Artist Gloria Betlem to Exhibit Inaugural Art Show at Genesee's New Lima Campus Center

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A photograph of Gloria Betlem’s “Snowy Owls in South Lima”

BATAVIA, NY (10/19/2009)(readMedia)-- Genesee Community College is pleased to announce Gloria Betlem's "The Birds" will be the inaugural art exhibit at the new Lima Campus Center. The exhibit will run October 29 through November 25 with an artist's opening reception on October 29 at 6:00 PM.

Gloria Betlem, MFA, is an award winning artist and teacher with over 30 years experience as a pastel artist. "The Birds" is a collection of pastel paintings of various species of birds. The paintings and accompanying text weave together images, personal stories, characteristics and indigenous symbolism for each species. Gloria Betlem is a resident of Livonia and has a studio in her backyard that displays her artwork as well as her husband's photography. Gloria's additional works can be viewed at www.gloriabetlem.com.

"The Birds" is a collection of paintings taken from avian encounters that hold personal meaning for Gloria, and each has accompanying text referring to her story. One piece, titled "Bald Eagles on Hemlock Lake 1965," is a painting that combines aspects of two different photographs of nests occupied by a pair of eagles. The eagles and their nest were found in 1965, high in a shagbark hickory tree, which was eventually toppled by Hurricane Agnes in 1972. Their new nest, built in 1973, was photographed and it proved to be the right home at the right time for the eagles' last successful natural hatch in New York State. The three eagles in the painting, a mother, father and hatchling, represent the last native eagle family in New York State born during the time period when DDT toxins were destroying the species ability to reproduce naturally in the environment.

"Showcasing my art is an opportunity for my work to be a voice for the environment," Gloria noted. "Each piece I have created has a story to tell and is accompanied by narrative, which I hope will help viewers enter into my experience, and perhaps think about their own encounters."

In January, Gloria will also present a solo exhibition in Florida titled "Wild Central Florida: The Preserved, The Restored and The Vanishing."

"Gloria's exhibit is a great way to celebrate the new campus center," Monica Mattioli, associate dean of Lima Campus Center said. "The exhibit space at the center is a new outlet for our local artists to showcase their incredible talents and to involve the local community in the college."

The Lima Campus Center exhibit runs October 29 through November 25 during normal campus hours. The new Lima Campus Center is located at 7285 Gale Road in Lima. For further information please contact the Lima Campus Center at 585-582-1226 or Gloria Betlem at 585-739-2124.

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