We got a little muddy, we experienced a little Zen, and we had a great time at the program last night!
Nancy Hart 
led us through the history of clay, inspired us with her beautiful work, and even walked us all through the tactile experience of silently molding clay with our eyes closed. As always, Nancy was so fun, interesting and informative. Thank you Nancy, for a thoroughly enjoyable evening!
Our new blog header features the artwork of Susan Vogel, the featured artist for the Guild’s 2010 Holiday Exhibition at Thornhill Auditorium.
The Exhibition, showcasing the artwork of over fifty Guild members, opens Friday, November 12 with a reception from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm for Arboretum members, Guild members and their guests. The exhibition is open to the public November 13-14 from Noon to 5:00 p.m.
There is no admission fee for the exhibition; however, non-Arboretum members will need to pay admission to the Arboretum.
I grew up in Lisle, IL. I have fond memories of past winters including ice skating on Lake Marmo in the Morton Arboretum and walks through that snowy wonderland. I was constantly aware of nature. Wild plants and animals were everywhere when I went on outings with my family. When I came home, I would sit by my desk and make pencil drawings of some of the sights I experienced. My mother was an artist and I loved her work. It inspired me. I wanted to be just like her.
It was the comic books and movies by Walt Disney that were my next inspiration. “Bambi” and “Alice in Wonderland were my favorites. I guess I was an ambitious little kid because at the age of eleven I sent Walt Disney a letter and some of my drawings and asked him for a job. Someone very kind answered my letter and suggested that I go to college first.
Art classes weren’t offered at my schools when I was growing up. So when I was of high school age, I rode the train each summer to attend art classes at Lyons Township High School in LaGrange. Later, I attended Northern Illinois University, majoring in art.
Then along came marriage and children with no time for artwork. After a gap of 30+ years, I started classes at College of Dupage, as a beginning art student once more. Their catalog offered botanical art classes at The Morton Arboretum. I love the classes here at the Arboretum, with teachers who actually teach techniques and students who are helpful and supportive. I got my Botanical Art Certificate and when the Master program was offered; I was the first to receive the Botanical Art and Illustration Master’s Studio Certificate.
I prefer working with live specimens of fauna and flora in front of me., but sometimes a photograph has more advantages. I always carry my little digital camera with me and take snapshots of moving subjects, like birds, bugs and other animals. Originally, I was strictly a botanical artist but I’m branching out in different directions. Maybe I’ll try painting birds. After all, my last name “Vogel” means bird in German.
I joined the Nature Artists’ Guild (NAG) in 2001 and have met many wonderful artists who inspire and challenge my abilities. Thank you all for your support and believing in me.
While most of us have had the pleasure of meeting Nancy Hart (Stieber), many of us only know her as an always friendly, fun, and helpful fellow member of the Nature Artists’ Guild. What many of us don’t realize is that Nancy is also the retired Staff Artist of the Morton Arboretum and Curator of Rare Prints and Drawings at the Sterling Morton library, as well as the developer of the Botanical Art and Illustration Certificate Program and the founder of our very own Nature Artists’ Guild! A graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Nancy has notable accomplishments in an incredible array of learning, teaching, designing, lecturing and exhibiting (including The Smithsonian Institution, The Art Institute of Chicago, and The New York Natural History Museum) activities.
Please join us as at the arboretum’s Thornhill Educational Center on Thursday, October 7 at 7:00 pm, as Nancy shares her enthusiasm as well as the challenges presented by her newest form of creative expression, the art of sculpture in ceramics. Her new third dimensional work is so different from her previous two dimensional work that Nancy reports that “to think of a piece from all sides at the same time makes my head hurt! But I love it!” She also loves the history around the human use of clay, which is “omnipresent” and “all wrapped up in the earliest of human endeavors”, as well as “the feel of clay at all stages”. Nancy’s love of her latest chosen art form is even more apparent in her statement that “It is almost alive as it changes from dust to the final beauty of artists’ creations”. Not only will Nancy bring examples of her work and discuss basic hand-building , but she will be bringing clay for each of us and guiding us through the formation of a tea bowl!
As always, refreshments will be served and guests and visitors are welcome!
