Please join the members of the Nature Artists’ Guild of The Morton Arboretum at their annual Spring Exhibit. All are welcome, and admission to the exhibit is free, although there is a gate fee for entry into The Morton Arboretum. The exhibit will consist of the work of more than fifty members of the Nature Artists’ Guild.
Waking up to our first frost last week has many of us thinking about the upcoming winter! Instead of dreading the cold, the snow, the ice and the slush, why not think of winter as a wonderful time for learning something new? After all, the gardening and yardwork are done, summer vacations are over, and the kids or grandkids are back in school – now it’s time for you!
Whether you prefer to spend the cold months all warm and toasty indoors, or outdoors exploring the magical beauty that only snow and ice can provide, the new winter schedule for The Morton Arboretum Education Program has something for you.
After choosing your winter art classes, don’t forget to check out some of the other areas of interest –Natural History, Nature Photography, Ornithology, Horticulture and Gardening and Woodland Stewardship. Learning something completely new and different is a great way to enrich those winter months!
Click here for The Morton Arboretum Education Program schedules.
If you’re still undecided about attending tomorrow’s Nature Artists’ Guild paint-out at The Morton Arboretum, please click here to see their latest “Autumn Color Report”!
With nice weather expected (mostly sunny, 65 degrees), it’s likely the Arboretum will be the place to be this weekend, so although we’ll meet at 9:30 in front of Thornhill, it probably wouldn’t hurt to come a little early to beat the crowd. The gates will open at 7 am!
Update – Enjoy this “start” of a mixed media painting of Sterling Pond, created by Marilyn Peretti using cold wax and oil, painted with a palette knife!
Our new header features detail from Yellow Honeysuckle, Lonicera reticulata, by our 2011 Holiday Exhibit featured artist, Ku-mie Kim. You can read more about Ku-mie and see some of her lovely images on our “Featured Artist” page by clicking the tab above or by clicking here. Congratulations, Ku-mie, and we look forward to seeing many more examples of your wonderful talent at our exhibit in November!
Our Fundraising Chair Nancy Thyfault has again arranged for members of the Nature Artists’ Guild to have their very own artwork reproduced onto ceramic tiles, ornaments or pendants! The process requires a digital image of your artwork, and you should have received the price list and details via e-mail a few weeks ago. This special pricing was arranged by Nancy especially for our members, and is available not only for items to be sold at our Artisan (fundraising) table at the Holiday Exhibit in November, but also for items you may choose to make for yourself or give as gifts! If you have any questions about the project, please contact Nancy.
Order forms and payment must be postmarked by, and artwork e-mailed by October 25.
Whether you have finished pieces ready for our upcoming Holiday show, or just a few sketches from your backyard, we’d love to include a few images of your creations in the Winter edition of the Nature Artists’ Guild members’ publication, “The Quarterly”.
All you need to do is send a JPEG file to Evelyn Grala (her contact information can be found in your Yearbook). If you don’t have a professional scan of your artwork or a home printer/scanner, any office supply chain should be able to scan your artwork (usually up to 11 x 17 inches) for just a few dollars (just make sure the artwork is not under glass). They’ll even e-mail the JPEG file to Evelyn for another small fee! Evelyn will be able to crop off or clean up the edges of the scan if needed, and then it’s ready for publication!
Please be sure to e-mail all images to Evelyn by October 25 to be included in the Winter issue.
One thing is for certain – Patty loves to spend time outdoors! She’s kind of quiet, but you can tell by her smile that she’s thrilled to be the newest member of the Nature Artists’ Guild. Be sure to stop by to see Patty before our next meeting on October 6. She spends most, if not all, of her time at The Morton Arboretum, hanging out by the lake with some friends.
Also pictured are Jill Adzia, Patty Koenigsaecker and Suzanne Wegener (they’re the ones not wearing hats).
In addition to all the other fun things we’ll be working on during our Holiday Exhibit Workshop at Thornhill tomorrow (see details in earlier post), we’ll also be assembling the very first Nature Artists’ Guild Scarecrow for The Morton Arboretum’s annual display. The gorgeous gal in the sketch below, by Nature Artists’ Guild member Patty Koenigsaecker, is what we hope our scarecrow will look when she’s done. Don’t you agree she just may be the cutest scarecrow ever? Please stop by the workshop any time between 10 and 2 to help get her ready for her debut!
Suzanne Wegener, Nature Art Education Manager at The Morton Arboretum (and our Nature Artists’ Guild liaison), announces another wonderful opportunity for our members –
Painters in the Garden
Come for a day or an hour and paint in the beautifully landscaped Children’s Garden where flowers, fish and frogs abound. We will have a cooling station with goodies so don’t let a little warm weather keep you indoors. Children’s garden staff will have a “make & take” for children interested in art. Please help us raise awareness of the Nature Artists’ Guild by participating. Please RSVP to Suzanne Wegener at swegener@mortonarb.org
Suzanne adds that you can bring information about yourself and your art if you’d like –a great opportunity to promote your work! Visitors will be strolling around, but since there are volunteers who will be doing art projects with children, there is no teaching involved. Suzanne will be available both days to answer visitor’s questions about the Nature Artists’ Guild as well as The Morton Arboretum’s Education Program. Click here for more information about the Children’s Garden!
July 30th and 31st from 10:00-1:00 p.m.
Meeting Place: Children’s Garden
Nature Artists' Guild 