Greenwich’s Bruce Museum has an exhibition running Sept 5, 2024 through Feb 9, 2025 called, “Conservation Through the Arts: Celebrating the Federal Duck Stamp.”
Trace the evolution of renowned wildlife artists and learn the history of a program that has conserved more than 6.5 million acres of wetlands in “Conservation Through the Arts: Celebrating the Federal Duck Stamp.”
The exhibition features more than 60 original artworks that have been selected for the annual Federal Duck Stamp alongside taxidermy and carved decoys from the Bruce Museum’s collection.
In the past 90 years, the Federal Duck Stamp has raised more than $1.2 billion to fund habitat conservation that protects waterfowl species that once faced extinction because of market hunters and agricultural growth that drained wetlands.
1974-1975 Duck Stamp Design by David Maass Duck Stamp images used with permission from the US Fish and Wildlife Service
The Bruce Museum hosted the 2024 Federal Duck Stamp Art Contest, a two-day event on Sept 19 and 20, during which jurors selected the 2025 Federal Duck Stamp from hundreds of entries in front of a live audience.
In the early years of the program, a panel of judges chose the annual stamp design from a shortlist of invited wildlife artists. The first art contest open to the public was held in 1949. It remains the only art competition run by the U.S. government, with winning considered one of the highest honors in wildlife art.
In the past nine decades, mergansers, pintails, mallards and eiders have all been featured on the Federal Duck Stamp. Original paintings, drawings and etchings representing the winning stamp designs will anchor “Conservation Through the Arts: Celebrating the Federal Duck Stamp.” The Bruce Museum turns to its permanent collection for most of the artworks on view, which were part of a recent donation to the Museum by collector Richie Prager, an avid outdoorsman, conservationist and former Federal Duck Stamp Art Contest judge.
Highlights of the exhibition include an early print by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Jay Norwood “Ding” Darling, who created the first Federal Duck Stamp; two paintings by David Maass, one of history’s most famous wildlife artists; and contemporary paintings by Joseph, James and Robert Hautman, three brothers renowned for collectively winning 15 competitions.
Also on view will be Edward J. Bierly’s “Ross’ Geese,” the first artwork to be produced in full color on the Duck Stamp; a rare winning design done on scratchboard depicting Canada Geese by Alderson Magee; and Nancy Howe’s “King Eiders,” the first Duck Stamp design by a women artist.
Jennifer Miller (American, b. 1982) “‘Namborth’ Ruddy Ducks,” 2014 Acrylic Bruce Museum, Gift of Richie Prager, 2021.15.62 © Jennifer Miller, used with permission. Photo by Paul Mutino.
Historic documents and objects from the Bruce Museum’s natural history collections will
accompany the artwork on view. Visitors will encounter the Redhead, Brant, Canvasback, Surf Scoter, American Black Duck and a Red-breasted Merganser and through interactives learn about their calls and hatchlings.
Hand-carved wooden decoys on view welcome visitors to celebrate functional folk art and offer insight into how hunters lured waterfowl. Decoy carving was prominent in Connecticut in the late 1800s and early 1900s, and many master carvers developed distinctive styles that were later imitated.
Joe Hautman (American, b. 1956) “Spectacled Eider,” 1992 Acrylic on gesso board Bruce Museum, Gift of Richie Prager, 2021.15.44 Art © Joe Hautman, used with permission. Photo by Paul Mutino.
Charles Ralph Wells (American, 1895-1979) Black duck, n.d. Carved wood Bruce Museum, Gift of Henry C. Chitwood, 91.30.05 Photo by Paul Mutino.
Brant Branta bernicla Bruce Museum, 77.18.01
Events:
Bruce Experiences: Sunday Cinema – The Million Dollar Duck
Oct. 6, 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Free
Feathers will be ruffled, and some egos will be bruised, but for one contestant, winning “the Olympics of wildlife art” will be life changing. The film “The Million Dollar Duck” follows the humorous and heartfelt journey of six wildlife artists competing to win the Federal Duck Stamp Contest—the only juried art competition run by the U.S. government and one of the most successful conservation tools ever created. Bruce Experiences is generously sponsored by Bank of America.
Bruce Presents: Wings Over Water
Oct. 17, 6:00-7:30 p.m.
Free
The film “Wings Over Water” tells the story of the epic journeys of three amazing bird
families—the Sandhill Crane, the Yellow Warbler and the Mallard Duck—with extraordinary footage of their fascinating behaviors. Audiences will be captivated by the triumphs and challenges of these remarkable creatures that defy all odds and soar across mountains, deserts, cities and forests as they head home to raise their young.
Immediately following the film, Julie Hill-Gabriel, the National Audubon Society’s vice president, habitat conservation, North America, will discuss how Audubon protects water resources for birds and people, and why programs such as the Federal Duck Stamp help conserve wetlands and protect habitat for these important birds.
“Conservation Through the Arts: Celebrating the Federal Duck Stamp” is sponsored by BlackRock, Ducks Unlimited, Automated Control Logic, Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, Connecticut Humanities and the Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce Exhibition Fund.
The exhibition is made possible by the generous donation of Duck Stamp artwork to the Bruce Museum by Richie Prager.
Admission: $20, $15 for students and ages 62 and up, free for ages 5 and under, free for all on Tuesdays.
Located in Bruce Park and overlooking Greenwich Harbor, the Bruce Museum is a world-class institution that offers a changing array of exceptional exhibitions and educational programs that cultivate discovery and wonder through the power of art and science. Ahead of its time for taking this multidisciplinary approach over a century ago, the Bruce Museum is at the heart of contemporary efforts to bring together art, science and education to spark conversation, connection and creativity. The Museum welcomes over 100,000 visitors annually, playing an integral role in the area’s cultural life.
The first exhibition at the Bruce Museum took place in 1912 and featured works by members of the Greenwich Society of Artists, several of whom were part of the Cos Cob Art Colony. Their works formed the nucleus of the Museum's art holdings and continue to be a strength of the collection, which has expanded to focus on global art from 1850 to the present. Other strengths include ancient Chinese sculpture, Native American art, the Hudson River School, modernist works on paper and photography. The natural science collections include extensive holdings of regional vertebrates and insects, one of the most comprehensive collections of Connecticut Valley fossils from the Triassic and Jurassic Periods and an exceptional collection of minerals from around the globe. In all, the community, through its generosity, has built the Museum’s varied collections of art and natural science to over 30,000 objects.
The Museum, which is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, opened a new building in 2023 which doubled the size of the museum and tripled the exhibition spaces. The new Bruce features state-of-the-art exhibition, education and community spaces, including a changing gallery for art and five new permanent galleries in the William L. Richter Art Wing; a changing gallery for science; a permanent science exhibition, “Natural Cycles Shape Our Land;” three classrooms in the Steven and Alexandra Cohen Education Wing; and a café, auditorium and grand hall. When the outdoor spaces are completed in 2024, the Bruce campus will feature a sculpture-lined, landscaped walking path and inviting spaces for relaxation and contemplation—natural enhancements to Bruce Park and an anchoring connection to Greenwich Avenue.