Margie Hooper of McCracken, Miertje Skidmore of Victor Harbor and George Tetlow of Normanville are among the 101 finalists in the Waterhouse Natural History Art Prize.

The overall winner of the prestigious art competition will take home $50,000 from a total prize pool of $114,500.

Mr Tetlow’s painting Ice Wall earned him selection, while the two Victor Harbor artists turned to local landscapes for inspiration.

Mrs Skidmore’s high-gloss painting ‘Please don’t let it happen’ captures the plight of the lower Murray Basin.

“Because I live up this way and often visit the Murray, I see the devastation and the half-dead fish flapping in the water; it’s a disgrace,” she said.

“I used white where the water used to be lush and now looks like a salt pan.

“To me and a lot of other people, it’s really sad.”

Dr Hooper’s work on paper ‘Sketches for Latang’ is also a portrayal of the natural wonders around her, but in a more raw form.

Her artwork is a collection of sketches depicting the flora surrounding the Hindmarsh River.

“You can learn more about an artist’s intentions in sketched drawings than a finished artwork,” Dr Hooper said.

“The mark of the hand is more obvious and more spontaneous, because you don’t sterilise it for a gallery audience, you do it for yourself.”

The finalists’ artworks will be on display at the South Australian Museum from July 18 to September 6.

Winners will be announced on July 17.