Saving Turtle Doves

Thursday 5 September to Wednesday 16 October

Free entry: 10am to 5pm daily

Reception: Saturday 5 October, 12 noon for 12:30pm - limited places available, please book early.

Two different art auctions will be raising money to help save the region’s endangered turtle doves this September, with the creators ranging from celebrated wildlife artists to actors and TV presenters.

Silent Auction at the Inspired by... gallery and Dalby Forest

To support the North Yorkshire Turtle Dove Project, the North York Moors National Park and Forestry England host joint exhibitions at the Inspired by... gallery, Danby and in the Low Dalby Courtyard in Dalby Forest, presenting a variety of top wildlife artists and photographers.

Headlining this exhibition is Alan Hunt, widely regarded as one of the best wildlife artists in the world, along with a range of renowned artists including Darren Woodhead, Jo Ruth, Jonathan Pomroy, Jennifer Tetlow, Andrew Hutchinson and Marcus Steel.

Each professional artist will have pieces for sale throughout the exhibition, and each have also donated a work of art to be sold in a silent auction. For a chance to own a superb piece of work, bidding will open on Thursday 5 September and will conclude at 5pm on Sunday 13 October.

All money raised will go towards Turtle Dove conservation, a partnership project between the North York Moors National Park, Forestry England and Howardian Hills AONB. The North Yorkshire Turtle Dove Project aims to help these beautiful birds which are at risk of extinction both in the UK and Europe.

Doodle-a-Dove

Alongside the more traditional exhibition, an online auction will see the sale of 25 ‘dove doodles’ created by stars of the screen, including Claudia Winkleman, Ben Kingsley, Jim Broadbent, Chris Packham and Jessica Hynes. 

Copies of these pieces will be displayed at the Low Dalby Courtyard in Dalby Forest, with the framed originals listed on eBay where they can be viewed from 5 September until 16 October. View the celebrity Doodle a Dove sketches on eBay. See below for a list and links for each of the individual Doodle a Doves.

Celebrity Doodle a Doves

• Annabel Mullion
• Ben Kingsley
• Bill Oddie
• Cara Horgan
• Chris Packham
• Claudia Winkleman
• Derek Jacobi
• Frances de la Tour
• Gordon Buchanan
• Iain Glen
• Iolo Williams
• Jessica Hynes
• Jim Broadbent
• John Simm
• Jules Howard
• Kiran Sonia Sawar
• Kris Marshall
• Michael Kitchen
• Neil Dudgeon
• Patrick Barkham
• Rob Hume
• Rosie Marcel
• Ruary Mackenzie-Dodds
• Russell Tovey
• Ruth Miller
• Sheila Reid
• Sophie Thompson
• Steven Mackintosh
• Tessa Peake-Jones
• Tim Downie
• Yolanda Kettle