An exhibit of Smokey Bear paintings is traveling through the Garden State this summer.
The mobile art show, hosted by the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, includes 19 paintings done in oil, acrylics and watercolor by Rudy Wendelin — the artist credited with popularizing the brawny brown bear as the icon of the U.S. Forest Service’s fire prevention campaign.
Born in 1944, the shirtless bruin with the baggy blue jeans and yellow ranger’s hat is the oldest public service campaign in American history. The U.S. Forest Service has had many mascots, like Woodsy Owl or Howdy the Good Outdoor Manners Raccoon, but organizers said they can’t compete with Smokey Bear’s popularity.
“Smokey Bear has endured after almost 80 years,” said Bill Love, NJ Forest Fire Service assistant division forest fire warden. “His message still resonates: ‘Only you can prevent forest fires.’”
Painting of Smokey Bear looking at the evidence of a camp fire. The background shows half a forest that is green and full of animals while the other half of the forest is burned down.
Courtesy of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection via USDA
On loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the exhibition opened July 1 in Cape May. It will travel northward, stopping in five locations for week-long stays. The canvases displayed on easels include some original work for the classic fire prevention posters issued by the U.S. Forest Service over the last eight decades.
The exhibit’s last stop will be the New Jersey State House in Trenton in mid-August. Before then, it will visit the New York City metropolitan area from July 25 – Aug. 6 at Jersey City’s Liberty State Park.
The burly woodland animal became so popular that nearly a decade after his creation, U.S. Congress passed an act to remove Smokey Bear from public domain and put him under the control of the Secretary of Agriculture. This move allowed the use of royalties and fees to be used for wildfire prevention education.
“We…
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