4 T ony Foster’s art has always been inspired by the beauty of wild places. Exploring Beauty: Watercolour Diaries from the Wild, created over nearly a decade from 2007–2016, is an opus on this theme. Here, Foster argues for the need to return beauty to the arts, as well as to our daily lives. Viewing the breath-taking landscapes Foster presents, it is hard to imagine how one could possibly disagree with his assertion. Beauty, by definition, is pleasing to the senses and perhaps even necessary for health and well-being. Foster’s work inspires a quiet calm deep within our souls, which are often harried by contemporary life. Foster’s nineteen wilderness Journeys have been described as producing an earthquake of emotion and a call for action. It is based on this response that the Foster Art & Wilderness Foundation was established in 2013, opening its doors in Palo Alto in February 2016 and soon becoming known as The Foster Museum. By keeping together the multiple works that make up Journeys like Exploring Beauty (51 paintings comprising 32 artworks) and sharing them in their entirety with audiences in a variety of public venues, we hope to inspire reflection, discussion, and educa- tion about art, wilderness and the natural world. Staging Exploring Beauty as an exhibition in 2016 was made possible by the dedicated efforts and creative support of our amazing Foundation team: Heidi Hackford, Director of Communications and Operations; Kristin Poole, Artistic Director; Julie Muñiz, our founding Curator; Dan Saal, Design Director; Mattias Lanas, Program Assistant; and our CFO, Jon Cosby. I would like to thank all the board members who helped steward the Foundation through the 2016 launch of this exhibition: Holly Knapp, Paul Salisbury, Natasha Skok, Peggy Propp and Edie Barschi. Sarah Greenberg assisted us with outreach to the press, and Elise Maar, Director of Community Engagement, built an enthusiastic audience for this exhibition at the Museum’s home in Palo Alto. Thank you to Tonia Boeye, my Executive Assistant, who pro- vided gracious support. Tony Foster’s work attracted an accomplished group of art and wilderness leaders with national and global reputations who served as advisors to the Foundation in 2016 when Exploring Beauty was first on exhibition. I extend my gratitude to these leaders for their support of this exhibition and of the Museum’s mission: Jim Ballinger, Graham Beal, Michael Engl, Peter Fairbanks, Peter Hassrick, Duncan Robinson, Gail Severn, and Annie and Bill Vanderbilt. Ten years later, it is with sorrow that I recognize the passing of three of these key advisors: Peter Fairbanks, Peter Hassrick, and Duncan Robinson. This book cannot fully capture the awesome scale, color, range of subjects and, of course, sheer beauty of the exhibition. Let it serve as an invitation to come and see it for yourself if you have not already, and to learn more about Tony Foster and his art. I hope that the power of Exploring Beauty: Watercolour Diaries from the Wild inspires you to reflect on the beauty in your own life. Excelsior! Foreword Jane Woodward FOUNDER, THE FOSTER MUSEUM SPRING 2026 Our mission is to unite, understand, and share Tony Foster’s watercolor wilderness Journeys, inspiring connection to art, nature, and the protection of place.
