Author: Denise

Is It Now a Tradition? 2024 Celebrates Trees

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Detail of Three Trees on a Trail, copyright Beth Berry. Cropped to illustrate square format. Original version here.

A few years ago, the Nature Artists’ Guild announced a new project for its members. In the first year, the project consisted of a special display of members’ artwork, all in a 8 by 8 inch format, celebrating the 60th anniversary of The Morton Arboretum’s Schulenberg Prairie. Last year, using the same format, participating artists depicted scenes from Joy Morton’s original visions for his “museum of trees.”

In 2024, the third year of these projects honoring The Morton Arboretum, the theme is simply and fittingly,“Trees”. Entire forests, individual specimens, leaves, branches, roots, berries, buds, bark, birds, or bugs are all suitable subjects.

Members of the Nature Artists’ Guild are invited to create up to three works of art in almost any medium to be exhibited in the lobby of the Administration Building of The Morton Arboretum during the same hours of the Guild’s 2024 Autumn Exhibit in November.

  • Artwork must not be framed in order to fit into the display. The final size of each piece must be exactly 8 by 8 inches and less than one half inch deep.
  • There will be no fee or volunteering requirement to participate. A simple registration will be requested before the exhibit, and drop-off and pick-up hours will be the same as those for the Autumn Exhibit.
  • This project is otherwise separate from and will not affect or depend on participation in the Autumn exhibit. (Details about the 2024 Autumn Exhibit will be shared in upcoming months.)

A Garden Party Paint-Out on June 23, 2024

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Garden of Anne and Charles Bouchard, Glen Ellyn, IL. Photo credit Anne and Charles Bouchard.

Update: Paint-out has been canceled due to cicada activity.

The Bouchards of Glen Ellyn have invited members of the Nature Artists’ Guild to attend a paint-out and enjoy a buffet at their home on Sunday, June 23, 2024 from noon until 3 in conjunction with a garden party reception for volunteers of the Glen Ellyn Children’s Resource Center.

This plein-air opportunity is available to the first 12 Guild members who register, and the Bouchard’s spacious and lovely gardens, originally designed by landscape architect and artist Anthony Tyznik, will be in full bloom.

Just added – An opportunity for members to create and exhibit up to three 8 x 8 inch works of art in a special display during the Guild’s annual Autumn exhibit in November. These two-dimensional works must be inspired by or created at The Morton Arboretum, and the 2024 theme will be, fittingly, “Trees”. This display of art celebrating trees or their parts or inhabitants will be in addition to the regular autumn exhibit and no entry fee or framing will be required for participating artists. More about this opportunity coming soon!

This Week at the Nature Artists’ Guild

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Background artwork by Nicki Metz, Beth Berry, Laurie Peters, Patty Koenigsaecker, Vicki Liszewski. Click on image for original postcard.

A special exhibit featuring works by members of the Nature Artists’ Guild of The Morton Arboretum opens this Friday at the Aurora Public Art Commission gallery in Aurora, IL.

The opening of Art Inspired by Earth on the evening of Friday, June 7, 2024 at the Aurora Public Art Commission gallery will include a reception with refreshments and live music, and coincides with the city’s popular First Friday event. All are welcome to drop by!

Everyone is also invited to the Nature Artists’ Guild’s June presentation on Thursday, June 6 from 7 to 9 pm at the Thornhill Education Center of The Morton Arboretum. Three members of the Guild will demonstrate the creation of art inspired by nature using media and techniques both old and new. Light refreshments and plenty of seating will be available for this free event.

A Trio of Talented Artists on June 6, 2024 at The Morton Arboretum

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All are invited to a program featuring demonstrations by three talented Nature Artists’ Guild members at the Thornhill Education Center of The Morton Arboretum from 7 to 9 pm on Thursday, June 6, 2024.

Examples of stippling in black and white ink, Sawtooth Oak, Orchid, copyright Nancy Wu

Nancy Wu will demonstrate the use of stippling with black and white ink to create intricate drawings of nature.

Pearl Onions and Lacy Leaf, silverpoint, copyright Sandra K. Wilcoxon

Sandra Wilcoxon will share materials and methods for using silverpoint in both old and new ways.

Monochromatic and glazed stages of painting, copyright Dale Olsen

Dale Olsen will add glazes in oil or acrylic to bring glowing color to a black and white base.

Presentations sponsored by the Nature Artists’ Guild are always free and open to all. There is no requirement to be a member of The Morton Arboretum or the Guild to attend, and there is no charge for attendance, parking, or entry into the Arboretum for these events. Visitors can let the gate attendant know they are there for the program to be admitted and directed to the Thornhill Education Center. There will be plenty of seating, and light refreshments will be available.

Coming this June!

