Past rotating exhibits featured at the museum.

Avis Marvelous: Ornithology on the Western Frontier 1776—1896 will be on display in the Hoch Gallery from March 6 through September 4 The exhibit consists of 92 detailed engravings, chromolithographs, and lithographs kindly provided by the Lee Silliman Collection that depict 100 North American birds of the Trans-Mississippi West frontier, as well as Alaska. Such birds include quail, eagle, albatross, and many more. These 19th-century engravings, chromolithographs, and lithographs highlight the works of well-known bird illustrators such as John James Audubon, Robert Ridgeway, John L. Ridgeway, and Titian Ramsey Peale.

These vibrant original engravings were either hand-tinted or published as chromolithographs. As you browse through the collection, you’ll notice the backgrounds in the engravings may suggest the bird’s habitat. The engravings were matted and framed in handcrafted Butternut molding. Birding enthusiasts may note that some common and scientific names for species have changed since the creation of these pieces in the 19th century, especially with the advent of DNA analysis.

The REACH Museum is hosting a visiting exhibition of historic art images of the Pacific Northwest. “Columbia & Cascade: A River and A Range, 1853-1854″ features thirty-one prints selected from U.S. Pacific Railroad survey reports. These exquisitely detailed prints, made from steel engravings, include scenes of familiar locations along the Columbia River as they appeared in the 1850s, as well as botanical and zoological drawings. Those interested in regional history, local flora and fauna, and art will all find something of interest in this exhibit.

“Columbia & Cascade” features the works of several artists who excelled in documenting the beauty of the landscape while surveying for an ideal route for the railway, including John Mix Stanley, John J. Young, and John H. Richards. The U.S. government published the entire body of work from the surveys in a report chronicling the lands, waters, and native peoples of the American West. Exhibit curator Lee Silliman chose these images from two separate surveys to represent the Columbia River where it transects the Cascade Mountain range. The dramatic landscape is captured in relatively small drawings out of necessity; artists were travelling on foot and on horseback to remote areas at a time when photography had limited portability. But for their size, each image packs enough detail to keep the viewer lingering.