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by Diane Daly, posted by Deb Shaw
Treasurers’ student working on a beautiful watercolor of a sunflower. Photo courtesy of Bowers Museum/Council on Aging Orange County © 2014.
The James Irvine Foundation generously provides grants to the Bowers Museum Treasures Program. Bowers, in turn, uses the grants to reach out to the senior community. One way to engage older adults who may be feeling isolated is through art. The Treasures program reaches out to senior centers, community centers, libraries, social service agencies and residential communities by offering lectures, films, classes and tours.
The Council on Aging of Orange County is one of those agencies that works with the Bowers Treasures program. Since 1973, their mission has been to promote independence, health and dignity of older adults through compassion, education and advocacy. I have had the most rewarding experience and opportunity to teach a botanical drawing and painting class to the seniors at the Council on Aging. They provide translators since some of the seniors speak minimal English. I went home after the first class and brushed up on my Spanish and learned a greeting in Korean. The language differences seem to disappear when we are all involved in the art process of observing and drawing a fruit or plant. For eight sessions, we had a variety of specimens, starting with an apple and pear, a single tulip, a zinnia, a variety of peppers and chilis, a rose and finishing with a sunflower. It was pure joy to see the delight on their faces as they walked in and saw what the subject would be for the day.
Students who are completely blind (but formerly sighted) were able to produce beautiful drawings. Photo courtesy of Bowers Museum/Council on Aging Orange County © 2014.
At first, when I was briefed on what the class should entail, I was told that there would be a few adults who were totally blind or had some sight impairment. Now, after all these years of trying to get as much detail in a botanical painting, I was truly baffled on how a blind person would be able to draw and how would I be able to teach them anything about drawing a flower. But, I was the one to learn a few things about drawing. They were able to feel the fruit or flower with their hands, emboss the paper with firm pressure on the pencil, use circle templates for guidance, and feel where to fill in the shape with color, with the aid of an assistant. I was amazed at the results. It is not botanical art as we know it, but is art that helps bring people together and give them pleasure and satisfaction. I made simple portfolios for them to take their drawings and paintings home on the last day.
Treasures’ student drawing a radish in graphite. Photo courtesy of Bowers Museum/Council on Aging Orange County © 2014.
I had another opportunity through the Treasures program to teach a class on painting Asian flowers on parasols. Since there were 90 adults coming to this program, we used markers instead of paint. With 90 parasols opened and everyone drawing flowers on them, it was quite a challenge to move around to all the tables. Once again, I was delighted at the results; beautiful, original designs on all the parasols. The parasols were used for a display in the museum that weekend for a cultural event. They were able to take home the parasols, as well as all the other art projects that they created.
Diane Daly giving feedback to Treasures’ student. Photo courtesy of Bowers Museum/Council on Aging Orange County © 2014.
by Deb Shaw
Astragalus trichopodus with Glaucopsyche lygdamus palosverdesensis, Common names: Locoweed with Palos Verdes Blue Butterfly. Estelle De Ridder, © 2014, all rights reserved.
In 2012, BAGSC member Estelle DeRidder was awarded an education grant from the American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA) to assist with creating sets of reusable plant identification cards featuring native plant illustrations from the Madrona Marsh Preserve in Torrence, California.
The Madrona Marsh Preserve, in collaboration with the ASBA has announced the opening of an exhibition of Estelle’s completed artwork, “The Flora of the Madrona Marsh” on Sunday, December 7, 2014, from 2 pm to 5 pm.
The exhibition will run from November 19, 2014 – January 9, 2015. Estelle also will make two presentations at the Madrona Marsh Preserve, one on Saturday, December 6, 2014 and another on Sunday, December 14, 2014, discussing botanical illustration and its importance in our world.
Information about Estelle’s project will be presented at the ASBA Annual Meeting and Conference in Denver, Colorado during the ASBA Grant Presentations on Friday evening, October 17, 2014 from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm.
The exhibition will then travel to the La Crescenta Public Library in La Crescenta, California from January 24 – February 28, 2015.
