up. His artwork “Bovine Madness XXXV” begins with images of cows that he manipulates to eliminate depth.

“Whether painted in black and white or fanciful hues, I strive for playful, abstract works of bovine madness,” he said.

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Artist Joyce Hertzson, of Pittsford, actually uses bits of nature in creating her artwork “After the (F)fall,” printing leaves and branches on rag paper.

“The finished print is always full of surprises,” she said in her artist’s statement. “Even using the same set of elements and process, I am never guaranteed the same outcome.”

Other artists use their creations to warn of humans’ abuse of nature. Saranac Lake artist Barry Lobdell’s photograph “Chevron Sky” was taken Nov. 6, when the temperature reached 70 degrees.

“Not a normal temperature for Saranac Lake in November,” he said.

While the weather made for a beautiful photo, he asked: “Is this beauty only skin deep, hiding within it the danger which is inherent in our unnaturally warming planet?”

Bill Hastings, of Ithaca, is a naturalist and gardener who is acutely aware of humans’ impact on nature.

“Every action has an impact,” he said. So with his piece “Sway,” he does his part to reduce, reuse and recycle by “utilizing a ubiquitous material that seems unavoidable in contemporary culture: plastics.”

Concern for the environment led Cyndy Barbone, of Greenwich, to alter her art-making material for her work “Our Rights Are Protected in New York State.” Conscious of the growing water crisis, she decided to stop dyeing her yarn.

“I have replaced color with white or natural by using varying thicknesses of linen to explore how transparency and density in weave structure can convey images, thereby eliminating the vast amount of water used in dyeing,” she said in her artist’s statement. “The illusion of light in the resulting work is a powerful metaphor for the human spirit.”

A total of 320 artists submitted 480 entries for this year’s “Made in NY” exhibition. Jurors Gary Sczerbaniewicz, Theda Sandiford and Kevin Larmon selected 81 pieces from 79 artists for the show, which will run Saturday, March 25, through Sunday, May 28, at the Schweinfurth. The free opening reception will be 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday, and prize winners will be announced at 6 p.m.

Cayuga County-area artists in the show include Mnetha Warren, of Aurora (“Wonder Bread,” 2022), Denise Moody, of Skaneateles (“Her Trunk,” 2023) and Donalee Wesley, of Marcellus (“The Revelation,” 2023).

The exhibition is funded, in part, by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

The exhibition will open along with two others at the Auburn gallery: “Triggered, Truth & Transformation” exhibition by New Jersey artist Theda Sandiford and “Positive, Negative, Shallow, and Deep,” by Oswego artist Tyrone Johnson-Neuland. (Editor’s note: Each exhibition will be featured in an upcoming edition of The Citizen’s entertainment guide, Go, and on auburnpub.com.)

Maria Welych is marketing director for the Schweinfurth Art Center in Auburn, a multi-arts center that opened in 1981 thanks to a bequest from Auburn-born architect Julius Schweinfurth. The center’s programs include more than a dozen exhibitions each year and educational programs for children and adults, which feature local, national and international artists. For more information, call (315) 255-1553 or visit schweinfurthartcenter.org.

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A Walk through the Cypress: December showcases a gallery of gifts | Arts and Theatre

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The welcoming sights and sounds of the holidays can be found at the corner of H and Cypress. Along with the towering city Christmas tree and the gazebo decorated with lights, is the Cypress Gallery, full of gifts.

Our artists have created a myriad of little jewels for you to choose from this month. Hand-crafted objects of personal adornment glitter in their cases, luscious little paintings and glassware glisten on the walls and pedestals.

A Christmas tree is hung with ornaments made by creators. And a smiling yellow moon, crafted from a wooden bowl by Linda Gooch, adds a most welcome dose of whimsy and good cheer.

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