Description

Botanical Art & Nature Sketching Retreat at Ashokan

With Wendy Hollender, Lara Call Gastinger, Giacomina Ferrillo, & Jean Mackay

When: Friday, November 8 – Sunday, November 10, 2024
Where: Ashokan Center, Olivebridge NY
Who: Nature enthusiasts of ALL artistic skill levels, aspiring to advanced!

Join Wendy Hollender, Lara Call Gastinger, Giacomina Ferrillo, and Jean Mackay for a special weekend retreat celebrating nature and botanical art at the Ashokan Center in the Catskill Mountains.

Watch your worries fade away as you immerse yourself in creativity, connection, and camaraderie. Develop your botanical art and nature journaling techniques alongside fellow passionate creators in a friendly, informal learning environment.

Each day, you get to choose which sessions you attend, so you can do everything you want to do (and nothing you don’t!). 

Sessions may include:
-Walk & Sketch / Forage & Draw Hikes
-Autumn Field Palette & Using a Waterbrush
-Birds
-Recipes & Greeting Cards
-Page Layout & Collecting Nature on Paper
-Autumn Leaves
-Map Your Journey (create a sense of place in your sketchbook)
-Trompe L’oeil Techniques
-Untangling Details
-Basic Botany & Plant Family Patterns
-Bird Nests
-Drink & Draw your Tea
-Artists’ Journey Panel
-and more creative activities and drawing demonstrations

Watch live instructor drawing demonstrations projected on the big screen, so you won’t miss any details. Explore the historic Ashokan Center’s gorgeous grounds on guided hikes or adventure on your own. Take supplies on your walks to draw outside, or bring your foraged finds back inside to your drawing table. 

Fun for the whole family!

Enjoy delicious meals together, groove to live music, and sleep soundly in beautiful wooden lodges. Children younger than 13 years old must have adult supervision at all times. 

Family activities may include:

–Hiking: Explore forest and streamside trails to Historic 1885 Covered Bridge, Winchell’s Falls, Cathedral Gorge, Homestead, and Sugar Shack. (Click here for trail map.)

–Art: Colored pencils and watercolor supplies will be available for families to draw on their own. Paint all of the interesting nature you find on your hikes. Maybe take inspiration from artist ​Andy Goldsworthy​ and create a temporary art installation using natural materials!

–Music: Visit the Instrument Petting Zoo to play a variety of awesome instruments, or bring your own portable instrument to practice. Groove to live music in the evening!

–Games: Whether you like running around playing sports or prefer more mental exercise, you’ll enjoy the variety of fun games we’ll have available.

–Local Attractions: Adventure around the Hudson Valley to various local attractions. (Click here for list of local sites.)

Note: Children (and their accompanying adult) may join you at no extra charge from us, but you will be responsible for arranging their lodging and dining with the Ashokan Center.

Full daily schedule to come. Next steps for lodging and dining arrangements will be sent to your inbox once your purchase is complete.

Lodging & Dining are NOT included in this workshop fee and will require a separate payment to the Ashokan Center.

Once you complete your purchase of this workshop, you will receive a registration email with a link to make arrangements with the Ashokan Center.

LODGING

Lodging is NOT included in this workshop fee. Once you complete your purchase of this workshop, you will receive a registration email with a link to make arrangements with the Ashokan Center.

(*pillows & blankets provided-BYO sheets + towels or rent from us)
Longhouse bed in the bunk wing: $50/person/night (shared bathroom)
Longhouse private (4 rooms/sleep 3 ea) $131/room/night (shared bathroom) [SOLD OUT] Red Maple private (8 rooms/sleep 4 ea) $162/room /night (private bathroom) [SOLD OUT] Sycamore private (4 rooms/sleep 5 ea) $183/room /night (private bathroom) [SOLD OUT] 4 cabins: 2 with queen beds, 2 with 2 twins each $131/ cabin/night (shared bathroom)

DINING

Dining is NOT included in this workshop fee. Once you complete your purchase of this workshop, you will receive a registration email with a link to make arrangements with the Ashokan Center.

Meals are served buffet and/or family style in the Dining Hall at designated times.

Coffee, tea, and fruit are available throughout the day. (Paper cups will be provided for your convenience, but using your own travel mugs is encouraged.)

Choose 1 option for each meal (**Children ages 4-12, meals are ½ price. Children 0-3 = free)

–Country Breakfast Buffet $15/person (continental options + 2 hot items)
–Country Lunch Buffet $22/person
–Country Dinner Buffet $28/person 

OTHER OPTIONS:
–Continental Breakfast Buffet $10/person
–Simple Lunch $13/person (sandwiches/wraps, chips, beverages, dessert)

Meet the Instructors

Wendy Hollender 

Wendy is a botanical illustrator, author, and instructor, as well as the founder of Draw Botanical. She is a member of the American Society of Botanical Artists and the National Tropical Botanical Garden Florilegium Project.

