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by Beth Stone
It’s pre-dawn on Friday and we’ve loaded our sleepy selves into The Huntington van with Jim Folsom at the wheel. We’re off to see the flowers, the wonderful flowers of the LA Flower Mart!
Peonies, Clematis and Lilies oh my!
We could while away the hours, conversing with the flowers…
and it’s back to The Huntington with The Wizard!
by Beth Stone
There are two georgeous Bat Flower (Tacca chantrieri) paintings featured in the Weird, Wild & Wonderful exhibition currently on display at The Huntington. The hauntingly beautiful flowers can measure up to 12″ across with “whiskers” up to 30″ long. Did I ever expect to see these jungle flowers in Southern California? Certainly not, but I must have forgotten I was in such a magical place! A whole row of plants appeared in The Huntington’s Banta Hall this morning!
Bring on the dramatic theater lighting and just watch how this villainess poses for the camera!
by Beth Stone
The LA Times dubbed the weather WEIRD, while plant lovers call it WONDERFUL!!
Symposium week is finally here! There are two great workshops underway — Mieko Ishikawa and Elaine Searle, and attendees are getting a preview as the Banta Hall displays are being assembled.
by Deb Shaw
Alain Touwaide will be one of the lunch hour keynote speakers at the “Weird, Wild & Wonderful Symposium,” July 23–26, 2015 at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. We can get a sneak peak with a different lecture by Alain this Saturday at The Huntington, when he gives a talk entitled, “Gardens for Health: A Walk through History.”
Alain Touwaide will explore how humans have recognized the therapeutic benefits of nature since ancient times, and have built gardens that helped restore health, both physical and spiritual. By reviewing some iconic sites in the Mediterranean world—Pompeii, Constantinople, Baghdad, Cordoba, Granada, and Padua, among others—Touwaide examines archaeological fields and early manuscripts that illustrate the relationship between humans and nature through time and space.
Tania Marien has posted blog articles about Alain Touwaide and Emanuela Appetiti on ArtPlantae Today. She encourages all of us to attend: “I have been to Alain’s presentations at the conferences of the Renaissance Society of America and the History of Science Society and can confirm without question you will leave enlightened and leave thinking about herbals in an entirely different way. How Alain and Emanuela interpret what is written in the herbals is fascinating.”
Touwaide is scientific director of the Institute for the Preservation of Medical Traditions and research associate at the Smithsonian Institution.
Gardens for Health: A Walk through History
Saturday, May 2, 2015
2:30 p.m.
Rothenberg Hall
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens
Free; no reservations required
by Beth Stone and Deb Shaw
Solanum lycopersicum, Heirloom Tomato, Watercolor on paper, © Asuka Hishiki
BAGSC will be holding an adjunct exhibition to “Weird, Wild & Wonderful: The New York Botanical Garden Second Triennial Exhibition, Botanical Illustrations of Remarkable Plants” in Banta Hall at The Huntington’s Brody Botanical Center.
The theme of this exhibition will focus on botanical specimens of plants compatible with the theme of the New York exhibition, “Weird, Wild & Wonderful.” Curated by the ASBA and originally opening in New York in 2014, “Weird, Wild & Wonderful” will open June 13 and continue through August 23 in The Huntington’s Brody Botanical Center, Flori-Legium Room, San Marino, California. The exhibition will be open to the public Saturdays and Sundays during the summer, plus additional times during workshops and the Symposium. The exhibition also will be open to the public August 1 – 9 along with the BAGSC “Weird, Wild & Wonderful” adjunct exhibition.
BAGSC artists are invited to seek visually unusual plants and create works of art that celebrate the bizarre, yet beautiful flora of the world. Botanical oddities and curiosities could be those found locally, in natural surroundings or a botanical garden. Dick Rauh, PhD offered ideas to artists on potentially pertinent plants: http://asba-art.org/article/weird-wild-and-wonderful-suggested-subjects.
The “Call for Entries” packet will be sent out via email blast to members soon. Members will be able to enter up to three works. It is our hope to include at least one art work from each and every BAGSC member. So whether you are an experienced exhibitor or you have not yet entered a show, please read the call for entries when you receive it and get to work on your entry now! Framing will be “artists’ choice.”
Some deadlines to mark on your calendar:
- ASAP: We will be coordinating with BAGSC artists and The Huntington to include as many different species as possible. Please let us know what you have, are painting, or are considering painting. Please email the complete botanical name of your choices ASAP to Beth Stone. Don’t worry, this does not obligate you to submit those works.
