Mission Statement

The Rocky Mountain Society of Botanical Artists is an open and diverse group of artists, collectors and admirers who share a love for the practice and perpetuation of botanical art and illustration with a fond focus on plants in the Rocky Mountain Region.
We encourage and participate in educational outreach, juried and non-juried exhibits, lectures, workshops and regular chapter meetings. The RMSBA is proud to be the very first chapter affiliation of the international organization, the American Society of Botanical Artists.

Thursday, May 29, 2014

June Member's Meeting is in the Great Outdoors

Lookout Mountain Nature Center
Lookout Mountain Nature Center from the meadow

Hello all,
In order to partake of the Wildflower Festival put on by Jefferson County Open Space, the RMSBA June meeting  will be:
June 8 (a Sunday)
11 am
Lookout Mountain Nature Center
910 Colorow Road
Golden, CO 80401
PH: (720) 497-7600
email:  LMNC@jeffco.us

We will meet in front of the nature center.  They are open from 10 AM - 4 PM . An 11 AM meeting will hopefully be prior to any potential inclement weather and allow participants to take as much or as little time as desired.

Going westbound on I-70, you will take exit 256, turn right, and follow the (brown) signs.

We can enjoy the beautiful outdoors as well as benefit from the expertise of naturalists and Open Space staff to answer any questions we might have.

Hope to see you there!

Best,

RMSBA President
 
 
-2011-
Guests of the establishment!
 
 
The back balcony of the Nature Center -2011-
Panoramic views from the decks
 
 
The Nature Center -2011-
Main Entrance
 
For more information about Lookout Mountain Nature Center, click HERE.
 
 
 

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

SAVE $50 on GNSI Conference in Boulder - Only 3 Days Left


July 13-19, 2014: The Guild of Natural Science Illustrators meets in Boulder!

Albert Einstein once said, “The greatest scientists are always artists as well.” His observation was a good one. However, there is also a certain kind of visual artist—the scientific illustrator—who serves science by making the insights of scientists more accessible to others—by giving the creative artistry of scientists both form and beauty. Many of science’s top visual interpreters will be meeting in Boulder this July. If you love capturing nature on paper or with pixels, you may want to join them.  And what botanical artist doesn't love capturing nature on paper?
 
There are only 3 days left to benefit from the $50 Early Registration bonus. There are a lot of wonderful conference activities, including workshops, classes, lectures and field trips. AND, if you reviewed the site earlier, you'll find many new and helpful enhancements.

You don’t need to be a member to attend. But membership means an additional discount on registration (as much as $75 for the core conference). It so happens that a year's membership is as low as $75! The GNSI welcomes all who are interested in science art to become members."

Come and enjoy the camaraderie of fellow illustrators in a beautiful setting. The Conference is filled with presentations, workshops and field trips designed to inspire. Some concentrate on technique, with experts in drawing, painting, scratchboard, block printing, Photoshop, Illustrator, and digital devices sharing their expertise. Others focus on the gritty details of making a living in this challenging, but exciting career. With so many choices, participants can customize their learning experience under the inspirational setting of Boulder's Flatirons and modern CU campus.

Go to the Conference website : www.conf.gnsi.org for a great Schedule-at-a-Glance, to see the expanded information on each offering, and to register just in time to save $50. We look forward to seeing you there.


 
 

Art Students League of Denver Fields Annual Boutique

Each year, the ASLD holds a fair for their members, and it's a great place to see new, exciting and unique artworks. Here's a carte from our own Susan Fisher, for her booth. Vanessa Martin and Carol Till are also participating. Don't miss this cool, happening, annual event!

Click on this picture to see an enlargement

Monday, May 26, 2014

High on Botanicals - Entry Reminder

Vanessa Martin has secured a terrific gallery event for us in July of this year, at Square Deal Framing and Gallery J(click HERE for information about this gallery), July 15 through August 29th. This gallery has a number of exhibits annually, and we are delighted we are on this year's schedule.

We are invited to submit any images which include botanicals. This is a little more open event than some, and is unjuried. You may submit up to 3 artworks, matted and framed in the manner you wish, and ready to hang with hanging wires.

We will hang at least one, but hope to be able to include more. The entry form allows you to number your images in order of hanging preference. Images labeled as "1" will be hung first, and then we'll hang the others in your order of preference once space is determined. We have room for 45 to 50 paintings.

Works may be for sale. Gallery retains 25% commission. There is a small entry fee ($25) to support organizational expenses and tasty treats for the opening, which is scheduled July 19th, 2014, 4-6 PM.


