“PORTRAITS OF PRESERVATION”: Watercolor paintings by award-winning artist James Fiorentino will be featured at D&R Greenway Land Trust December 6 through February 28. The show highlights the landscapes and wildlife found on the acres and properties permanently preserved by D&R Greenway since its founding 30 years ago.

D&R Greenway Land Trust continues the celebration of its 30th year with a new, traveling exhibit, “Portraits of Preservation,” based on watercolor paintings by award-winning artist James Fiorentino. The exhibit highlights the landscapes and wildlife found on 20,865 acres and 308 properties permanently preserved by the D&R Greenway since its founding three decades ago.

The exhibit will launch on December 6 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. with an opening reception featuring an artist talk and special guests. The exhibit will remain on display at the Johnson Education Center weekdays through February 28, after which it will travel to other locations throughout Central New Jersey and surrounding states.

Consisting of nearly 30 works of art, the exhibit will allow visitors to tour preserved lands of the D&R Greenway through the eyes of an artist, and discover wildlife that can be found inhabiting these green spaces. Among the lands featured in the exhibit are Greenway Meadows in Princeton, St. Michael’s Farm Preserve in Hopewell, the Abbott Marshlands in Bordentown, Capitol City Farm in Trenton, Steel Gap Preserve in Bridgewater, Goat Hill Overlook in Lambertville, and the Sourland Mountain Preserve, which spans several area towns.

Among the wildlife species portrayed will be bear, fox, wood frogs, eagles, hummingbirds, monarch butterflies, and bees who depend on the habitats protected by D&R Greenway for their survival. With current numbers of bird species declining, “the preservation of these places is more important now than ever,” says Fiorentino.

“We are incredibly fortunate to have a renowned artist like James Fiorentino help us celebrate the beauty of the lands and wildlife that the D&R Greenway Land Trust has preserved,” said CEO Linda Mead. “The public will enjoy seeing the art and learning the stories of these special lands at the exhibit. In our 30th year, this is an opportunity to raise awareness about not only what we have accomplished, but also about what there still remains to do.”

Visitors can take some of the beauty home, since originals and reproductions of the art will be available for purchase, with all proceeds to benefit the preservation of future lands.

“My family has made its home in Central Jersey in large part because of the beauty that surrounds us here,” said Fiorentino. “I’m proud to be associated with D&R Greenway as a member of the board, and now as an artist helping to celebrate the fact that these beautiful places will be protected forever.”

The exhibit, including the opening reception, is free and open to the public. The second stop for this traveling exhibit will be at Studio 7 Fine Art Gallery in Bernardsville.

The Johnson Education Center, a circa-1900 restored barn at One Preservation Place, Princeton, is D&R Greenway’s home. For more information, visit www.drgreenway.org.