BRATTLEBORO — Jeannie Sutherland is the featured “Artist of the Month” for May at the Harmony Art Collective's gallery on 49 Elliot St.
All profits from sales of her work in May will go to three local organizations: Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center (BEEC), Windham County Humane Society, and Rich Earth Institute.
The fundraiser starts with a silent auction during Gallery Walk on Friday, May 6, from 5 to 7 p.m., at Harmony Collective and continues to the end of the month.
“I have been an artist all my life, focusing on animals and nature, especially trees,” Sutherland said in a news release. “At 18, I was choosing between continuing with my art or pursuing wildlife conservation. I chose art, and then art therapy, and then as I got older, I wanted to teach in college so I got my Ph.D. in 2014.”
Now retired, she said she decided to honor her “two loves” by donating all her profits to local organizations.
BEEC naturalist Patti Smith said they are delighted that BEEC will be a beneficiary of Sutherland's “beautiful, vibrant art and will be happy to put the proceeds to work caring for nature and wildlife.”
Maya Richmond, the executive director at Windham County Humane Society, said she will make use of these donations to help promote the well-being and dignity of pets and other companion animals, and support their responsible stewardship by human caregivers.
The third recipient of the donations, the Rich Earth Institute, was started in Brattleboro in 2011 by Kim Nace and Abe Noe-Hays as a research and education nonprofit dedicated to reclaiming human waste as a resource. “Diverting urine from the waste stream and transforming it into fertilizer protects downstream water bodies from nutrient pollution and supports local farms,” they said.
The Harmony Art Collective's gallery is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call them at 802-579-1501, or contact Sutherland at 802-451-0383. For the Friday Gallery Walk, the gallery will stay open until 8 p.m.