Our annual Art Fair has been re-imagined to the Schlitz Audubon Nature Artist Series, featuring local artists. It was a great opportunity to see and purchase locally made, nature-inspired artwork created by talented Wisconsin artists. Hiking during your allotted time slot was included with registration, so you could enjoy a day being inspired by the many forms which nature presents itself.
August 23: Suzanne Stone – Avian Inspirations | Barbara Friedman
For Suzanne Stone of Avian Inspirations, nature is the driving force for all she creates. She’s a photographer with a passion for capturing birds, nature, and landscapes. She photographs in nature as well as in her studio, including still life photography of flowers and the creation of scenes with objects gathered from nature. Her work includes framed print as well as photo cards.
Nature has always inspired and informed Barbara Friedman’s art making. Barbara uses oils and watercolor to paint the flowers in her garden and the birds that come to the feeders. In her studio she will often paint a “studio still life,” with flowers, fruit, and objects found on her shelves. She also paints en plein air, choosing to paint the most beautiful blooms. Barbara recently began painting birds on wood from her land up north.
August 30: James Steeno
James Steeno’s interests include sketching, painting, design, lines, and color. His work includes watercolor images and illustrations of untamed nature as well as civilized themes that he creates from his home studio in Washington Heights. His art is available as both originals and art prints, and he is known for Illustrated Art Maps of places in and around Wisconsin.
September 6: Bob Fischer – Bob’s Flint Knapping | Heather Eiden – Craft Me Calm
Come and see Bob Fischer use the process of flint knapping to make stone tools. He works with all types of flint, obsidian, and some man-made products from his home in Howards Grove. To make his tools, Bob uses various animal bones, as well as exotic woods and many varieties of marble, onyx, and sandstone. Bob is inspired to repurpose and conserve what nature provides.
Heather Eiden lives by the Milwaukee River, which serves as a source of inspiration to her ceramic and mosaic artwork. Her work uses clay as a medium of exploration. She is a contemporary folk artist who enjoys the natural patterns found in the flora and fauna of Wisconsin. Carrying a sketchbook, she can capture these patterns and other nature-inspired images while hiking, and then bring them to her home studio, where Heather crafts her artwork. Her art tiles are like traditional ceramic forms deconstructed into fine art.
September 13: Jose Acevedo | India McCanse – TimberStone Tinker
Jose Acevedo creates wildlife paintings, mostly birds, from his Bay View home’s creative workspace. He paints using watercolors, oils and acrylic on canvas and paper. He also works with various species of wood, carving detailed birds and fish and painting them in a realistic-looking manner. Jose’s muse is the natural world because of the variety of form, color and repetitive textures. He’s inspired by leaves on a tree in autumn, the feathers on a bird, or the scale patterns on a fish, which have fascinated him since childhood. Jose teaches the Nature Watercolor class at the Center.
TimberStone Tinker features live edge tables made from recycled wood, jewelry made from Lake Michigan stones and leather bracelets, some with recycled hardware. Production takes place in India McCanse’s woodshop and home studio, and includes tables, cheese boards, and more. She uses a variety of woods, including ash that’s been recycled after the presence of emerald ash borer, as well black walnut, oak, maple, and beech. India believes trees and wood are sacred and serve many purposes. Her work maintains the natural beauty while preserving the dignity of the tree. Get tickets.
September 20: Jerry’s Fossils
Stacy Boettcher and her brother Todd Navone make up Jerry’s Fossils. They strive to bring beautiful and amazing creations of Mother Nature to rock hounds of all ages, everywhere. Stacy and Todd grew up taking trips both finding and trading for specimens. Jewelry made from wire wrapped stones and Orthoceras squid fossils were available at the art series. Also being offered were incredible fossil formations such as ammonites, trilobites, megalodon shark teeth, and Spinosaurus dinosaur teeth. Minerals for purchase included quartz, amethyst, selenite and more. The owners believe Mother Nature creates beautiful pieces of art with time that can be cherished for years to come.
At the Nature Artist Series, visitors had the opportunity to find the perfect artistic creation for their collection and were pleasantly surprised by the diversity of nature-inspired offerings.