 –  BFA in Textile Design from the Rhode Island School of Design
 –  Certified by the New York Botanical Garden in Botanical Art and Illustration
 –  Featured in the 13th International Exhibition at Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation
 –  Exhibited by Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, the Smithsonian National Museum for Natural History and the US Botanic Garden
 –  Author of The Joy of Botanical Drawing, Nature Journaling in a Nutshell, The Practice of Botanical Drawing, Botanical Drawing in Color and the self-published Botanical Drawing, A Beginner’s Guide
 – Illustrator of Foraging and Feasting: A Field Guide and Wild Food Cookbook by Dina Falconi.
 –  Member of the National Tropical Botanical Garden Florilegium of Artists 

Instagram: @wendyhollender

Learn more about Wendy Hollender here.

Lara Call Gastinger 

Lara Call Gastinger is a botanical artist and illustrator in Central Virginia. She was the chief illustrator for the Flora of Virginia Project and a two-time gold medalist at the Royal Horticultural Society Botanical Art Shows in London (2007, 2018). Her work is in the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation and she is renowned for teaching how to create and maintain a Perpetual Journal. 

The subjects of her art come from the natural world and her art reveals detailed evidence of change, decay, and processes that occur in nature. She finds great inspiration in a carrot that has gone to flower, a broken seed pod, twisted roots or insect damage to a leaf. She strives to make a plant portrait in such a way that it reveals its character and uniqueness. Her focus is on the small details in nature, down to the small venations in leaves which hopefully inspires others to look a bit deeper and pause a bit longer.

Instagram: @laragastinger

Learn more about Lara Call Gastinger here. 

GiacoMina Ferrillo 

Giacomina Ferrillo is an Italian artist, illustrator and author of ten children’s books. 

Graduated in scenography, she has worked for theatre, fashion, graphic and interior design.

She is a member of ASBA (American Society of Botanical Artists) and has exhibited her works in London four times for SBA, the English Botanical Artists Society. 

Great promoter of sketching, which she has practiced over time in every professional field, she believes that botanical sketching can bring us closer to the perfection and magnificence that is in everything that surrounds us. She tries to share the idea that to examine nature so closely is useful not only for artistic but also for personal growth and educates on safeguarding the planet bringing inspiration and joy into one’s life. Her botanical sketchbook pages have been published by some international specialized magazines.

Instagram: @giacominaferrillo

Learn more about Giacomina Ferrillo here. 

Jean Mackay

Jean Mackay is an artist, educator, and naturalist. She has been keeping an artist journal for more than nearly 20 years as a way to study and share the beauty and diversity of nature. Working in all kinds of settings, from tide pools to farm fields to her own backyard in upstate New York, Jean’s watercolors reflect a keen eye for detail and profound sense of wonder.

She is the author/illustrator of The Nature Explorer’s Sketchbook (2020), which introduces young people to nature journaling. Jean teaches online and in-person classes and offers immersive workshops nationally and internationally. She has been an instructor with Winslow Art Center since 2020. 

Instagram: @jeanmackayart

Discover more at www.jeanmackayart.com

SUPPLIES

Below is a list of supplies recommended for this workshop. Some brands are suggested, but you can use any supplies you prefer.

WE SUPPLY:

–Paper – sheets of each artist’s favorite paper for you to try 

BRING YOUR OWN:

–Graphite Pencil (H or HB) – can be mechanical (003 or 005) and/or regular pencil with a good Sharpener
–Eraser (Tombow Mono Zero)
–Water Brush (Niji, Faber Castell, Molotow, small size tips)
–Watercolor (portable watercolor travel set (Arttoolkit, Beam Paints, GreenleafBlue, Case for Making, Winsor Newton, Schmincke) or watercolor pencils (Faber Castell Albrecht Durer)
–Colored Pencils (Faber Castell Polychromos)
-Sepia Micron Pen, size 005
–Magnifying Glass
-Small Ruler (see-through if possible)
-Hat, scarf, gloves, and winter boots (NY can get chilly in November!)
-Water bottle and/or travel mug
–Sketchbook / Journal / Paper (optional)

Cancellation Policy: In the event you cancel over 6 weeks before, a partial refund of 70% will be given if we are able to fill your spot. If we are unable to fill your spot or if you cancel less than 6 weeks before, we cannot issue a refund. We reserve the right to cancel a workshop at any time. If we cancel a workshop, you will receive a full refund.