The Nature Center at the Madrona Marsh Preserve is located at: 3201 Plaza del Amo, Torrance, CA 90505. Phone: (310) 32-MARSH. The Madrona March is open Tuesday – Sunday, 10 am – 5 pm.
Congratulations Estelle!
Quercus Agrifolia, Coast Live Oak, by Estelle De Ridder, © 2014, all rights reserved.
Invitation to “The Flora of the Madrona Marsh,” original artwork by Estelle De Ridder.
by Cynthia Jackson, posted by Deb Shaw
“WORLD WIDE ART Los Angeles,” is an International Art show which will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center, from 16-19 October, 2014. Scheduled at the beginning of the international art fair season, WORLD WIDE ART Los Angeles will unveil a powerfully diverse collection of contemporary international art. More about WORLD WIDE ART Los Angeles can be found on their website.
WORLD WIDE ART Los Angeles has invited students of art schools, members of art associations and art related groups to visit the show for free. To get your free tickets, click on this link to go to their VIP EventBrite site.
Are you interested in exhibiting in 2015? If so, click this link to view their criteria and application for next year.
An opening night premiere party will be held Thursday, October 16, 2014 from 5 pm to 10 pm, sponsored by the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, Los Angeles. Show dates are Friday, October 17 and Saturday, October 18, from 10 am to 7 pm each day. Sunday, October 19 hours are 10 am to 5 pm.
WORLD WIDE ART Los Angeles will be held at the:
Los Angeles Convention Center | West Hall A
1201 South Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90015
by Deb Shaw
Back to Natives Restoration is hosting a workshop focused on the preparation of immune-boosting teas and rejuvenating foot soaks from locally native plants. The workshop will be held on:
Saturday, October 25, 2014, 1 – 3 pm
at the Back to Natives nursery
Cost: $15.00 per person, your own cup required
Craig Torres, a Native American Tongva descendant, will teach participants how to use native plants in teas and soaks. For thousands of years the Tongva of the Los Angeles basin relied on native plants for food, clothing, shelter and medicine. This reciprocal relationship between plants, animals and humans has continued throughout the generations.
Craig will talk about the uses of different native plant teas, including White Sage (and other sages), Wild Rose (Petals, Blossoms, and Hips), Elderberry (Blossoms and Berries), Yerba Santa, Yerba Buena, and California Juniper. Come prepared to sample (be sure to bring a cup). Craig will discuss proper protocol and etiquette for harvesting as well as growing natives in your own landscape. Native plants will be available for sale if you would like to purchase any.
Fee: $15/person. Proceeds go directly to habitat restoration projects. Prepayment is required. RSVP and pay at backtonatives.org
The workshop will be held at the Back to Natives nursery in Santa Ana, California. Once you know how to get there, it’s easy to find, but can be difficult until you do. The nursery is located in the Santiago Park Nature Reserve, close to the intersection of the 5 and 22 Freeways, near the Main Place shopping mall. The closest address to the nursery is 600 East Memory Lane, Santa Ana California, 92705. If you use your GPS and go to this address, however, you will get lost!
The Google links are more precise: https://goo.gl/maps/rdjIC
Google Link (from the 5 fwy): https://goo.gl/maps/9MIzC
Google Link (from the 22 fwy): https://goo.gl/maps/M0Shb
Once you are on Memory Lane, turn in at the Santiago Nature Reserve Sign, drive past the Nature Center and park at the overpass. As always, carpooling is recommended.
Look for the sign to the Santiago Park Nature Reserve to turn in from Memory Lane
by Deb Shaw
Joan Keesey, Heteromeles arbutifolia, California Holly, Watercolor on Paper. © 2013, all rights reserved.
The 17th Annual International American Society of Botanical Artists opened on September 17, 2014 at The Horticultural Society of New York. The exhibition will run from September 17 – November 26, 2014.
