When a neighbor of New Jersey artist Pat Brentano cut down a mature woodland in order to build an oversized house, Brentano was outraged. Using the media of collage and drawing, she channeled her grief and anger into a series of new works that acknowledge both the value of what was and the vastness of its disappearance.

Says Brentano: "My work is about observation, exploration, and a deep spiritual attachment to the natural world. I want to create skillful, innovative work that communicates environmental responsibility and visual literacy."

In works like "Bird Apocalypse," on display last September at the Karl and Helen Burger Gallery at Kean University in Union, NJ, and the installation, "Habitat," Brentano works with negative space to create large works of art on paper that call attention to what is missing when places are destroyed and bird habitats lost. Many of these works envelop the viewer, making the poignancy of what has happened a personal experience.