From Floral to Fabric

Saturday, I taught my first workshop on the techniques that I use for my Seed Play series. The workshop at Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens was one of the educational offerings accompanying my solo exhibition. The participants did a great job with a complex process and a limited amount of time.

Here are some of the results at the end of the day. Love the way this image captures the inside of the seed pod on the right. This piece was based on the trumpet vine seed pods.

This interesting piece is based on the fruit and leaves of the Stauntonia which is a vine growing up a post on the veranda. It is a lovely pinkish color with maroon splotches. Susan Dunn-Lederhaas did a great job capturing the complex colors on this fruit form.
This is another piece based on the trumpet vine, with a nice capturing of the ridges along each side and the speckling of the pods.

This delicate piece captures the iris seed pods and those are the cute little seeds over to the right. Nice rhythm captured in the leaves.

This artist captured the fall leaves of the bur oak. I really like the way she layered the leaves and the negative spaces created by the spaces between the leaves.

Cindy went for an impressionist rendition of the bur oak leaves. I love the rhythm and the flow of the colors.

Our only trained artist chose a really challenging inspiration. She is well on her way to create a great piece inspired by the Beauty Berry. Don't you love the colors and the lines of the leaves? Great movement and rhythm.
This piece was inspired by a banana leaf. Love the rib and the spots and browning areas. A perfect leaf would be so boring in comparison.
Annette captured the grace and liveliness of these colorful beans.

It was a great workshop location. Nice bright room, windows onto the garden, super hospitality and congenial participants. Hard to ask for anything better. The ladies did a remarkably good job on challenging tasks. I was blown away by how well they all did.

Don't you think they did well?

Nancy

Collecting Specimens- What Fun!!

Collecting specimens is loads of fun with good company in a beautiful place.


Bur Oak Acorn

Last Friday, Cindy Klemmer, Director of Education at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden, took me for a ride around the grounds to collect seed specimens for my workshop there on Saturday. It was a rare privilege and delight.

That charmer above is an acorn that I have long wanted to work with. It looks like a small child in an overly large winter hat. There were lots of these acorns under a tree along the road going to the Visitors Center.



Beauty Berry

These colorful berries are a native plant that grows in my garden, but never as lush as these beauties. Easy to see where it got its name.


Bald Cypress Seed Clusters

This interesting cluster of seeds simply falls apart when ripe. I was delighted to find this seed cluster. I had never seen one before. These are the same trees we see along the coast with knees growing up in the swamp.



Rose Hips

These interesting berries have a star at their tip. The banks of roses were full of hips. Will all hips make tea?


Paw paw

This rather small pod was full of seeds and some were still available under the fallen leaves from a cluster of trees near the Education Center.


Hyacinthe Bean

This bean is on a vine, like string beans. Very colorful.

Cindy was knowledgeable and a congenial hostess for the garden. We had a great time on a lovely fall day. These collected seeds will be great specimens for the workshop on Saturday. Thanks, Cindy.

Nancy