High on Botanicals
Specifications:*Submit up to 3 artworks, number them for hanging preference.
*Submission deadline: 28 June 2014
*Artworks must be matted, framed and wired for hanging.
*Drop off art Saturday at Square One, July 12th between 1-4pm
*Exhibit Start: July 15, 2014
*Reception: July 19, 2014, time to be determined.
*Exhibit closes August 29, 2014.
*Pick up artworks August 30th, between 1-4pm
You may enter up to 3 artworks. Please fully complete all requested
information on the entry form.

Location: Square Deal Gallery
1460 S. Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO  (next to Black Eyed Pea Restaurant)
Contact: Vanessa Martin; Click HERE to contact her.

Special Exhibit Information: You may enter up to 3 matted and framed
artworks, wired and ready to hang. At least one artwork will be hung, and
second and third images may be hung if there is room. We have room for about
45 to 50 paintings. Please include genus and species if known, common names are always good, and you may title the work.
Click HERE for the Entry form.

Monday, May 19, 2014

High on Botanicals - Entry Reminder

Vanessa Martin has secured a terrific gallery event for us in July of this year, at Square Deal Framing and Gallery J(click HERE for information about this gallery), July 15 through August 29th. This gallery has a number of exhibits annually, and we are delighted we are on this year's schedule.

We are invited to submit any images which include botanicals. This is a little more open event than some, and is unjuried. You may submit up to 3 artworks, matted and framed in the manner you wish, and ready to hang with hanging wires.

We will hang at least one, but hope to be able to include more. The entry form allows you to number your images in order of hanging preference. Images labeled as "1" will be hung first, and then we'll hang the others in your order of preference once space is determined. We have room for 45 to 50 paintings.

Works may be for sale. Gallery retains 25% commission. There is a small entry fee ($25) to support organizational expenses and tasty treats for the opening, which is scheduled July 19th, 2014, 4-6 PM.


High on Botanicals
Specifications:*Submit up to 3 artworks, number them for hanging preference.
*Submission deadline: 28 June 2014
*Artworks must be matted, framed and wired for hanging.
*Drop off art Saturday at Square One, July 12th between 1-4pm
*Exhibit Start: July 15, 2014
*Reception: July 19, 2014, time to be determined.
*Exhibit closes August 29, 2014.
*Pick up artworks August 30th, between 1-4pm
You may enter up to 3 artworks. Please fully complete all requested
information on the entry form.

Location: Square Deal Gallery
1460 S. Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO  (next to Black Eyed Pea Restaurant)
Contact: Vanessa Martin; Click HERE to contact her.

Special Exhibit Information: You may enter up to 3 matted and framed
artworks, wired and ready to hang. At least one artwork will be hung, and
second and third images may be hung if there is room. We have room for about
45 to 50 paintings. Please include genus and species if known, common names are always good, and you may title the work.
Click HERE for the Entry form.

Monday, May 12, 2014

High on Botanicals - Entry Reminder

Vanessa Martin has secured a terrific gallery event for us in July of this year, at Square Deal Framing and Gallery J(click HERE for information about this gallery), July 15 through August 29th. This gallery has a number of exhibits annually, and we are delighted we are on this year's schedule.

We are invited to submit any images which include botanicals. This is a little more open event than some, and is unjuried. You may submit up to 3 artworks, matted and framed in the manner you wish, and ready to hang with hanging wires.

We will hang at least one, but hope to be able to include more. The entry form allows you to number your images in order of hanging preference. Images labeled as "1" will be hung first, and then we'll hang the others in your order of preference once space is determined. We have room for 45 to 50 paintings.

Works may be for sale. Gallery retains 25% commission. There is a small entry fee ($25) to support organizational expenses and tasty treats for the opening, which is scheduled July 19th, 2014, 4-6 PM.


High on Botanicals
Specifications:*Submit up to 3 artworks, number them for hanging preference.
*Submission deadline: 28 June 2014
*Artworks must be matted, framed and wired for hanging.
*Drop off art Saturday at Square One, July 12th between 1-4pm
*Exhibit Start: July 15, 2014
*Reception: July 19, 2014, time to be determined.
*Exhibit closes August 29, 2014.
*Pick up artworks August 30th, between 1-4pm
You may enter up to 3 artworks. Please fully complete all requested
information on the entry form.

Location: Square Deal Gallery
1460 S. Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO  (next to Black Eyed Pea Restaurant)
Contact: Vanessa Martin; Click HERE to contact her.

