Handmade Bookbinding Workshop Begins in January 2020

What does bookbinding have to do with nature art?  Plenty!  Handmade books can be a lovely form of art, as groups of artists have shown in recent Nature Artists’ Guild exhibits.

Handmade books are a wonderful and useful place for artists to gather together some of their best sketches, drawings, and prints.  Every artist has sketches that turned out so well that they deserve to be showcased.  Putting them together into a handmade book is a great alternative to matting and framing each one.

Many accomplished artists make a habit of bringing rolled sheets of heavy watercolor paper into the field instead of a sketchbook.  This enables them to create beautiful works in their preferred medium that can later be trimmed and bound together into a book.

Handmade Bookbinding Workshop at The Morton Arboretum.  Image credit mortonarb.org.

The Morton Arboretum is offering a 5-evening Handmade Bookbinding Workshop beginning on January 21, 2020 and continuing into February.

Each student will make a total of four unique books of various styles over the course of the program and get personalized feedback from the instructors. All supplies are included.

This class is appropriate for all experience levels. Enjoy this hands-on opportunity to celebrate the gift of paper that trees and plants provide. Make something creative, beautiful, and useful, and gain the skills to continue the practice of bookmaking on your own.  – Mortonarb.org

There is no requirement to be a member of the Nature Artists’ Guild nor The Morton Arboretum to participate in this workshop, but Arboretum members will receive a discount on the registration fee.  Please click on the image or highlighted link to read more or to enroll in the workshop.  This opportunity for learning could also be a great gift for that special artist in your life.  Workshop space is limited, so early enrollment is encouraged.

Nature Artists’ Guild Exhibit in Downers Grove, January 2020

Spring Rapids on the Farm, copyright Ann Lamoureux.

For renewing Nature Artists’ Guild members, the upcoming 2020 Downers Grove Public Library exhibit will be the quickest and easiest of the year to participate in.  As all of the artwork has to have been included in a previous exhibit at The Morton Arboretum within the last five years, the difficult part is already done.  The artwork is ready!  There will be no need for last minute touches, no trips to the framer, no titles to compose, and no referee process to go through.

Participants in this popular exhibit only need to mail their prospectus by this Friday, December 13, 2019, drop off their artwork at the library on Saturday, December 28 between 10 and 11 am, and ensure that their 2020 dues are paid by December 31, 2019.

The Downers Grove Public Library has an ongoing commitment to exhibiting artwork both in their wonderful permanent collection and in rotating exhibits featuring accomplished local artists.  The Nature Artists’ Guild exhibit will be showcased throughout January 2020.

Spring Rapids on the Farm by Ann Lamoureux, featured above, is a lovely example of artwork that has been included in previous Nature Artists’ Guild exhibits.

This December for the Nature Artists’ Guild

Silverpoint drawing, copyright Mary Ann Jimenez

This Thursday, December 5, 2019, is the annual holiday party.  It’s fun, not too formal, and a good opportunity to get to know fellow artists a bit better (programs and paint-outs don’t always leave much time for socializing).  Please click on the link for more information.

On Saturday, December 7, 2019, members who have reserved a seat at the Sterling Morton Library presentation will be treated to a hot beverage and an afternoon of fascinating tales from author Cindy Crosby and librarian Rita Hassert.

Nature Artist’s Guild members wishing to participate in the January 2020 Downers Grove Library special exhibit will need to mail their completed prospectus by Friday, December 13, 2019 and drop off their work on Saturday, December 28, 2019 between 10 and 11 am at the library.  All the details are included in the exhibit prospectus, which was e-mailed to members on November 17.

Returning members of the Nature Artists’ Guild can pay 2020 membership dues by sending a check to Treasurer Catherine Stacy (whose address can be found in the Yearbook), by paying her or another board member with cash or check at the holiday party, or by clicking on the Membership tab of this website to use PayPal or a credit card.  New members can send a check to the address listed on the Membership brochure or use PayPal or a credit card as mentioned above.

A Unique Opportunity at the Sterling Morton Library on Saturday, December 7, 2019

The Sterling Morton Library at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL has a large collection of circulating books and magazines, e-books, reference materials and journals relating mostly to botany and horticulture.

The library’s Suzette Morton Davidson Special Collections include thousands of treasures, such as “an early herbal detailing the medicinal uses of plants, a planting plan of Garfield Park by Jens Jensen, a recently published limited edition book about Shakespeare’s flowers by Gerard Brender à Brandis, a hand-colored lithograph by Redouté,” and more.

The Art Collection alone “contains more than 12,000 works of art, including original paintings, pen and ink, colored pencil, scratchboard drawings, nearly 1,000 nature prints, as well as a variety of lithographs, etchings, engravings, aquatints, and commercial reproductions of plants and the insects/animals related to them.” – http://www.mortonarb.org.

Lilium centifolium, 1933 Hand-colored zincograph by Lilian Snelling.  Photo credit http://www.mortonarb.org.

Nature Artists’ Guild members will have the unique opportunity on Saturday, December 7, 2019  from 1:30 until 3 pm to learn more about the library and its amazing collections from Library Collection Manager Rita Hassert and author, speaker, and interpreter Cindy Crosby.  A number of seats for this event, being held inside the library, have been reserved for Guild members, and interested attendees should contact Linn Eldred to secure a spot.  Linn’s contact information can be found in the Nature Artists’ Guild Yearbook.

Magnolia, Mark Catesby.  Photo credit http://www.mortonarb.org.