- Wednesday, May 27, 2015: This date is the absolute deadline for getting your list emailed to Beth Stone of what you have, are painting, or are considering painting. We will submit our “list of plant subjects” as best we know it to The Huntington so they can start planning on signage, related plants from the Garden, microscopes and more to go with our exhibition.
- Wednesday, July 1, 2015: July 1 is the deadline for digital submissions, entry fee and complete entry forms.
Questions about the exhibition? Contact Bonnie Born Ash or Beth Stone.
Need some Weird, Wild & Wonderful inspiration?
Kathy Musial, The Huntington’s curator of living collections, and Huntington horticultural staff will give BAGSC members a private tour of the greenhouses and gardens to talk about their own favorite weird, wild and wonderful plants. This is a great opportunity to get ideas and ask a botanist questions about plants you are painting.
May 8, 2015
10 am; The tour begins at 10 am sharp, so please plan to arrive earlier so you are ready. The tour will leave whether or not you are there.
The Huntington
You must RSVP with Beth Stone to attend. The Huntington will have stickers for us, so there will be no entry fee. The new café is open at The Huntington if you would like to purchase lunch after the plant tour. Details about where, when to meet up and more will be sent out later. You are welcome to spend the day at The Huntington.
Happy painting!
by Deb Shaw
BAGSC member Lisa Pompelli will be teaching a botanical art class about carnivorous plants at The Huntington during the month of November:
Nepenthe, watercolor by Lisa Pompelli, © 2014, all rights reserved.
Botanical Watercolors: Carnivorous Plants
Saturdays, November 1 – November 15, 2014
9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Members: $245. Non-Members: $275.
Explore the unusual world of sarracenias, nepenthes, sundews, and other carnivorous plants while honing your botanical watercolor skills. Prior drawing experience recommended. Register online with Brown Paper Tickets, or call 800-838-3006. A supply list will be sent upon registration.
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens is located at:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
by Deb Shaw
The American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA), The Botanical Artists Guild of Southern California (BAGSC) and The Huntington Botanical Gardens present:
A Weird, Wild & Wonderful Symposium
July 23 (Thursday) – 26 (Sunday), 2015
in conjunction with
Weird, Wild & Wonderful
The Second New York Botanical Garden Triennial Exhibition of 46 captivating paintings and illustrations of exotic specimens by invited members of the American Society of Botanical Artists at
The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Garden
San Marino, California
Solanum lycopersicum, Heirloom Tomato, Watercolor on paper, © Asuka Hishiki
Information about the Symposium is available on the ASBA website, and registration opens in May, 2015. Save the dates and watch this blog for exciting learning and volunteering opportunities.
About Weird, Wild & Wonderful:
Botanical art has traditionally depicted conventionally beautiful plants, such as sunflowers, irises, and roses. Weird, Wild, & Wonderful features plants not always thought of as beautiful but rather strange, eccentric, intriguing, and mysterious. Join us in Southern California as we explore the plants and their depictions during a special Weird, Wild & Wonderful Symposium on July 23 – 26, 2015, with additional classes, workshops, displays and lectures throughout the summer.
Only 46 works were selected from nearly 240 entries, hailing from the United States, Australia, Canada, India, Japan, and the United Kingdom. The selection jury consisted of Lugene Bruno, Curator of Art at the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation; Jean Emmons, award-winning botanical artist; and Marc Hachadourian, Manager of the Nolen Greenhouses for Living Collections at The NewYork Botanical Garden.
About The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Garden:
The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens is a collections-based research and educational institution established in 1919 by Henry E. and Arabella Huntington. Henry Huntington was a man of vision—with a special interest in books, art, and gardens. During his lifetime, he amassed the core of one of the finest research libraries in the world, established a splendid art collection, and created an array of botanical gardens with plants from a geographic range spanning the globe.These three distinct facets ofThe Huntington are linked by a devotion to research, education, and beauty. For more information, visit: http://www.huntington.org
About American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA):
ASBA is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting public awareness of contemporary botanical art, to honoring its traditions and to furthering its development. In its 20th year, ASBA has 1,300 members from more than 20 countries around the world. For more information, visit: ASBA-art.org.
About The Botanical Artists Guild of Southern California (BAGSC):
A chapter of the American Society of Botanical Artists, BAGSC members actively promote development and awareness of this artistic tradition. Guild members are committed to improving their artistry and technical abilities.The Guild supports and sponsors workshops with local experts and visiting lecturers in areas such as drawing and painting botanical subjects, botany, resources, and botanical art history. For more information, visit: bagscblog.com.
BAGSC News 