Just before it closed for the holidays I was able to see Art from The Edge, an exhibition celebrating our natural world and warning of its demise due to human activity. Curated by Marcia Annenberg, the show included quite a few artists. Most memorable to me were the three whose work I've posted here. The small icons by Angela Manno - painted with traditional icon technique, including the use of gold - were particularly moving. In each icon Angela focuses her love on one species critically threatened for extinction. Much as the traditional icon asked us to trust and rely on the depicted saint, these animals, with their almost human expressions and gorgeous brushwork and color, beg us to recognize their critical roles in the life of our only planet. With traditional icons the saint saves us. In these endangered species icons we are asked to save the species. Angela so much believes in the animals that she donates 50% of her sales to the Center for Biological Diversity. Also shown in my post are the large tiled murals by Lois Bender and Marcia Annenberg , both of whose work I think is self-explanatory.