Adkins Arboretum brings attention to the art of nature in their ongoing series celebrating regional artists and their exploration of natural themes.
The Arboretum is currently hosting an exhibition of work by Rebecca Clark whose work in Finite and Alive: New Drawings focuses on the wildlife of Chesapeake Bay.
The Arboretum explains that Clark’s drawings of oysters, animals and birds are drawn absent of any background. Their isolation on white paper emphasizes the rich textures and forms of their shells, fur or feathers and the pure sense of aliveness of each one. It also isolates them from the rest of nature. They go on to explain that by “surrounding these creatures with empty space, Clark creates an underlying tension. The creatures she depicts are imperiled, cut off from the environments that created and sustained them. In doing this, she intimates not only the effects of pollution, habitat loss and climate change on individual species but, even more significantly, the loss of human consciousness of our intimate connections with the delicate balance of life on earth.”
An artist all her life, Clark credits Leslie Exton of the botanical illustration program at Corcoran College of Art with helping her learn to draw. She says that Exton “taught us very particular techniques and it opened up a whole new world for me.”
Meet Rebecca Clark this weekend at the artist reception on Saturday,
August 15 from 3-5 pm.
New at “Exhibitions to Visit”
Clark’s exhibition is only one of four exhibitions to be held at Adkins Arboretum. The following events have been posted to the Exhibitions to Visit page:
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NEW
Finite and Alive: New Drawings
Rebecca Clark
Visitor’s Center Gallery
Adkins Arboretum
Ridgely, MD
August 4 – October 2, 2015
NEW
Unnatural Nature
Outdoor sculpture by Howard and Mary McCoy
Visitor’s Center Gallery
Adkins Arboretum
Ridgely, MD
June 1 – September 30, 2015
NEW
Leaf Impressions
Dominie Nash
Visitor’s Center Gallery
Adkins Arboretum
Ridgely, MD
October 6 – November 27, 2015
Reception October 24, 3-5 p.m.
NEW
The Art of Nature
Adkins Arboretum Botanical Art Students
Visitor’s Center Gallery
Adkins Arboretum
Ridgely, MD
December 1, 2015 – January 29, 2016
Reception December 5, 3-5 p.m.
ArtPlantae Today 