We would like to thank all who entered the 2015 Photo Contests hosted by Frogs Are Green! The photo entries came in from North America, South America, Australia, and Europe. We’d also like to thank this year’s judges: Florence Pape, Bea Rigsby-Kunz, Matt Ellerbeck, Irwin Qagmire Wart, and David Veljacic.
Winners of the 2015 Frogs Are Green Photo Contests
Winners: 2015 Backyard Frogs
1st Place: Cosmic Tree Frog in Brazil by Christian Spencer
2nd Place: Backyard friend by Kristin DeAngelis
3rd Place: Red frog in the back garden by Russ Barrow
Honorable Mention: Common Tree Frog by Uwe on Flickr.com
Dec.6, 2015
Text by LAN Lianchao
Video by LAN Lianchao & CHANG Zhuojin & SHI Xinyue & LIU Yuting
Hundreds of transparent boxes are piled up against the wall, with simulated wild environments. The residents of those cubical rooms have watched the day and night of the painting workshop, ARTTRA, for seven years.
The vivarium belongs to a painter, Herman Chan, 41, who has over 100 reptiles from about 50 species.
“Maybe you can not find a second painting workshop with so many reptiles in Hong Kong,” he says.
Chan’s pets attract people who learn painting in a way of improving their ability of observation. Reptile knowledge is a bonus for curious students.
Chan says he collects and breeds various species of reptiles on purpose. “I enjoy taking care of them technically,” he says.
The first reptile owned by Chan was a salamander when he was in the primary school. Since then he has never stopped.
Chan used to raise his reptiles at home, afraid of customers’ resistance against them. He says he hopes to stay with them more, not only the time after work.
Not until he took a chameleon to the studio did he find the charisma of his pets. Children are really into it and inspired to watch the detailed of the animal, Chan says.
Meanwhile Chan tells them chameleons change color due to the temperature, humidity or light, not the background colors thought by many people.
“The studio is a perfect combination of my hobby and job,” Chan adds. “It is an incubator for my reptiles and my painting.”
Chan Tsz Yin Andrea, 5 yrs old, Hong Kong, Arttra.
With the Frogs Are Green annual children’s art contest deadline approaching, you can see how engaged the young students are by learning about amphibians and reptiles, seeing them up close, and then expressing themselves through art. I’m thrilled that Herman’s students entered our annual contest!
It’s December and there are just 11 days left for children to enter the 2015 kids art contest, and all ages to enter the photo contest. As I watch artworks and photos trickle in, I’m wondering (as I did in 2013) why aren’t more people participating? (read >> The Young Environmental Artist)
I see a pattern here. The climate talks are on in Paris, but most are just talkers and not doers. It’s not enough to “like” and share pictures and articles on social media, and not actually do something to show you care.
My own Jersey City made me proud last year with close to 200 students from 17 schools submitting artworks. In addition, we received artworks from 17 states in the US and 32 countries around the world. The total last year was close to 1000 pieces of creative expression. It was marvelous! The winning artworks were celebrated online and in 3 well received exhibitions including an exhibition in Jersey City’s City Hall.
Jersey City is a culturally active area with a large artist community, and yet these same artists, many who have children, aren’t participating either. So, I’m back to wondering why it’s easier for me to reach parents and teachers in other countries and not those in my own area?
I’m asking you now… educators and parents to explain to the young why they should care about wildlife and the environment and I’ll continue to do my part to help amphibians and the environment too.
Thank you to the Jersey City teachers, students, park association leaders, frog art fans, Jersey City Cultural Affairs and the media who attended the opening reception for “Frogs and Their Threatened Environment” in the City Hall Rotunda on Wednesday, May 20th, 2015.
Thanks to Greg Brickey and Elizabeth Cain of Cultural Affairs for their support and displaying the artwork so beautifully. Thanks to Mayor Steven Fulop for caring about frogs and the environment.
It was so rewarding to meet the students whose work I had admired these past months.
JC1TV (Stan Eason) was there and recorded a video with me, Susan Newman, founder of Frogs Are Green, Inc., about the frog art show and the issues frogs face; Ann Marley, JCBOE Regional Art Manager talked about how together we coordinated the project and an amazing 17 schools responded with 150-200 works and the plans we have for this coming Fall. (The 6th Annual Kids Art Contest will open on September 1, details coming soon.) Included in the video will be interviews with the teachers and students who were there.
Below is gallery and video forthcoming.
Frogs Are Green showcases international student artworks in City Hall Rotunda, May 2015.
Mory Thomas of Washington Park Association attends Frogs Are Green's City Hall Rotunda opening.
JCBOE Art Regional Manager, Ann Marley at Frogs Are Green City Hall Opening Reception.
Jersey City Student Artist, Rachel Shneberg with her winning artwork in City Hall.
Jersey City student artist, Sarah Mongare with her winning artwork in City Hall.
Frogs Are Green opening reception in City Hall, May 2015
Laura Skolar, President of Pershing Field Garden Friends and Daniel Levin, Associate Publisher at Jersey City Independent at Frogs Are Green City Hall opening. Also pictured Greg Brickey, Jersey City Cultural Affairs.
Michael Markman, art teacher for JCBOE at Frogs Are Green City Hall opening.
Chris Styler, Chef, at Frogs Are Green City Hall Opening Reception.
International frog art by students ages 3-16 inside Jersey City's City Hall Rotunda May 2015.
The last few months have been very exciting. The international children’s frog art is taking over Jersey City! The next exhibition is up now inside Jersey City’s City Hall Rotunda. It will be up until May 30th and the opening reception is May 20, 2015 at 6-8 PM EST. (You can visit weekdays and weekends, just see the event page for the hours.)
I’m reaching out because I expect the city will send the video team (JC1TV) and they would love it if the students whose work is on the walls could be at the reception. So, if you are one of the students that entered and won, or you don’t live too far away, please join us on May 20th!
3rd Place Winner, Cynthia Cao, USA, Frogs Are Green Kids Art Contest, Best Environmental Art
The young artist’s family and friends step out the cab and walk into the gallery one by one, parents and children of different ages. They begin looking and move down the wall, admiring the variety of each artwork. The young artist turns and as she walks across the gallery I see a shy smile across her lips. Yes, she has spotted her own artwork and moves closer to see it. I ask her if I can take her photograph with her artwork and she agrees. Her family takes pictures also.
We have a conversation about whether she had a lesson in school about frogs and the environment before she did her artwork (statement) on pollution. She tells me that she did some research but just created this based on her own imagination.
It’s a wonderful and sometimes strange feeling when one sees their artwork hanging on a gallery wall. For an artist, it’s what we all dream of. Visibility and the opportunity to share what we think.
As we’re talking, I see the parents and the other children moving around the gallery discussing the other works and taking photographs that will hopefully be shared with the extended family and perhaps on social media.
The youngest of the children takes me around to show her favorite pictures and why. She’s about 4 years old and drawn to the cutest and friendliest of the pictures.
They all say how much they enjoyed the exhibition and will be sure to do more frog art next Fall.
During the afternoon parents and children come by to see the student artworks but some people walk through the gallery on their way to a separate destination and do not even look at the walls, as if there is nothing there.
This baffles me and makes me wonder if there are some artists who think only their art is what’s important. Isn’t being an artist about appreciating self-expression, both your own and others?
Do seasoned artists think that because they are at a certain level of success, a young artist’s vision is of no consequence? Aren’t their artworks worth a look?
I believe that every person has the right to be seen and heard.
Having an appreciation of the arts (in its various forms, from dance and opera, to fine art and yes student frog artwork too) means stepping out of your own little world of self-expression and seeing what others have to say too.
