Talks
The Art of Adventure - Wildlife Conservation Inspired by Lens and Brush

Name: The Art of Adventure - Wildlife Conservation Inspired by Lens and Brush
Start: 2027-02-21T13:00:00-0500
End: 2027-02-21T15:30:00-0500
Location: Royal Ontario Museum

Date: Sunday, Feb 21, 2027 13:00 - 15:30
Location: Level B1,
Eaton Theatre

B1
Entrance: President's Choice School Entrance
Admission: Free
Registration Coming Soon!
Audience: Adults

Filmmaker Bristol Foster and Artist Robert Bateman by Waterfall.

Date: Sunday, Feb 21, 2027 13:00 - 15:30
Location: Level B1,
Eaton Theatre

B1
Entrance: President's Choice School Entrance
Admission: Free
Registration Coming Soon!
Audience: Adults

Registration Coming Soon!

Explore the mid-20th century adventures of two Canadian icons-ecologist and filmmaker Bristol Foster and artist Robert Bateman, through a free screening of The Art of Adventure. In this inspirational film, filmmaker Alison Reid delves into the importance of engaging with biodiversity, science communication, and the value of spending time in the natural world in order to understand and advocate for it.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Wildlife Photographer of the Year curator Soren Brothers and filmmaker Alison Reid exploring the role of art in inspiring and provoking acts of wildlife conservation in our changing world.

This program is presented in partnership with the Alliance of Natural History Museums of Canada.

Please note: this documentary contains nudity.

Speakers

Alison Reid

Alison Reid is an award-winning Canadian filmmaker known for stories of adventure and exploration of the human spirit. After a groundbreaking career as a stunt performer and one of North America’s first female stunt coordinators, she founded Free Spirit Films to pursue bold, character-driven storytelling.

Her debut feature, the LGBTQ2+ comedy The Baby Formula, opened the Mannheim Heidelberg Film Festival in 2008 and screened world-wide. She went on to direct & produce the critically acclaimed feature documentary The Woman Who Loves Giraffes, which won multiple Best Film and Audience Awards and enjoyed a wide theatrical release across Canada and the United States. With positive reviews by The New York Times, The Washington Post, LA Times, Variety, and The Wrap, the film holds a 100% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and continues to resonate with audiences worldwide.
Continuing her work spotlighting iconic, inspirational Canadians, Alison’s new feature documentary The Art of Adventure celebrates a transformative 1957 journey by wildlife artist Robert Bateman and biologist Bristol Foster. When not making films, Alison directs television.

Soren Brothers

Dr. Soren Brothers is the Allan and Helaine Shiff Curator of Climate Change at ROM and an Assistant Professor at the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Toronto. Born and raised in the GTA, Dr. Brothers holds a PhD in limnology (the study of inland waters) from Potsdam University, Germany. His research, expertise, and experience in the field of environmental science play a significant role, both at ROM and on the international stage, in advancing the science of climate change, biodiversity and conservation, and deepening public engagement on these increasingly critical topics.

Bio

In 1957, world renowned wildlife artist Robert Bateman and spirited biologist Bristol Foster embarked on a global expedition in a Land Rover they called “The Grizzly Torque” - a journey that ignited a deep love of our planet and set in motion a powerful story of environmental activism though art and science.