God knows there is plenty to worry about in the world.

The polar ice is melting from global warming ; various species from frogs to gorillas are in danger of vanishing; ocean life is being depleted—some creatures may be beyond recovery; deserts are expanding, the Amazon and central African rainforests receding, pollution in China is worsening, drinkable water is scarcer and meanwhile some islands soon are going under…it is easy to fall into the trap of cynicism.

Amid the litany, we’re impressed by the number of artists who refuse to succumb to despair and who, if they’re not trying to make a difference on the ground, are reminding us to step back, find and dwell in the moments of beauty that surround us, maybe even crack a joke and tell us, through their work, that we needn’t be fiercely riled up all the time.

In Wildlife Art Journal's latest unveiling of Gallery of the Commons, we give you a banquet table ranging from sobering reality to mirth bordering on heresy.  

It begins with back-to-back works from New York artist Alexis Rockman , one of the brightest, irreverent natural history painters of his generation, and Guy Combes.  In Rockman's piece, part of his Future Evolution Series, he uses New York’s Central Park and the theme of climate change as an intellectual tableau for exploring the dichotomy of old nature forged by the Ice Age versus the new nature that will press our abilities to adapt.  Rockman is fearless and we salute him (as well as his Eastern compatriot Walton Ford ).

Next up is a sweet new painting from Combes, son of the late English painter of Africa, Simon Combes—a father and son who are also favorites of ours.  Guy is courageous in a different way, and he is making his own name.  As a classically trained painter in England, he is embracing the natural world as his father did, but he is delivering a fresh interpretation.  

Here’s what Guy says about his oil painting of a Rothschild giraffe titled High Hopes.  “Of the three giraffe in Kenya (others are the Reticulated and the Maasai), the Rothschild is distinguishable by its size as the largest, its markings, and the fact that it is born with five ‘ossicorns’.  Its habitat is severely depleted and restricted now to Murchison Falls National Park in Uganda, Nakuru National Park and Soysambu Conservancy in Kenya .”

He notes that less than 700 still exist and that’s a high estimate.  The number may actually be closer to 500.  Compare this to declining numbers of other, higher-profile species and the level of public alarm being expressed.  There are between 20,000 and 25,000 polar bears left, around 6,500 orangutans, and 3,500 black rhinos from Kenya to Zimbabwe .  Carrying on the legacy of his late father and stepmother at Soysambu, Combes is trying to show how private conservation can make a difference.  The preserve has a population of 60 Rothschild giraffes and animals there are breeding successfully.  Hence, the title of Guy’s painting.

He adds that the African great white pelicans portrayed flying overhead have their own symbolism.  Although pelicans are widespread throughout lakes in the Rift Valley, they breed and reproduce only at one—Lake Elementaita, a tarn inside Soysambu.  "It is the only lake with islands that are inaccessible to predators when the lake level is normal," he says.

Guy Combes' piece tells an important story. Indeed, there is a demand for both seriousness and urgency before us, but we mustn’t forget to laugh once in a while, too.  Besides Rockman, Ford, and Combes, here's the roster of others you'll find at Gallery of the Commons :  Amy Ringholz, Carol McArdle, Walter Matia, John Sharp, Tom Gilleon, James Prosek, Mike Barlow, Susan Fox, Chris Navarro, Eriko Kobayashi , Thomas Quinn, Anne Coe, Steve Worthington, Tina Close , Chris Dei, Cathy Ferrell, Jeb Todd, Skip Whitcomb, Kelly Singleton, Bo Lundwall , Lee Stroncek, Flick Ford, Jim Morgan, Ken Newman, Rod Frederick, Jennifer Bowman, Mitch S. Billis, Steve Osman, Dwayne Harty, Ott Jones, Mary Roberson, Wayne Levin , Steven Fuller, Ian McAllister, Sherry Salari Sander, Gretz Gretzinger, Rosetta, Michelle Osman, Randal M. Dutra, Monte Dolack, Mary Beth Percival, Christopher Boyer, and Heidi Hehn.

Enjoy the traditional works in Gallery of the Commons and the pieces that court a lighter edge.  Each one has its own validity.