How many of us have bought books that looked great at the bookstore, but just didn’t fit our expectations when we got them home? Or loved a book, but read it so many times that it is now committed to memory? Well, just because you will never again open your copy of Beginners’s Guide to Painting Insects in Pastel, doesn’t mean that you should just throw it away or waste your valuable shelf space. One of your fellow NAG members might find in it just the inspiration they’ve been looking for!
Our membership chair, Sylvia Tester has organized a book swap for our October 7th meeting featuring Nancy Hart (see story above). Sylvia notes that “many of us have a host of books about art and natural history”, and “the idea is to bring a book you have read and probably will not read again, and to take home a book that is new to you”. It is requested that the subject matter be limited to art, photography and natural history. We hope the book swap is a success that we can repeat in the future!
Don’t forget that your prospectus for the Holiday Exhibition of the Nature Artists’ Guild must be postmarked by this Friday, October 1st, 2010! You should have received the prospectus by mail or e-mail in August. If you have misplaced it, please contact either of the exhibit co-chairs, Sharon Malec or Laverne Bohlin.
If you are a newer member, whether an experienced artist or beginner and have never exhibited with NAG, please don’t hesitate to exhibit in the holiday show! You’ll find that your fellow guild members are friendly, supportive and non-competitive, and the experience will be rewarding.
Our president, Jill Adzia, and Outside Exhibits Coordinator, Paulette McDermott have outdone themselves in arranging a fantastic new opportunity for Nature Artists’ Guild members to display their artwork!
The Canterbury Shoppe, at 43 W. Jefferson Street in Naperville, has offered exclusive space in their shop for an ongoing exhibit of Nature Artists’ Guild artwork. The work displayed will be rotated every three months to reflect the seasons, and final decisions on all entries will be made by the shop owner. Original artwork must be matted and framed, and giclee prints, notecards, postcards and tiles are also welcome.
The winter-themed show, open to all NAG members, opens December 1, and details will be forthcoming.
The autumn-themed “trial run” show opens Thursday evening, September 23rd, and includes a demonstration by Laverne Bohlin at 7 pm. The show runs through November 31.
Please check your e-mail or contact Paulette for more details.
Nancy Thyfault has again arranged for you to have your very own artwork reproduced onto ceramic tiles, ornaments or pendants! The process requires a digital image of your artwork, and you should have recently received the price list and details via e-mail. This special pricing was arranged by Nancy especially for NAG 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.
Once again, we will be publishing a month-at-a-glance calendar to raise funds for the Guild. The calendars will be sold at the Holiday Exhibition.
The calendars make great gifts and are the perfect size for a desktop or windowsill, measuring just under 5 inches wide.
All Guild members are encouraged to submit artwork. Download the instructions and specifications here: 2011 Calendar Information Sheet
The deadline for submissions is September 25, 2010.
As in the past two years, there will be a workshop in October to assemble the printed pages.
If you have questions or need assistance with preparing your work for the calendar, please contact Mary Ingels.
We’ve created a list of Nature Artists’ Guild important dates for the rest of 2010 (deadlines, exhibits, workshops, paint-outs, meetings). You could print it (on recycled paper, of course) and hang it in a prominent place for help with motivation to get drawing or painting -after all, you have an exhibit coming up!
Click here to open for reading or printing.
The annual Holiday Exhibit Workshop is scheduled for September 25, 2010 Thornhill Room B from 9:30 am – 1:00 pm. Workshop coordinators Nancy T. and Sharon M. invite all members to “Join us to create one of a kind treasures for our Artisan Shop (fundraising table). We have gourds, wooden items, and a felting project, which is a new, fun thing for us. Our fabulous team of fabric artists will guide us through the felting project and we will have holiday fabric coasters to sew together- just 4 straight lines of stitching! We will show you how to make a transfer from your own artwork, which can be part of the design on a wooden piece. You just need to bring a color laser copy, which can be made at any office supply store. We will have 2” square mini canvases available to paint any way you want. Add a magnet or a pin back for a miniature, portable piece of art! Continue reading “Holiday Exhibit Workshop Scheduled”
Nature Artists' Guild 
