The Blue Planet

THE BLUE PLANET
Waterscapes by artist Julio Valdez

at

ART in the Garden

Reeves-Reed Arboretum
165 Hobart Avenue
Summit, NJ 07901

Summit, NJ: ART in the Garden, Reeves-Reed Arboretum's eagerly anticipated annual garden party and fundraiser, is also the start of a four-month long art exhibition and installation at Wisner House Gallery and on the Arboretum grounds entitled THE BLUE PLANET, waterscapes by renowned artist and printmaker Julio Valdez, and featuring water-themed sculptures by ten additional artists.

Water is one of the most important substances on earth. It is our lifeline that bathes us and feeds us. In ancient cultures, water represented the very essence of life, and without water, all life forms will cease to exist. Painter, printmaker, teacher and mixed installation artist, Julio Valdez, has taken this motif to create some extraordinary paintings and unique works on paper, for the exhibition at Reeves-Reed Arboretum. Nothing is static to Valdez – everything flows or swirls, everything lives. Born in the Dominican Republic, which he identifies as an island, he emigrated to New York, another island, where his sense of the important role water plays in man's physical, spiritual and emotional life was further honed. He has presented twenty eight institutional and gallery solo exhibitions nationally and internationally, and has participated in over one hundred group shows, biennials and related educational programs in the visual arts.

THE BLUE PLANET will also showcase water-themed sculptures from ten featured installation artists whose works will be sited on the grounds of the Arboretum. Those artists include Sam Bogner, Cindy Booth, Carla Goldberg, Tom Holmes, Susan Manspeizer, Dave McNeil, Lori Merhige, Shelley Parriott, Herman Roggeman, and a special active water feature by Atlantis Water Gardens. All works are for sale and the participating artists will donate 30% of each purchase to the Arboretum.

THE BLUE PLANET opens with the Arboretum's annual fundraiser and gala, ART in the Garden, on Saturday, June 4. There will be a special meet-the-artists reception on Sunday, July 10, from 2 – 4 pm. THE BLUE PLANET continues through October 30th.

For additional information on ART in the Garden, THE BLUE PLANET, or other events and activities at Reeves-Reed Arboretum, log on to www.reeves-reedarboretum.org

About Reeves-Reed Arboretum: Celebrating over 40 years as an historic public garden, education resource, and non-profit conservancy, Reeves-Reed Arboretum engages, educates and enriches the public through horticulture and environmental education, and the care and utilization of the gardens and estate. Open 7 days a week from dawn till dusk, the Arboretum is listed on both the National and New Jersey State Historic Registers. Funding for RRA has been made possible in part by the NJ Historical Commission, a division of the Department of State, through a grant administered by the Union County Office of Cultural & Heritage Affairs, Dept. of Parks & Community Renewal.

Reeves-Reed Arboretum - A place to grow....for everyone!