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The October 10th BAGSC Quarterly Meeting will be at Tania Norris’ Home.
9:00 Coffee
9:30 Meeting starts promptly
Agenda
I. Welcome members & guests
II. Secretary’s Report
III. Treasurer’s Report
IV. Membership Report
V. Old Business
A. BAGSC Revised By-Laws
B. ASBA Annual Meeting in Tucson, AZ, October 14-17, 2009
C. Arboretum Marketplace Booth, 2010
D. Margaret Best’s Class, Huntington Botanic Garden, July 21, 22, & 23, 2009
VI. New Business
A. Thank you to Sue Kuuskmae for putting together a news letter
B. Jane Herrmann Home tour, Pasadena Symphony Orchestra Benefit Show
C. Classes, visitations, excursions & shows in the planning stages for 2010
D. Akiko Enokido will report on the Florilegium Tea in England and the ASBA New York Horticultural Show, and show the catalog from the NY Hort. Show
E. Nominations for President & Treasurer to be submitted to the Vice President, Norma Sarkin, in writing by email or from the floor at the meeting
VII. Program
A. Kathy Dunham will show how to sketch from camera and pictures.
B. Please bring any BAGSC records, files or property, or a list showing what you have in your possession, so we can create an up-to-date inventory.
C. Deborah Shaw & Tania Marien will bring ASBA 2008 conference leftovers to distribute to members.
D. SWAP MEET: Members should bring art supplies they wish to sell, trade, or give away. Leftovers will be donated to a non-profit children’s organization.
E. Portfolio sharing: As always, portfolios and other learned items are welcomed.
Pot luck lunch will be served. Please bring a small salad, dessert, bread or soda to share; the main dish will be provided by the hostess. Please RSVP to Tania by phone or email.
Questions: call or email Leslie.
See you there!
By Sue Kuuskmae
Sally Jacobs is going to lecture and demo at the General Meeting of the VAG (Valley Artists Guild). The meeting will be held on September 27th, 2009, at the Encino Community Center, 4935 Balboa Blvd, Encino, CA 91316 in the Women’s Center Building, adjacent to the back parking lot.
Any members of any art group interested in attending are more than welcome. The fee is only $8 for non-members and we would love to see you. The announcement is on the VAG website in our September newsletter.
By Leslie Walker
The next meeting will be October 10 at Tania Norris’ house. Nominations are solicited for the offices of President and Treasurer. The offices are for two years and the person nominated must agree to serve for two years. All members are encouraged to think about this and should feel free to nominate themselves if willing to serve and give some time to the Guild.
The Agenda and previous meeting’s minutes will be out soon.
By Sue Kuuskmae
Joan Keesey & Sue Kuuskmae with Hibiscus Kokio
The 11th Annual Botanical Art Exhibition opened at Filoli on June 23rd. Participating artists from BAGSC were Peggy Irvine, Joan Keesey, and Suzanne Kuuskmae. Joan Keesey showed her watercolor, Krantz aloe, and Suzanne Kuuskmae showed two watercolors, Lace Cap Hydrangea and Hibiscus kokio. Also hanging was Cyclamen persicum, a watercolor by former member Nancy Boyarsky. I drove up to Woodside to attend the reception and help at the sales table where I was happy to find Joan Keesey and her husband there as well. I was also happily surprised to see Margaret Best who was there enjoying the beautiful botanical art, and we all had a few moments to chat.
The art exhibition this year was held in the Visitor and Education Center rather than in the previous location, the ballroom of the main house. The paintings were hung in the main room as well as two side rooms that are adjacent. At the Artist Reception held on Thursday, July 16 from 5 – 7 p.m. refreshments were served, and the gardens were open for attendees to visit. It was quite a warm evening, so we were all very glad when all the doors of the Center were thrown open to catch the light breezes.
When my shipping box came back several weeks ago, I found that my Lace Cap Hydrangea had been sold, which I guess I should have been happy about, but for me it is always a bitter-sweet experience when I really loved the piece. Knowing me, I will be thinking seriously of painting something similar soon.
Joan Keesey with her watercolor, Krantz aloe
Sue Kuuskmae's watercolor, Lace Cap Hydrangea
By Sue Kuuskamae
Dinner at the Plantation. Wendy Hollender is in the middle.
Early on the morning of August 21 I returned from the island of Kauai where I participated in a two-week colored pencil class given by Wendy Hollender of the New York Botanical Garden. The class was held on the grounds of the National Tropical Botanical Gardens where the students numbering around 13 had the run of the McBryde and Allerton gardens to find interesting plants, trees, or flowers to draw and paint. Also we were lucky to have Dr. David Burney, NTBG Director of Conservation, assisting with various garden plant identification walks, botanical lectures, and a day-long visit to the Makauwahi Cave Reserve where restoration of native plants is in progress.