A Reminder for Nature Artists’ Guild Members

It’s getting to be that time!  No, not for the holidays (yet), but for Nature Artists’ Guild members to put the finishing touches on their artwork, complete their framing, and find a way to safely transport their artwork, rain, snow, or moonlight, because “referee night” is just over a week away.  On Wednesday, November 6, 2019, between 6 and 8 pm, participating members of the Guild are asked to bring the artwork they have previously registered through their prospectus to the Administration Building at The Morton Arboretum.

The 2019 Holiday (Autumn) Exhibit of Natural History Art will take place at the Arboretum on the weekend of November 9 and 10, 2019, with a reception for artists, their guests, and members of The Morton Arboretum on Friday evening, November 8.

Milkweed pod, copyright Jane Kellenberger.  Click here to see more by Jane, the Nature Artists’ Guild’s 2019 Autumn Featured Artist.

Artists at Work at the 2019 Holiday (Autumn) Exhibit of Natural History Art

The annual Spring and Holiday (Autumn) Nature Artists’ Guild exhibits at The Morton Arboretum always feature a wide variety of media and styles.  The upcoming exhibit on the weekend of November 9 and 10, 2019 (and the reception for artists’ guests and members of the Arboretum on Friday evening, November 8) will continue in that tradition, and five Guild members will be sharing their unique ways of creating nature art with visitors.  Visitors to the exhibit will be able to watch the following artists up-close and at work, talk with them, see their tools and supplies, and sometimes even try the techniques themselves!

On Friday, November 8, from 5 until 7:30 pm, Nancy Halliday will be sharing her approach to creating lovely watercolors.

Masked Shrew, copyright Nancy Halliday

On Saturday, November 9, from 10:30 am until 1 pm, Carol Abramofsky will show visitors the tools, steps, and uses of mold-making in nature art.

Mold-making with Carolyn Abramofsky

On Saturday, November 9, from 1:15 until 3:45 pm, Cheryl Rausch will be engaging visitors in the fascinating world of digital art.

Mother’s Love, copyright 2019 Cheryl Rausch

On Sunday, November 10, from 10:30 am until 1 pm, Victoria Elizabeth will share some of her inspirations and techniques in creating watercolors.

Closed, copyright Victoria Elizabeth

On Sunday, November 10, from 1:15 until 3:45 pm, Kathy Steere will show visitors her way of using different media for coloring on fabric.

Kathy Steere, Coloring on Fabric

Please click on this link for more details about the exhibit.

Coming Soon – Visiting Artist Sasha Viazmensky: Mushrooms in Watercolor

The next artist in The Morton Arboretum’s Visiting Artist Series, Sasha Viazmensky, will be traveling all the way from his home in St. Petersburg, Russia.  Mr. Viazmensky is a member of the American Society of Botanical Artists, and his stunning work appears in public and private collections around the world, including those of the Shirley Sherwood Collection in London, the Komarov Botanical Institute in St. Petersburg and The Morton Arboretum’s Sterling Morton Library.

To me [mushrooms] are flowers of the woods.  I wanted to save that beauty and to share it with the others.

I call my watercolors ‘Portraits of Mushrooms.’ For these portraits, I select not the most typical, but the most pleasant and happy looking individuals. And I paint them life size.

– Sasha Viazmensky

Cortinarius sp., copyright Alexander (Sasha) Viazmensky.  All rights reserved. http://www.alexandermushrooms.com.

There are still a few available openings for Mr. Viazmensky’s three-day workshop taking place at The Morton Arboretum from Friday, November 15 through Sunday, November 17, 2019.  Intermediate and advanced watercolor artists will further their skills through shared insights, their observation of the artist at work, and personal guidance in their own efforts to capture the unique beauty of mushrooms.

Registration is open to all interested watercolor artists. Members of The Morton Arboretum will receive a discount on their enrollment fee.  Nature Artists’ Guild members will receive an additional discount to this workshop, co-sponsored by the Guild, which they can receive by registering by phone and confirming their Guild membership.

Please click on any of the above highlighted links to see more of Sasha’s work, to read more about him, or to learn more about or register for the workshop.

Nature Artists’ Guild’s 2019 Holiday (Autumn) Exhibit of Natural History Art

All are invited to the Nature Artists’ Guild’s 2019 Holiday (Autumn) Exhibition of Natural History Art at The Morton Arboretum on Saturday, November 9, 2019, and Sunday, November 10, 2019.  There will also be a reception for artists, their guests, and members of The Morton Arboretum on the evening of Friday, November 8, 2019.  The exhibit will showcase nearly 200 wonderful pieces of nature art by Featured Artist Jane Kellenberger and approximately 50 other members of the Nature Artists’ Guild.

Poster art copyright Jane Kellenberger. Poster design by Evelyn Grala.

The Danada Nature Art Show Celebrates 45 Years

There is still time for nature artists in the Chicagoland area to participate in the 45th Annual Danada Nature Art Show.  This exhibit, which showcases artwork by local artists, will be attended by nearly two thousand visitors over the course of the Fall Festival at Danada weekend, October 11 through 13, 2019.

Artwork must be dropped off and entry forms will be available at Danada House at Danada Forest Preserve in Wheaton, IL on October 7 or October 8, 2019 between 3 and 8 pm. 

Artwork in this exhibit must adhere strictly to a nature theme with no indication of human influence.  Awards and ribbons will be given in numerous categories.  Further details about the show can be obtained by contacting Friends of Danada at info@danadahouse.com or calling one of the numbers listed on their website.

Danada House entrance. Photo credit http://www.danadahouse.com.