Category: Paint-Outs

Colonel Robert McCormick (for whom Chicago’s McCormick Place Convention Center is named) was editor and publisher of the Chicago Tribune for 44 years and the creator of “an important media empire, Tribune Company, which grew from a single newspaper to a media giant.” Cantigny Park, his 500-acre former estate, was bequeathed by Colonel McCormick as a “public space for education and recreation.”

In 1967, [famed landscape architect Franz] Lipp began construction of this lush, horticultural masterpiece, which is one of the largest display gardens in the Midwest with more than 160,000 annuals, perennials, ground covers and flowering shrubs and trees. – Cantigny.org

At 9:30 on the morning of Wednesday, September 6, members of the Nature Artists’ Guild of The Morton Arboretum will meet to explore Cantigny’s Gardens with their cameras, sketchbooks, canvases, paints, and pencils. Included are a rose garden, logarium, hosta garden, idea garden, rock and gravel gardens, and display gardens. Sculptures, fountains, waterfalls, small streams, ponds, and natural areas are also part of this vast estate, all available for the artists to enjoy.

There will be no charge for admission or parking for this paint-out and Nature Artists’ Guild members can register here to be added to the email list for details and updates.

It is Ball Horticultural Company’s mission to be the world leader in the research, breeding, production and marketing of ornamental crops.

BallHort.com

This Thursday morning, August 10, 2023, beginning at 9:30, members of the Nature Artists’ Guild will have the opportunity to spend a few hours enjoying the spectacular display gardens of Ball Horticultural.

“What began as a row trial garden for seed varieties in 1933 has grown to encompass over 9 acres of display beds for annuals, perennials, cut flowers and vegetables, including the newest plants from the industry’s leading breeders and marketers.” Ball’s “global family of breeders, research and development teams, suppliers, and distribution companies has a strong presence on six continents in 20 countries.”

Interested members of the Guild can register here by tomorrow to receive details about attending.

The Gardens at Ball have been the evaluation and testing grounds for the world’s wealth of horticultural introductions and improvements for over 80 years. What began as a row trial garden for seed varieties in 1933 has grown to encompass over 9 acres of display beds for annuals, perennials, cut flowers and vegetables

Ball Horticultural, ballhort.com/GardensAtBall

Members of the Nature Artists’ Guild of The Morton Arboretum have the opportunity to spend a lovely morning at the Gardens at Ball on Thursday, August 10, 2023, beginning at 9:30, to paint, draw, sketch, or photograph some of the wonderful flowers (or vegetables) at their peak.

Interested Guild members can register here to reserve a spot and be added to the email list for more details and updates about this paint-out.

(For some stunning photos of the Gardens at Ball, it is well worth visiting the website of the Garden Conservancy.)

The Gerald T. Donnelly Grand Garden at The Morton Arboretum was completed last year in celebration of the Arboretum’s 100th anniversary.

Already, the garden is evolving from a space containing mostly physical structures, including pergolas, benches, waterfalls, and a fountain, to a peaceful and lush area with a variety of lovely trees, flowers, and shrubs.

The Grand Garden will continue to develop each year, and the Nature Artists’ Guild has an opportunity to visit on July 12, 2023 from 9:30 until noon (rain date, if necessary, July 13) to capture in photos, pencil, ink, paint, or pastels, some of this year’s beauty.

Members of the Guild who would like to spend a morning with fellow members at this paint-out at the Grand Garden can register by clicking here and receive further details and updates from coordinator Celia Rodee.

Promises of a lovely morning in the garden –

There is still time for Nature Artists’ Guild members to arrange to attend this Thursday morning’s paint-out at the beautiful private garden of Anne and Charles Bouchard in Glen Ellyn, IL from 9:30 am to noon. Paint-Out Coordinator Celia Rodee will be bringing coffee and Rosemary Currant and Maple Pecan scones for all attendees, and the weather forecast looks promising!

The Bouchard’s landscape was originally designed by Tony Tyznik (landscape architect of The Morton Arboretum for forty years) in his signature style, and has been updated and enhanced over the years.

Members can sign up here to be included on Celia’s email list for directions, further details, and updates for what promises to be a lovely morning in the garden.

Next week’s Nature Artists’ Guild’s paint-out at Lilacia Park in Lombard, IL will be held just days before the official opening of the city’s annual Lilac Time celebration, so many of the more than 700 lilacs and 35,000 tulips should be blooming!

On Thursday morning, May 4, 2023 (rain date of Friday, May 5), members of the Guild will gather between 9:30 am and noon at the historic 8.5-acre park to sketch, paint, photograph, and enjoy the sights, sounds, and scents.

Artists can enjoy the use of the park’s council rings, design elements frequently used by renowned Prairie School landscape architect Jens Jensen (whose vision was instrumental in the design or re-design of Columbus Park, Humboldt Park, and Garfield Park in Chicago and in nearly 600 other public and private projects).

According to the Lombard Historical Society, “A council ring becomes a destination for the wanderer, a spot where a visitor can enjoy solitude or a couple of visitors can have a quiet conversation without being on view to other wanderers. Lilacia Park is one of Jensen’s smallest designs and contains, to this day, many of Jensen’s signature elements.”

All members of the Nature Artists’ Guild are welcome to stop by, and can register here to be added to Paint-Out Coordinator Celia Rodee’s email list to receive details and updates.