Thunbergia Sky Vine
Wendy likes to use Faber Castell Polychromos pencils because she can easily reach a rich saturation color without the troublesome buildup that one sometimes gets using waxy pencils. She, like many other colored pencil teachers, stresses that one must keep a very sharp point on one’s pencils. Her method includes careful measuring of the specimen, a light drawing in graphite, a complete under-tone using a sepia pencil always keeping in mind the upper left scientific light source, and using a range of tones from dark to light in overlap areas. She reminded us constantly to keep in mind tone first and color second.
Sue Kuuskmae with colored pencil painting.
The students in the class ranged from those with an extensive background in art to those with little or no experience. Most of the students were either docents at the gardens or interested island residents. Four of the class members were from the mainland. Most were most interested in developing a skill using colored pencils, which many had not used before. The class was not only informative but quite a lot of fun due to Wendy’s great skill as a teacher, her ever present sense of humor, and the rapport that developed among the students. Enrollment in the class was fairly flexible with some taking only the first week, some showing up for only the second week, and a few taking days here and there. I know that Wendy will be traveling out this way several times a year to teach at Filoli in Woodside, CA continuing on to NTBG for follow up classes at the gardens. I know she would love to include a stop here in Los Angeles so hopefully more of us will be able to enjoy learning her methods in the coming years.
Ruth Poulton and Sue Kuuskmae at National Tropical Gardens in Kauai.
Compiled by Sue Kuuskmae
Julie Schneider Ljubenkov to start native plant nursery on Rincon Reservation
Julie Schneider Ljubenkov of Pauma Valley (San Diego area) was invited by the
Rincon Indian Tribe’s Environmental Department to start up a native plant nursery on the Reservation. Two acres will be developed to open on Earth Day next Spring.
Sally might have a new address
Sally Jacobs is thinking of moving to Culver City, which will take a bit of planning, so she is not able to spend as much time painting as she usually does.
Arillyn Moran-Lawrence exhibiting at the National Arts Club, New York
Arillyn Moran-Lawrence’s painting of the endangered Hawaiian Hibiscus clayi will be shown in an exhibition of the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club at the National Arts Club New York City, NY. The National Arts Club is located at 15 Gramercy Park South. The 113th Annual Exhibition runs from October 1-23, 2009. Call the National Arts Club at 212-475-3424 for additional information. Catalog available.
Collected by Sue Kuuskmae
Artplantae.com Web Site
This web site is a great one for a wealth of information about plants and for finding classes in your area. There is also a companion blog with wonderful information that’s updated frequently.
Olga Eysymontt’s Botanical Art Classes
In the immediate Los Angeles area, Olga Eysymontt teaches botanical art at The Los Angeles Arboretum. Email Jill Berry or call her at (626) 821-4624 to sign up.
Jude Wiesenfeld Oil and Watercolor Classes
Jude Wiesenfeld just started working at Ben Bridge Jewelers in the Simi Valley Town Center. Please come in to see me and all the beautiful jewelry and watches! I am continuing to teach oil and watercolor every Thursday at Renee’s Art Studio in Chatsworth (818) 701-9887.
Julie Schneider Ljubenkov’s Class in San Diego County
Julie Schneider Ljubenkov will teach a class, Focus on Flowers, on the Mira Costa campus beginning Wednesday evenings for 7 weeks, September 30 – October 18, from 6 – 8:30 p.m. Call (760) 795-6820 or register online.
By Sue Kuuskmae
President – Margaret Lindsey
1st Vice President – Lynn Attig (Communications/public relations)
2nd Vice President – David Wolfram (Programming/exhibitions)
Secretary – Suzanne Kuuskmae
Treasurer – Bonny Botello
President, Margaret Lindsey, presided over our first meeting held at the Automatic Printing Co. in Torrance, CA. We all had a chance to introduce our selves and art work to each other and then had a lively discussion about the goals of the group. One of our main concentrations will be to provide art demonstrations at meetings, to have several workshops with teachers of pastel during the year, and to have one show of our pastel work. There were 17 potential members in attendance. If any of you want to get involved in doing pastel painting, contact Margaret by email.
Our next meeting will be held Saturday, September 19 at Graphaids, 7280 Manchester Blvd., Westchester, 90045. The demonstrator will be Joe Mancuso who is a local pastel teacher. If you plan to attend, please let Sue Kuuskmae know.
By Sue Kuuskamae
The John Smolko colored pencil class will be held November 9, 10, and 11th from 9:30 to 3:30 at the home of Margaret Lindsey in Torrance. The final cost of the three-day workshop will be around $200 a person depending on the number attending. The following members of CPSA have made their deposit: Barbara Rogers, Rosa Weitzel, Joan Reeves, Gayle Uyehara, Sue Kuuskmae, Morgan Kari; independent artists: Donna Lock & Mary Ann Sapp; and Botanical Artist Guild member, Rita Hopper. We could take a few more students, so if you are interested or have additional questions, please contact Sue Kuuskmae by phone or by email (click on the name to launch the email) to make sure spots are still open. You can send a deposit check for $100 to Sue to hold your place. Additional detailed information will be sent out sometime in October.
BAGSC News 