JAMESTOWN From Jan. 7 through May 25, the Roger Tory Peterson Institute will host one of its most important exhibitions of nature and conservation art ever assembled. The exhibit, titled Bob Hines: National Wildlife Artist, celebrates the life work of one of the great wildlife artists and illustrators of the 20th century and is presented in collaboration with Hines scholar and biographer Dr. John Juriga of Elmira.

Hines (1912-1994) is well known for his work in developing the federal Duck Stamp program, which has generated more than $700 million to protect habitat for migratory waterfowl. He was a nationally recognized wildlife artist whose work became a crucial factor in a wave of interest in nature and conservation. Like Roger Tory Peterson, Hines helped educate a public eager to see, understand and protect the environment.

The exhibit takes the visitor on a tour of Hines’ lifework from his start as a conservation illustrator in Ohio through a long and storied career with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which included working closely with legendary 20th century scientist and conservationist Rachel Carson, whose book “Silent Spring” helped usher in the modern environmental movement.

For anyone interested in the federal Duck Stamp program, nature-inspired art and illustration, environmental history or art history and appreciation, this is a unique exhibition not to be missed.

The Peterson Institute also is featuring a Columbian Mammoth excavated in Randolph, as well as selections from the life work of Roger Tory Peterson. The Institute is located at 311 Curtis St. in Jamestown and is open to the public Tuesdays through Saturdays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sundays 1 to 5 p.m. For more information please call 665-2473 or visit www.rtpi.org.