Woodland murals at Ney Park
By Ed DuBois
Growing up in a wooded area by Eagle Lake just southwest of Monticello, Jillian Alberg was well acquainted with the woodland critters she painted in murals on the walls inside the Nature Center at Ney Park last summer.
Alberg, a new art teacher at the Buffalo Community Middle School, recently hosted an open house at the Nature Center to show the murals and other artworks, as well as conduct a wildlife art workshop for children.
She said her dad, Steve Alberg, enjoys art and the outdoors. Jillian and her dad had visited Ney Park in past and enjoyed its trails and scenery. They have done some skiing on the trails in the park, which is located just north of Maple Lake off CSAH 8.
Jillian recalled that her dad had suggested she should look into the possibility of painting wildlife scenes inside the Nature Center. He passed on the suggestion to Wright County Parks Department representatives, as well.
“Dad’s excited about getting my name out there,” Jillian commented.
Summer project
Eventually, some talks took place between Jillian and Marc Mattice, the county parks administrator, and that led to Jillian spending a good part of last July and August painting inside the Nature Center.
She estimated she worked on the project 4-6 hours a day during a 4-week period.
Programs at the Nature Center mostly take place in the wintertime, so it was relatively quiet whenever Alberg was painting.
“I was usually undisturbed, so I could just paint all I wanted. I loved it,” she said.
Every so often, she took a break and walked the trails.
Images children would like
The murals are all winter scenes. Alberg explained that winter scenes were requested since the wintertime is when the Nature Center is visited most often. She was asked to create images that children would like.
Mattice stopped in a few times while Alberg was working. She remembers he said, “I don’t know much about it, but I like it.”
During one conversation, Mattice wondered if Alberg would be interested in conducting a winter program at the Nature Center, and that’s how an open house and a children’s wildlife art workshop came about on Dec. 30.
An exhibition of wildlife art was scheduled from noon to 4 p.m., and the art workshop was planned from 2-3 p.m.
Nature and scenery
The wooded areas in Ney Park are similar to those where Alberg grew up just a few miles to the northeast. After she graduated from Monticello High School in 2007, she studied art education at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, where her interest in drawing wildlife was enhanced.
“I like to draw nature, animals and scenery. I like to show the relationship between nature and man,” she said.
Alberg was hired at the Buffalo Community Middle School last spring when a position became available, and she teaches sixth grade and eighth grade art. She has just under 200 students altogether.
Art classes
Many of the students seem to look forward to their art classes, which makes their teacher’s job more fun.
“I love my job. The kids are great. Sometimes they say the funniest things,” Alberg said.
She enjoys displaying some of her students’ artworks in the lunch area, the library and hallways. It gives the young artists an esteem boost.
“They like walking by to see their drawings. They feel connected, and it raises their confidence,” Alberg said.
Seen for years to come
Since she grew up just a few miles from Buffalo, she has a connection with the community, and that connection now extends to the Nature Center in Ney Park, where her murals will be seen by visitors for many years to come.
Look among the trees in the murals, and you will find a multitude of critters, from squirrels to deer to a coyote, a pheasant, woodpeckers, a blue jay, a beaver, an otter, and more.
Come and have a look sometime … and enjoy.
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