A large crowd gathered Friday evening in Kadema Hall’s Witt Gallery to celebrate the first ever Earth-conscious art exhibit at Sacramento State, where artists submitted visual representations of the planet and its issues.

The closing reception for the exhibit, entitled “Art with the Earth in Mind,” honored 39 artists whose pieces were on display. The show featured work created by community artists, elementary school students, Sac State students and faculty, and Valley Sculpture Artists members.

Sponsored by Valley Sculpture Artists, the exhibit ran from April 14 to April 18 and was one of many events that Sac State is holding in observance of Earth Day, which was on Tuesday.

Since Earth Day was officially recognized in 1969, events have been going on nationally to support the cause. The purpose of Earth Day is to educate people about America’s wildlife and lands with emphasis on the ways people can conserve energy to preserve natural resources. The purpose of the “Art with the Earth in Mind” exhibit was to draw attention to the issues currently affecting our planet, including nature, global warming, overpopulation and the West Nile virus, which recently reached the West Coast.

Susanne Cole, a member of Sac State’s Renaissance Society – an organization for retired professionals to gather and study among their peers – heard about the show from a fellow member and was at the reception.

“I’ve never been to this gallery before, so I thought I’d stop by,” Cole said. “It looks very nice, with very diverse pieces and it is all beautifully displayed.”

The show’s curator and part-time Sac State faculty member, Sue Anne Foster, said the show was unique because the artists created their work to draw attention to our planet, and our need to take care of it.

“I hope the pieces stimulate interest and ideas,” Foster said. “It’s great because people can come together on a common expression, and you don’t always get that at other galleries.”

This is the first time that Sac State has hosted a gallery show for Earth Day, and Foster said she hopes it will spread more knowledge to the community about how important it is to sustain our Earth.

The show also featured work by second-grade students at Glenwood Elementary school, where Foster teaches art. The students have been learning line and shape in their art classes and are happy to know their pieces are on display, Foster said.

Members of the Creative Arts League of Sacramento – a non-profit organization that works to promote fine craft artists throughout Northern California – were also at the reception.

Member Dianne Mattar, an avid art collector and painter herself, was at the reception to see what was on display.

“It’s pretty exciting that so many people are involved in the show,” Mattar said. “The pieces are breathtaking; they all have very tactical messages.”

There were several pieces that conveyed those messages very directly, including a piece by community artist Gretchen Ryan. Her piece displayed a man standing up with one hand, hooked by chains to a CD. The man was made entirely of technological parts, including keys, nails and computer chips.

Entitled “Man Where Art thou Soul,” it was created to show that more and more people are tied to technology, such as cell phones, giving less time to relationships and inner growth.

Mattar credits her influence in the arts to her mentors Gretchen Ryan and Ann Bradley, who both had pieces on display for the exhibit.

Cathie Andrews, also a member of the Creative Arts League of Sacramento, had her work on display for the exhibit.

Entitled “Frog,” her piece was a whimsical representation of a toad and the underlying message she was trying to convey was that many of Earth’s animals are becoming endangered species, including frogs in some parts of the world.

“I hoped it would make a connection to somebody and they would realize that they are in danger and be endeared by it,” Andrews said.

One of the pieces submitted into the exhibit by Sac State student Chad McLean was not your typical piece of art.

A graduating government major, McLean said when he saw the flier for the exhibit, he knew he wanted to create a piece that would represent the Earth and how people are constantly consuming its resources.

Entitled “Going Green,” McLean’s piece consisted of a large patch of soil with grass. Next to the soil was an intravenous tube that was inserted into the center of the soil that slowly sustained it with water. The grass was thriving and growing green where the needle was inserted into the soil; on the outer edges of the soil where there was little to no contact with the sustaining water, the grass was brown and dying.

McLean explained that his piece showed the similarities between humans and Earth.

When someone is sick and sent to the hospital, doctor’s give them an IV tube. If the Earth is sick, we must take care of it in the same way, McLean said.

“It all represents sustainable agricultural technology,” McLean added. “We’ve had a lot of technological advancements from the Earth, and this piece shows us using some of that technology to give back just as much as we are taking.”

McLean said this was his first show exhibiting a piece of his art and his main goal was to incorporate his political ideas and give them a physical representation, while keeping it as simple as possible.

“I just want to get the message across,” McLean said. “A lot of people say it’s very literal and sparks a lot of conversations.”

Earth Day began in 1962 as an idea from U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson. Troubled by the fact that there were no discussions about the state of our environment, Nelson took it upon himself to make it an issue and draw people’s attention to it.

It took over six years before Nelson’s idea’s eventually became recognized. Earth Day was officially recognized in late 1969. During its first year in 1970, more than 20 million people participated.

For more information on the art exhibit, contact Foster at [email protected].

Isela Reyes can be reached at [email protected].