Where art and land meet: Collaborative event brings artists and conservation community together

March 11, 2026

The intriguing intersection between art and land conservation provided a catalyst for spirited conversation at a recent event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod.

Artists and conservation professionals gathered at the beautifully-restored Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port, where participants explored how the land offers artistic inspiration and how creative work might meaningfully support conservation efforts.

Mark Adams stands atop one of his map-inspired works at “Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation,” an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod. Photo by Gerry Beetham

The event, titled “Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation,” featured presentations by artists Gin Stone, Mark Adams and Carla Kihlstedt and remarks by HCT Executive Director Mike Lach, Sue Dahling Sullivan, Director of Communications & Programs for the Barnstable Land Trust (BLT) and Amy DuFault, Outreach Coordinator for the Dennis Conservation Land Trust.

Creative Exchange series brings people together

The get-together kicked off the Arts Foundation’s Creative Exchange Conversation series, which aims to connect the arts with other sectors to help address important community issues.

Audience participation was also an important part of the gathering, and insightful thoughts and comments from those in attendance added mightily to the open flow of ideas.

Julie Wake, Executive Director of the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod facilitated the event with an elegant touch that created an inclusive, friendly environment and invited the sharing of viewpoints.

Inspired by the land

“One thing that often comes up often in conversations with artists is that the land and ocean is such a big part of what artists on Cape Cod do, what they acknowledge,” said Wake. “They don’t necessarily have to be taking photos or painting the landscape, but we’re all inspired by the landscape.”

Right outside the firehouse, HCT’s Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve provided an inspiring natural backdrop. Mike Lach, HCT’s Executive Director, discussed the recent award-winning eco-restoration project at the Preserve, which transformed a retired cranberry bog into a wildlife oasis.

The “Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation” event took place at the beautifully-restored Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham

The project included rewilding a mile of stream, sculpting in four ponds, restoring 44 acres of wetland habitat, and establishing a half-mile wheelchair accessible All Persons Trail, inviting people of all abilities and ages to experience the beauty of nature.

Lach also described the numerous nature programs that HCT offers to youngsters, which help inspire creativity and a love for natural places. “Harwich Conservation Trust is trying to cultivate connection and curiosity in the next generation of future caretakers of our land,” he said.

The forces of nature

Artist Mark Adams also had a long career as a mapping specialist with the Cape Cod National Seashore. He focuses on works of art that use layered images of maps, personal notebook pages, text, data and images of animals and friends on paper and wood panels. Observing nature is an important component of his work.

“Protected lands get to do their own thing,” said Adams. “Nature guides what happens. There are forces and processes in the woods and in the ocean, and as an artist you can just sit and watch and listen, and learn what the real forces are.”

The land is also important to the work of Gin Stone, a materials-based artist who works in painting, pen and ink on hand and machine sewn surfaces, as well as with the use of found materials. “I do not know what I would do if I was not able to be outside and see things that are supposed to be there,” she said. “Everything that is outside that isn’t informed by humans is magic.”

Artists as ‘natural connectors’

Harwich Conservation Trust Executive Director Mike Lach (left) and artist Mark Adams at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham

BLT’s Sue Dahling Sullivan sees art as a way to link people to conserved land. “We have a lot of issues that we need to face,” she said. “Coastal resiliency, climate change, development, housing, water quality. But to me, the people are where we need to focus–connecting them better to and with the land, to make sure that they care. I think that artists have all the tools and the platforms, and are natural connectors to help us get there.”

Folks lingered as the event drew to a close to keep the discussion going. Ideas and advice sparked around the room, creating a cheerful hubbub that felt exciting and alive with possibilities. It seemed evident that these two worlds, art and land conservation, share a lot of similarities, including talented people, an openness to new concepts and a love of the preserved land that can inspire us all.

“The goal of pulling these two groups together was to see the overlap in the work, said Julie Wake, Executive Director of the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod. “Sometimes, land conservation experts and artists are taken for granted. They fly under the radar. But they are two of the most important things that we value here on the Cape.”

Scenes from  “Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation.” Photos by Gerry Beetham

Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham
Scenes from "Creative Conversations: Art + Land Conservation," an event sponsored by Harwich Conservation Trust (HCT) and the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod at the Old Bank Street Firehouse in Harwich Port. Photo by Gerry Beetham

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Posted in Event Recaps, News