Jurors Patricia Jonas, Marco Polo Stufano, and Catherine Watters selected 42 artworks out of 215 submissions from around the world. The exhibition includes works by artists from the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Israel, Japan, and the United Kingdom. BAGSC members Joan Keesey, Lesley Randall, and Deborah Shaw have artwork in the exhibition. A full-color catalog with all of the artwork is available at ArtPlantae for $20, plus shipping.
Lesley Randall, Ma’o hau hele, Hibiscus brackenridgei, pen and ink on board. © 2014, all rights reserved.
The ASBA has posted the artwork and the artists’ stories behind each piece. Click on the artists’ names in this posting and on the ASBA website to see the artwork and read the artists’ stories.
Congratulations to all of the artists in the exhibition and to the following artists who received awards at the opening reception:
The Horticultural Society of New York Best in Show: Annie Patterson
Eleanor Wunderlich Award for Excellence: milly acharya (Purple Passionflower)
Helen Gray Garber Award: Constance Scanlon
Susan Frei Nathan Fine Works on Paper, LLC Award: Asuka Hishiki
Brooklyn Botanic Garden Award for Drawing & Prints: Lesley Randall
Honorable Mentions: Ingrid Finnan (Yellow Dahlia), Haruyo Kawashima, Carrie DiConstanzo, and Tomoko Ogawa
Deborah B. Shaw, Cucurbita maxima, Buttercup Squashes and Section, watercolor on paper. © 2013, all rights reserved.
Botanical art workshops are being held in conjunction with the exhibition, and a “Last Look” reception with featured artists and jurors will be held on Wednesday, November 19, 2014 from 6-8 pm.
The Hort is free and open to the public Monday through Friday, 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. For further information, please contact Chris Murtha at The Hort, 212-757-0915 (x121) or cmurtha@thehort.org, or Carol Woodin, Director of Exhibitions, ASBA, exhibitions@asba-art.org, 866-691-9080.
by Quench Travel, posted by Deb Shaw
Quench has put together a new eight-night botanical painting workshop with Margaret Best in Puglia, April 12 – 20, 2015.
Puglia is absolutely dreamy, in part because somehow it remains relatively undiscovered. Its staggeringly rugged coastline stretches along the Adriatic Sea with deserted beaches, rocky coves and crystal water. White-washed towns dot the shores with a smattering of colourful marinas and the bustle of fishing boat traffic. The landscape rolls up from the water in waves of green; centuries-old olive groves as far as the eye can see are interrupted occasionally by world-class vineyards and in April, a blanket of poppies. Flowering fruit and almond trees scent the air with a heavenly aroma. Join renowned artist and teacher Margaret Best here in this idyllic setting for an 8-day Botanical Painting Workshop. Under her expert guidance you can make meticulous study the local flora, spending your days painting in the airy garden studio that overlooks the sea. Visit the nearby Baroque towns and feel a part of this warm and welcoming Puglian culture.
An overview of the itinerary:
April 12: Arrive into Monopoli and check-in at Palazzo Indelli in the historical centre. Welcome cocktail and dinner in the evening.
April 13: Morning visit to the Botanical Gardens in Monopoli with picnic lunch. Transfer to Masseria Montenapoleone and explore gardens. Afternoon to pick your specimen and set up in studio. Welcome dinner at the Masseria.
April 14: Full day in studio. Light lunch in studio. Return shuttle to Polignano a Mare for dinner at leisure.
April 15: Full day in studio. Light lunch in studio. Return shuttle to Ostuni for dinner at leisure.
April 16: Morning visit to the private Giardini Pomona with the owner. Lunch at leisure in Locorotondo followed by a half day in studio. Dinner at the Masseria.
April 17: Explore the local markets before visiting a local home and enjoying a Cooking class and lunch. Return for studio time in the afternoon. Dinner independently at Masseria.
April 18: Full day in studio. Light lunch in studio. Return shuttle to Cisternino for dinner at leisure.
April 19: Full day in studio. Light lunch in studio. Gala evening exhibition with buffet meal.
April 20: Independent departures.
Costs start from €3,555. There is an early booking discount of €125 for bookings confirmed before October 10, 2014.
