Museum art exhibit explores urban wildlife

A new art exhibition that places wildlife against urban backdrops opened December 7, at High Desert Museum. "Neighbors: Wildlife Paintings by Hilary Baker" shares imagery of wildlife native to the High Desert - gray fox, black bear, pronghorn antelope, and others. They stand in the foreground with urban encroachment in the background-the fox on railroad tracks, the black bear in front of a 7-Eleven, and the pronghorn antelope by housing developments. 

Photo provided

"Night" by Hilary Baker.

"These paintings are dynamic and colorful," said Museum Executive Director Dana Whitelaw, Ph.D. "They also tell an important story of wildlife across the High Desert - where migration paths have been interrupted and wildlife faces increasing obstacles." 

Baker grew up in Los Angeles and spent her childhood exploring the hills and canyons near her home, searching for animal bones and other evidence of wild creatures. Her desire to collect and archive elements of a vanishing landscape became the inspiration for the series of paintings in the exhibition. 

She received her Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Los Angeles, and her Master of Fine Arts from the Otis Art Institute. Her work is included in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts, the Crocker Art Museum, the Broad Art Foundation, Temple University, and the University of Southern California. 

Baker will be at the High Desert Museum to talk with visitors about "Neighbors" on Thursday, December 19, from 4 to 7:30 p.m., during Winter Nights activities. For more information, visit http://www.highdesertmuseum.org/winter-nights.

"Neighbors: Wildlife Paintings by Hilary Baker" is open through April 6, 2025, and is made possible by the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation. For more information, visit http://www.highdesertmuseum.org/hilary-baker.