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2011 WISCONSIN WILD TURKEY, PHEASANT, AND WATERFOWL STAMP CONTEST WINNERS ANNOUNCED

September 21, 2010

MADISON - Nearly 50 entries of wildlife art were on display for the first combined judging for the stamp designs to be featured on the 2011 Wisconsin wild turkey, pheasant, and waterfowl stamps. This was the first year judging for all the stamps was conducted simultaneously in Wisconsin -- previously the contests were judged separately. The judging took place August 28 at the Aldo Leopold Legacy Center in Baraboo. There were 16 wild turkey entries, 11 pheasant entries, and 21 waterfowl entries from artists around the state.

A painting of a wild tom turkey set in a Wisconsin woodland landscape, created by Vernon Javes of Appleton, is the winning entry of the 2011 Wisconsin Wild Turkey Stamp Design Contest.

The winning entry for the 2011 Wisconsin Pheasant Stamp Design Contest is a painting of a pair of pheasants set in a Wisconsin farmland landscape by Steven A. Hovel of DeForest.

A painting of a pair of Northern Shovelers by James Pieper of Iron Ridge is the winning entry in the 2011 Wisconsin Waterfowl Stamp Design Contest.

The judging panel for all three contests included Cory Catlin, President of the Wisconsin Chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation; Craig Schlender, President of the Sauk County Chapter of Pheasants Forever; Nels Swenson, State Chairman of Wisconsin Ducks Unlimited; Steve Swenson, an Ecologist with the Aldo Leopold Legacy Center; and Marsha Cannon, a grants administrator for the Madison Audubon Society.

2011 Wild Turkey Stamp Design Contest

Vernon Javes resides in Appleton. Javes started his artistic career at 17, when he began decorating cakes for his mother at a New Jersey bakery. Since his retirement 25 years ago, he has devoted much of his time to creating the wildlife art that covers the walls of his residence. Javes has always loved wildlife, and enjoys woodworking as much as he does painting; he made the desk at which he does his artwork. At 89 years old, macular degeneration has left Vernon blind in his left eye, but he is still determined to stay active, going fishing several times a week. Javes also won the Wisconsin Wild Turkey Stamp Design Contest in 1999.

This year's first runner-up was John H. Nemec, Jr. of Peshtigo, and the second runner-up was Steven A. Hovel of DeForest.

Sales of the Wild Turkey Stamp help provide future opportunities for turkey management and hunting in Wisconsin. All turkey hunters are required to purchase the $5.25 Turkey Stamp to legally hunt turkeys in Wisconsin. Sales of the Turkey Stamp bring in more than $800,000 annually for habitat management and restoration projects, education, research, equipment, and the management of the wild turkey program in our state.

2011 Pheasant Stamp Design Contest

Steven A. Hovel resides in DeForest, where he works out of a studio he built himself from salvaged tobacco warehouse timbers. Hovel has been an artist for 45 years; he graduated from high school in 1965 and went into a summer scholarship program at the Minneapolis School of Art. Later, he worked as an Air Force artist in Vietnam, and went on to graduate with a B.A. in Printmaking from Indiana University.

In addition to winning the Pheasant Stamp Design Contest, Hovel took 3rd place in this year's Wild Turkey Stamp Design Contest. He is also the winning 2011 Commemorative Artist for Ducks Unlimited, with a painting depicting Northern Shovelers.

The first runner-up for this year's Pheasant Stamp Contest was Caleb Metrich of Lake Tomahawk. Third place went to Robert Leum of Holmen.

Sales of the $10 Pheasant Stamp bring in more than $370,000 annually for the development, management, conservation, and maintenance of the wild pheasant population in the state, with an additional contribution to the stocking of put-and-take pheasants on Wisconsin's public hunting grounds. A pheasant stamp is required to hunt pheasants in the state of Wisconsin.

2011 Waterfowl Stamp Design Contest

James Pieper resides in Iron Ridge. Pieper's lifelong relationship with art has been greatly influenced by the works of artist Owen Gromme, especially Gromme's winning 1945 Federal Duck Stamp design depicting a pair of Northern Shovelers. In fact, there's a good chance that the taxidermy mount Pieper used while working on his painting was one used by Gromme to make that 1945 stamp, as it had a tag listing the specimen's collection by "O. J. Gromme at Lake Puckaway, 1932." Pieper's paintings have been selected for Wisconsin's Pheasant and Turkey Stamps in the past and his waterfowl paintings have placed in the Top 20 of the Federal Duck Stamp Competition. His education in art includes two years of graphic design study at the Milwaukee Technical College, which allowed him to work in graphic design for advertising and as a graphic artist for a laser engraving company.

The second-place winner of this year's Waterfowl Stamp Contest was Caleb Metrich, with his painting of a pair of Canada Geese. Third place went to a painting of a Blue-winged Teal by James Jungbauer.

Proceeds from the sale of the $7 Waterfowl Stamp are used for developing, managing, preserving, restoring, and maintaining wetland habitat in Wisconsin and Canada for waterfowl and other wetland-associated species. Wisconsin duck and goose hunters are required to purchase "stamp approval" through the Automated License Issuance System (ALIS) in order to have a valid license, but will not receive an actual stamp unless they request it. DNR Service Centers will have the stamps available for free to everyone with stamp approval. Anyone else interest in collecting the stamp may purchase one directly from the DNR. For information contact the DNR call center 1-888-WDNRINFo (1-888-936-7463) or online service center.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: on wild turkey or pheasant stamps contact Krista McGinley, (608) 264-8963 or Sharon Fandel, (608) 261-8458; on waterfowl stamp contact Michele Kille, (608) 266-7408