![Margaret Ross Tolbert's work, "Springs for Hiram," is pictured. [SPECIAL TO THE NEWS BULLETIN]](http://127.0.0.1/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/ghows-DA-6e777afd-c8a1-2518-e053-0100007f7f06-49829a2c.jpeg)
NICEVILLE — Northwest Florida State College and the Mattie Kelly Arts Center will have a gallery exhibit, AQUIFERious, Aug. 20-Nov. 2 in the McIlroy, Holzhauer and Corridor galleries.
Margaret Ross Tolbert curated AQUIFERious, which is based on her award-winning book by the same title. The exhibition will juxtapose Tolbert's dramatic, large-scale springs paintings and eloquent poetry with contributing artists' and scientists' photographs, videos, cartography and writings. The exhibition includes contributions from Jill Heinerth, Eric Hutcheson, Mark Long, Tom Morris and Georgia Shemitz.
Over the past 25 years, these artists have worked to document some of the springs’ unique features. They emphasize the urgent need for the preservation of Florida’s freshwater springs and the Floridian Aquifer that feeds them.
Among the most remarkable natural wonders of the Sunshine State is the seldom-seen, underground Floridian aquifer system, a 100,000 square mile life force that reaches into neighboring states and feeds more than 1,000 freshwater springs throughout Florida. AQUIFERious is intended to give the audience a greater understanding and appreciation of Florida’s subterranean water system, while celebrating its extraordinary beauty and that of the fragile springs that arise from the system’s depths.
The galleries are open Monday-Friday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and 90 minutes prior to most Mattie Kelly Arts Center Mainstage and Sprint Theater performances. For more information about the Mattie Kelly Arts Center Galleries, contact Director KC Williams, 729–6044 or artgalleries@nwfsc.edu.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Mattie Kelly Arts Center Galleries host AQUIFERious exhibition