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Cicada, copyright Jean Black

More than just cicadas are coming to Chicagoland over the next few weeks. For members of the Nature Artists’ Guild, June also marks the arrival of –

  • One of the Nature Artists’ Guild’s most popular annual programs, featuring short demonstrations and discussions by three talented members, at the Thornhill Education Center of The Morton Arboretum on the evening of Thursday, June 6, 2024 (open to all, free of charge). This year’s artists will share tools, tips, and techniques for creating botanical art using pen and ink, drawing with silverpoint, and using glazes when painting in oil or acrylic. Details to come soon.
  • An exciting new special exhibit at the Aurora Public Art Commission gallery. Participating Guild artists are dropping off their work this weekend, and in less than two weeks, the exhibit opens. Aurora’s First Friday event on June 7, 2024 will include a reception at the gallery for the Nature Artists’ Guild exhibit (open to all) with light refreshments and live music.
  • A paint-out, tentatively planned for late June at the lovely private garden of one of the Guild’s members. The date of the paint-out will be determined in June, and will depend on weather and possible cicada activity.

Weekly Nature Artists’ Guild Gatherings Return to Wednesday Mornings

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Click on image for more about Coffee and Art at The Morton Arboretum

Members of the Nature Artists’ Guild, guests, and interested artists are welcome to stop by the Visitor Center of The Morton Arboretum to “sip and sketch” any Wednesday morning at 9 am (weather permitting).

These small and friendly gatherings usually last until about 11 am, and there are plenty of spots for participants to sit, either inside or out, with views of beautiful flowers, shrubs, a lake, trees, and wildlife.

Wednesday mornings are a wonderful time to visit the Arboretum, before the crowds and the heat of the day arrive. There is no charge or registration necessary to attend these casual get-togethers, but non-members of The Morton Arboretum will be required to pay an entry fee at the gate.

Gouache Class with Suzanne Wegener in June 2024 at The Morton Arboretum

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Milkweed painting in gouache, copyright Suzanne Wegener. Click on image to learn more or register.

Scientific Illustrator and educator Suzanne Wegener will be teaching a 4-part intermediate to advanced level class on painting in gouache at The Morton Arboretum this June.

Each Thursday evening in June 2024, from 6:30 to 9:30, class attendees will join Suzanne at the Thornhill Education Center of The Morton Arboretum to learn and practice using the tools and techniques for creating detailed paintings in the versatile medium of gouache.

This class is open to all artists with “fundamental knowledge and skills” and “previous art experience.” (There is no requirement to be a member of the Nature Artists’ Guild or The Morton Arboretum to register.) Paints and paper will be supplied for the class, but participants will need to bring along a few other basics.

Suzanne Wegener is one of the original members and former president of the Nature Artists’ Guild, the former coordinator of the art and photography education programs for The Morton Arboretum, and recent president of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators. With her knowledgeable, friendly, and patient teaching style, Suzanne continues to be a popular instructor at The Morton Arboretum and the Chicago Botanic Garden.

The class is titled Flowers and Feathers in Gouache, but students will find that working in gouache will result in wonderfully detailed representations of not only flowers and feathers, but a wide variety of subjects in the natural world.

Postcards for the 2024 Nature Artists’ Guild Exhibit at the Aurora Public Art Gallery Now Available

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Postcards for the 2024 Nature Artists’ Guild Exhibit at the Aurora Public Art Commission Gallery are ready for sharing with friends and family!

Copies can be obtained from the attendant at the front desk of the Administration Building of The Morton Arboretum (the same building that includes the Cudahy Room and Sterling Morton Library) beginning on May 7. The postcards will also be available in Aurora by arrangement with Cheryl Holz.

All members and friends of the Guild are encouraged to share copies of the exhibit postcard either digitally or by mailing to friends or dropping off at local businesses.

The postcards for Art Inspired by Earth were designed by Special Exhibits Co-Chair Cheryl Holz, and feature artwork by some of the exhibiting Guild members, Nicki Metz, Beth Berry, Laurie Peters, Patty Koenigsaecker, and Vicki Liszewski.

Looking Ahead to Late Spring and Summer

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Here Fishy, Fishy, copyright Dan Danielson

Members of the Nature Artists’ Guild of The Morton Arboretum will be welcoming the arrival of late spring and summer in a number of enjoyable ways –

  • Nature Artists’ Guild members are encouraged to share images of their summer-inspired artwork for the upcoming issue of the Nature Artists’ Quarterly. This members-only publication includes essays, book reviews, images, and news by and about Guild members. Submissions for possible inclusion in the Summer Quarterly can be emailed to Jane Kellenberger at the NatureArtNews gmail address by May 1, 2024 (Guild members only).
  • There is still time for members to register for the paint-out at Lilacia Park scheduled for Wednesday, May 8, 2024 at 9:30 am. Paint-Out Chair Celia Rodee will share details and updates by email with those registered, and share coffee and her delicious homemade muffins at the paint-out.
  • Artwork drop-off dates for this June and July’s Nature Artists’ Guild exhibit at the gallery of the Aurora Public Art Commission are approaching quickly. Registered exhibitors can park in the designated lot next to the building on May 24 between 2 and 4 or May 25 between 11 and 1, and take the elevator to the third floor to sign in their artwork. The exhibit opens on June 7, 2024 with a reception at the gallery (and a gathering at the studio of Exhibit Co-Chair Cheryl Holz) and continues through July 13.
  • Three members of the Nature Artists’ Guild will be discussing and demonstrating their inspirations, materials, and techniques at the June 6, 2024 program at the Thornhill Education Center of The Morton Arboretum at 7 pm. This program will be open to all, free-of-charge. Details will be coming soon.