Margaret Best is an internationally recognized botanical artist and teacher offering tuition in graphite, colour pencil and watercolour. She has taught workshops to all levels of experience from rank beginners, intermediates to advanced levels in Canada, UK, Italy, USA and Bermuda. These workshop venues include respected botanical gardens and institutions such as Huntington Gardens, Pasadena; Santa Barbara Botanical Gardens; San Diego Natural History Museum; Filoli near San Francisco; Dow Learning Center in Zoo Conservatory, Calgary; Bermuda Art Center, Hamilton Bermuda. Margaret’s watercolours have been widely exhibited – New York; Weisman Museum, Minneapolis; Hunt institute of Botanical Documentation, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh; Los Angeles, Denver, Bermuda, Toronto, San Francisco and her work is found in numerous private and corporate collections around the globe. Margaret has designed six coins with botanical themes for the Royal Canadian Mint, with 2 to be released in 2015. For the past 6 years Margaret has painted regularly with her mentor Pandora Sellars who is widely regarded by experts as the leading contemporary botanical artist of our time. A professionally qualified art teacher, Margaret is known for her nurturing style and her ability to readily identify student skill level in order to steer advancement.
Download the PDF flyer Quench_Itinerary_Puglia to read more about the trip, or contact Quench at 416.366.2777 or email tripdesign@quenchtravel.com.
By Arillyn Moran-Lawrence, posted by Deb Shaw
Arillyn Moran-Lawrence, “Elegant Syrah,” pen and ink on paper. © 2014, all rights reserved.
BAGSC member Arilyn Moran-Lawrence’s pen and ink drawing titled “Elegant Syrah” has been juried into the Lloyd Library and Museum fall exhibition. The Lloyd Library and Museum is one of the premier botanical libraries in the United States. The exhibition is titled “If Wine is Sublime.” The show runs from September 13, 2014 to December 12, 2014.
Can’t make it to the show? View the artworks online. The exhibition includes works in diverse media, including watercolor, oil, hand-woven tapestries, video, lithography and cast aluminum tile. Many of the participants are ASBA members.
The Lloyd Library and Museum is located at: 917 Plum Street, Cincinnati OH 45202. If you would like further information about the Lloyd Library and Museum, please contact Anna Heran, Exhibit Curator, 513 721 3707, or curator@lloydlibrary.org.
Congrats Arillyn!
by Lesley Randall, posted by Deb Shaw
Watercolor by Clara Josephs, © 2014, all rights reserved.
The San Diego Botanic Garden and the Botanical Artists Guild of Southern California (BAGSC) will be holding an exhibition titled, Artists’ Favorites. These beautiful and unbelievably detailed works of art depict different plant species—several of which are found in the San Diego Botanic Garden. Forty-three works representing 18 different artists were carefully selected for this juried show. Each of the plants and paintings hold a special place in each artist’s heart.
Artists include: Cristina Baltayian, Melanie Campbell-Carter, Diane Daly, Estelle DeRidder, Linda Ericksen, Cynthia Jackson, Susan Jackson, Clara Josephs, Joan Keesey, Suzanne Kuuskmae, Lesley Randall, Kirsten Rindal, Mitsuko Schultz, Gilly Shaeffer, Deb Shaw, Janice Sharp, Gayle Uyehara, and Leslie Walker.
The exhibit will run from:
September 21, 2014 – November 16, 2014
at the San Diego Botanic Garden
in the Ecke Building
The exhibition is open for viewing daily, 9 am – 5 pm
Cost: Free with paid admission or membership
An Artists’ Reception will be held
Sunday, September 21, 2014
San Diego Botanic Garden, Ecke Building
4:30 pm – 7 pm
The Artists’ Reception is free, and is open to the public. Members, friends and family are welcome. Come and meet some of the BAGSC artists at the reception.
The San Diego Botanic Garden is located at 230 Quail Gardens Drive, Encinitas, California 92024. The phone number is 760.436.3036.
BAGSC News 