Art in Nature

I went looking for ART in nATuRe, and with a bit of a scramble, I found “une ART”. Une is the French feminine infinitive for “one” or “an”. How fitting: Nature is an art.

The past couple of weeks has had a focus on art. I had my pottery for sale at the Lansing Artist Maker’s Market last Sunday, and this weekend I went to visit a few of my friends’ studios on the Northeast Iowa Artist’s Studio Tour. Many of the lovely things I saw were inspired by nature.  

This afternoon I decided to take my camera (e.g. phone!) out to capture some examples of how easy it is to find inspiring colors, textures, patterns, and shapes in nature. A picture is worth a thousand words, so here are a few volumes of evidence!

I would argue that all art is inspired by nature. If I were to lose that argument, I would come back with a new argument that any art I care to look at or make is inspired by nature! My own pottery is strongly influenced by nature.

I’m considering having some “makers” open sessions at Iowisota over the winter. These would be open blocks of time that people could bring their projects (fiber, handiwork, other crafting) to sit by the fireside or at the worktables in the Gathering Room. The opportunity to gather with others in a pleasant space to chat and sip tea while you work can bring warmth to a long Midwestern winter! I’m also conferring with a local expert potter about offering a hand-built pottery workshop series in January-February. If these potential offerings are of interest to you, feel free to reach out to me to influence the timing!

Meanwhile, we have two short workshop opportunities at Iowisota on Saturday October 18^th. In the morning, I’ll be demonstrating how to make acorn flour that we will use to make acorn crackers. In the afternoon, we will lead a tree identification saunter at Iowisota to learn to identify trees by their bark and form. Both activities are by free-will donation, but we do ask that you register online so that we know how many people to expect. Registration is on the events page of the website.

I challenge you to go out into this lovely autumn weather and look at the beauty in nature. You will find it everywhere you look… if you look far, it is in the silhouettes of the trees and the curves of the landscapes; if you look closely, it is in the intricate patterns, vivid (and subtle!) colors, and diverse textures of leaves, flowers, insects, and even rocks.