The Animal Kingdom comes to life in the Feathers, Fins, and Fur exhibit May 6-June 21, 2025.
Featured artists Ray Easton and Jason Tennant, as well as local exhibiting artists will share their appreciation for all earth’s creatures in this show.
Ray Easton’s paintings combine a majestic draftsmanship with the observational powers of a seasoned naturalist. Light, composition, and anatomy are the three most important elements in his work. Easton says, “The mere innocence of the natural world is perhaps its greatest attribute, like the simplest stroke of the earth’s most divine masterpiece.”
Jason Tennant’s sculptures are carved from a variety of native woods, and along with his paintings depict animals native to North American woodlands and waters. He spends time at his remote Finger Lakes cabin– foraging for the wood of rare American Chestnut trees which he uses in his sculptures. Tennant notes “these works are a celebration of nature’s resilience to human stresses and my interpretation of the essence of wildness.”
Join us for an opening reception to meet exhibiting artists and enjoy wine tasting, hors d’oeuvres and live entertainment by classical guitarist Mike Deall May 9th from 5-7pm.
Please bring a donation of canned or dry dog/cat food to support The Humane Society of Yates County.
Raymond Easton
Ray’s passion for the natural world is his inspiration behind every painting. Renowned nature artist Raymond J. Easton has many accolades to his name, from being the featured artist in several exhibitions throughout his career to the numerous commissions he has received from private and corporate entities. He has designed and created 20 conservation stamps for The National Audubon Society, and was the 1997 New York State duck stamp winner. He was also the winner of the National Duck Stamp Collector’s Society’s (NDSCS) 15th annual waterfowl stamp in 2023, and just recently won the Ohio duck stamp in 2024. Easton was also named “NYS Wildlife Artist of the Year” on four separate occasions between 1995-2001. His subject matter ranges from North American birds to local landscapes, and his preferred medium is oil or acrylic. Easton resides in upstate NY.
Jason Tennant
Jason works additively and subtractively with wood and paint. He incorporates plant, animal and human elements into his sculptures. Some of these works are simple gestural interpretations. Others develop into
allegories and metaphors, though sometimes incompletely. His inspiration is diverse. The past twenty five years has included his role as steward of a secluded wood lot with a pond, a mile and a half off-road. He forages mushrooms and wood for sculpture there. He visited this past Summer his ties with his youth, the 200 white pine trees he, his dad and brother planted back in 1972 on a family parcel. Previously he has lived in 1970’s industrial downriver Detroit, and inner city Detroit. Though it was a rich cultural experience, the experience with loud steel mills, pollution and blight was more dominant in his earlier work, it’s indelible mark is always there.
Jason has been sculpting and painting for over forty years. He has taught art at the secondary and post secondary levels, and has an MFA from the University of Buffalo. Currently, he is full time artist and adjunct associate professor at Monroe Community College. His work is in multiple national and international public and private collections.
