DAVID M. CARROLL – Brief Biography
Born 1942, Altoona, PA
Artist-Naturalist and Writer David M. Carroll, who in 2006 was awarded a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship (aka “Genius Grant”) is the author-illustrator of three acclaimed natural histories: The Year of the Turtle; Trout Reflections; and Swampwalker’s Journal (winner of the John Burroughs Medal for distinguished nature writing) – his “wet sneaker trilogy”.
These were followed by Self-portrait with Turtles, a memoir centered on his lifelong connection with turtles and their ecologies. His fifth book, Following the Water, A Hydromancer’s Notebook was named a finalist in non-fiction for a National Book Award in 2009.
A selection of the more than 100 natural history drawings and watercolors David produced for his books were featured in “Beyond Words…” an exhibition of three New Hampshire award winning book artists, along with Tomie De Paolo and Beth Krommes, at the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, NH, June-September 2018. The Museum purchased three of his drawings for their permanent collection.
He also has works in the collections of the Hunt Institute of Botanical Documentation, Pittsburgh, PA.; the Dodd Archive Center at the University of CT; Connecticut College, New London, CT; Phil David Fine Collection, Boston, MA; Concord, NH Public Library (mural installation); Pillsbury Free Library, Warner, NH (mural installation); City of Concord, NH (11′ x14′ mural; exterior of a building in Bicentennial Square); and many private collections.
“Seldom Seen”, a one-man show of David’s non-natural-history art, drawings and paintings from his long-standing traditions in Cubist and Surrealist manners, along with pieces inspired by Paul Klee’s “Magic Squares” and the work of the Russian Avant-Garde, in particular Kazimir Malevich’s Suprematism, was held at the Davidow Center for Art + Design, Colby Sawyer College, New London, NH. The exhibition opened on February of 2020, and was scheduled to run though May 9, but was unfortunately closed five days after the opening due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
In addition to his own field work with turtles, David has conducted investigations for the Endangered Species programs of NH, VT, and ME, as well as such agencies as the US Environmental Protection Agency; the National Park Service; and the USDA Forest Service. His research has been published in scientific journals including Chelonian Conservation and Biology and the Northeastern Naturalist.
He is an active lecturer and turtle and wetlands preservation advocate, for which he was the recipient of an Environmental Merit Award from the US EPA; other awards include the USDA Forest Service; The International Society of Arboriculture; and the NH Audubon Society’s Tudor Richards Award.
He has also received recognition for his teaching, including the NH Science Teachers’ Association Annual Award for “Significant contributions to science education in NH”.
In 2006 David was named a MacArthur Fellow, receiving a “Genius Grant”.
In 2009 the Town of Warner, NH dedicated their annual report to him.
David is a graduate of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and Tufts University. He has received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the University of New Hampshire and an Honorary Master’s in Environmental Science from New England College.
A comprehensive CV is available upon request.
David and his wife, artist Laurette Carroll, have lived in Warner, NH since 1969. They have three grown children.
My Five Published Books
Trout Reflections
Following the Water
Year of the Turtle
Self-Portrait With Turtles, A Memoir
Swampwalker’s Journal
Hand Bound Books
A Book of a Number of Hours
A Book of Winter Buds
A Book of Winter Branches
Borradores
Landscapes – January 20, 1978 – April 1978
Variations: February 1, 1967 – August 1, 1968
Visions: Drawings and Paintings: 1976 – 1988
Exhibitions
“Seldom Seen” Exhibition at the Davidow Center
“Beyond Words” Exhibition at the Currier Museum
Galleries
“Seldom Seen” Gallery
David’s Wildlife Studies Sketchbook
Virtual Gallery of Art Produced for My Five Books
“Regarding Women Regarding…” Introduction
Sketchbook Gallery: 4/1/1985 – 10/14/1987
Swamp Sketchbook
The Swamp Dialogs
Drawings and Watercolors Produced to Illustrate my Published Books
CODIT – Compartmentalization of Decay in Trees