Turners honored by Waterfowl Festival

Pictured: William H. Turner

The Waterfowl Festival Board of Directors is proud to announce the outstanding artists and volunteers who have been nominated and inducted into Hall of Fame for 2020 – renowned Sculptors William H. Turner and David H. Turner; former Board Member and Sculpture Gallery Chair Doug Collison; and former Festival Board President and Carving Gallery Chair Debra Perry Jackson, in memoriam.

“As Board President, one of the things I look forward to most during Waterfowl Festival week is the ceremony inducting the newest members into the Hall of Fame,” said WF Board President Kevin Greaney. “While we had to postpone this year’s Festival, we didn’t want to delay this year’s class as each person has been a very important part of the success of the Festival for years. We will recognize the 2020 Hall of Fame recipients at next year’s Festival Opening Ceremonies but they are official awardees this year.”

David Turner

The Festival is a family tradition for many, but for father/son duo William H. and David H. Turner that is even more the case than most. They are welcomed into the Hall of Fame for their dedication to both the Festival and their commitment to creating incredible bronze sculptures of Chesapeake Bay and other wildlife that showcase the intricacies of our region’s ecosystem.

Established in 1983, Turner Sculpture near Onley, VA serves as the studio, foundry and gallery, where most of their work is displayed. To date the Turners have created more than 700 different limited edition bronzes and more than 100 large public commissions found throughout the United States. William or “Doc” Turner as he is known, first began making the drive up to Easton for the Festival in 1983. Since then, he and his son, David, a former wildlife biologist, have been some of the foundational artists in our annual sculpture gallery.

In 2016, the Festival chose David as its Featured Artist. His unique and ultimately very popular bronze for that year was Tidewater Terrapin – a different subject matter choice for the Festival that highlighted the ways waterfowl and other Bay creatures are connected. It featured a graceful Diamondback Terrapin, Maryland’s state terrapin, swimming mid-air above the Bay bottom of oysters and grasses. David’s work has always helped the Festival expand its horizons.

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