|
|
|
|
|
  |
 |
|
|
|
John Banovich
Over the years Banovich has worked with a variety of organizations, raising thousands of dollars for conservation and humanitarians causes. He hopes that his art will inspire us to protect our wildlife and ensuring its survival. He has also worked with several different world-wide organizations with a successful history of bringing the non-hunting conservation community and the sportsmen conservationists together for united efforts to save wildlife for future generations.
Recently John established the Banovich Wildlife Fund. "I am very excited to have created the Banovich Wildscape Fund, continuing my commitment to the wild places of the world. Funding will be made available for grass root environmental projects, education programs and often overlooked needs of small groups dedicated to performing the much needed work on the behalf of wildlife and the environment." John Banovich
Banovich Wildscape Nature Fund fosters cooperative efforts to conserve the earth`s wildlife and wild places to benefit the wildlife and the people that live there. BWF promotes scientific research and conservation education; facilitates habitat protection and restoration projects; develops creative and respectful partnerships to fund conservation programs; and creates opportunities to build long-term community economic well-being.
"I started Wildscape Nature Fund as a way to give something back to the world that has given so much to me. I believe there is nothing more important to future generations than wildlife and wild lands. It lifts our minds, replenishes our spirit and renews our passion for living."
Banovich is also partnering with the African Wildlife Foundation and Dr. Laurence Frank, Laikipia and Kilimanjaro project, to present The Lion P.R.I.D.E. Initiative. The initiative is aimed at saving lions by supporting important scientific research, preserving large conservation landscapes, and assisting local and long-term community development. They are working to reverse the decline in lion numbers by educating local people in rural Africa while decreasing the impact on livestock. Working with the African Wildlife Foundation, BWF is engaging in research activities focused on better understanding lion behavior and their interactions with people, as well as map the critical areas where conflict between the lions and livestock has occurred. The result of this research will allow us to develop comprehensive management plans, based on sound science, and initiate strategies to alleviate wildlife and human conflict. For more information on this specific initiative visit www.lionsforever.com .
John Banovich is among the best known wildlife artists in the United States, whose art is also appreciated by numerous international collectors. He specializes in large oil paintings of African game, but his subjects cover all continents of the globe. Banovich is talented, prolific and dedicated – both to his art and to preserving the wild places where the animals live.
In 1982, Banovich attended the University of Montana, intending to double major in zoology and art. However, when he discovered that abstraction was encouraged more than realism in his art classes, he left the school and moved to Seattle, Washington. He received a degree from the Art Institute of Seattle in graphic design in 1987.
In 1993, as a virtual unknown, his miniature oil painting of two lionesses won the "Best of the Show" in Seattle`s Pacific Rim Wildlife Art Show. After tremendous press coverage and signing with a publisher, he found the confidence to pursue art full-time, and embarked on a safari to the Okavango in Botswana where fell in love with Africa`s wildness.
"Africa moved me beyond words. I wanted to soak it up – every last drop – its enormous diversity, extreme beasts and ancient rhythms. It ignited a fire in my soul and I knew I would never be the same"
Banovich approaches his work like a film director arranging a set in order to express the emotion that underlies the surface appearances. "What`s most important is not what you put in, but what you leave out. To me less is more."
Instead of painting things, he paints the essence of things. Banovich has had the privilege of studying wildlife around the globe – often spending months each year in the world`s wildest places.
"Today we are living during an extraordinary time, poised between the old world and the new. The human and animal conflict is raging on and is now escalating to the point where the decisions we make today will seal the fate of wildlife for generations to come."
John Banovich is an award-winning member of the Society of Animal Artists and his work is published by Banovich Fine Art Editions. He currently lives and works outside of Livingston, Montana in the beautiful Paradise Valley, taking frequent trips into the wild.
View Web Site... |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