Special Exhibit Information: You may enter up to 3 matted and framed
artworks, wired and ready to hang. At least one artwork will be hung, and
second and third images may be hung if there is room. We have room for about
45 to 50 paintings. Please include genus and species if known, common names are always good, and you may title the work.
Click HERE for the Entry form.

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

April 27, 2014 Member Meeting - Rocky Mountain Land Library

Eight members of the RMSBA met at Schlessman Family Branch Library for our monthly meeting. Members discussed the great work Becky Hall and Vanessa Martin are doing designing and fabricating our ASBA Conference gift, which is a brush holder made of native beetle-kill pine. The damage from the beetle creates a blue cast in a lot of the wood grain, making an interesting and beautiful pattern in the cut wood.

In addition, it’s an ecological use of the wood, which comes from standing dead trees which generally are not used for construction. Becky presented four different finish possibilities, and after discussion, a clear poly-acrylic coating was selected as being beautiful and easy to keep with good water resistance properties.

The focus of the meeting was a presentation by Kathy Imel and Jeff Lee, representatives of the Rocky Mountain Land Library, a unique organization dedicated to engaging people in the history and care of the land in our area. Kathy presented Jeff to the members.

The Amazing Growth of An Amazing Idea
Jeff Lee and Ann Martin share a marriage and their love for books, which has taken them on a number of journeys, perhaps the most successful is the creation of the Rocky Mountain Land Library. The concept began to grow after a trip to the London Book Fair, with a particularly important side adventure.

They went to Gladstone's Library, known until 2010 as St. Deiniol's Library, a residential library in Hawarden, Wales, founded by Victorian statesman and politician William Gladstone. In 1895, at the age of 85, Gladstone gave £40,000 (equivalent to £3.91 million today) and much of his own library to start this library’s holdings. He hauled most of the 32,000 books a quarter of a mile to their new home, using his own wheelbarrow! Now, over 250,000 books comprise the library holdings, and folks looking for research, respite and inspiration in their work come from around the world and stay in the 26-bed establishment.

Lee and Martin saw the wealth such a library offers and on their return home, they began collecting books about the Rocky Mountain region, with a commitment to encouraging greater awareness of the land and the communities who live on it. Over the ensuing years, their collection grew to over 30,000 books, old and new, documenting the way land in Colorado was worked, tended, sold, swapped, and cared for.

Denver Post image 2/2/2012 – Jeff with collected books in his basement, prior to moving the collection new digs
 
RMLL has received praise and recognition from around the nation, starting with local support (Channel 9), and spreading all the way to the east and west coasts (Bloomsbury Review, LA Times, and Huff Post to name a few).  

Topic range is astounding, with books on modern beekeeping to traditional pruning methods, keeping goats in the city to The Poetry of Birds, a lovely tome on Fodder Plants and Pasture Plants, beautifully illustrated, cowboy poetry and works on art, craft, farming, mountain men, native peoples and more. So much is learned about the people who inhabited our lands, how they lived, what they cared about, how they interacted with each other, and how they husbanded the resources and treasures they found. Take a look at these:


Beekeeping - in the city!
 
 
 
Proper pruning beautifully illustrated
 
 
The City of Denver allows 2 goats per household
 
 
Inspiration drawn from the land's - and skies' - inhabitants
 
 
Serious information for the plainsman
 
 

Beautiful illustrations allow accurate identification
 
 
 
Cowboy's were often close-lipped, but remembered and embellished their lives with poetry. You can catch cowboy poetry in Denver and other cities at festivals and readings
 
RMLL, in partnership with the Tattered Cover, established an author series focused on the land and communities of the American West. Since 2001, they have hosted over 400 authors, including luminaries Barry Lopez, Bill McKibben, Lester Brown, Stewart Udall, Peter Mathesen and John & Teresa Kerry. 
In addition, a thriving outreach program, the Kids & Educators Library in south metro Denver, has been established in partnership with Denver Water and the Thorne Ecological Institute. 
After several years of searching for the perfect permanent home, Buffalo Peaks Ranch in South Park will soon house the RMLL collection. Founded in 1861 and recently designated a National Heritage Area,the ranch is a beautiful spot, the perfect home for a library dedicated to the conservation and appreciation of the land.

Beth Wood, a friend of Lee and Martin, photographed restoration work on the Buffalo Peaks Ranch in 2009, and some of the images are seen below. You can view more of her work HERE.
 
The vista that nurtures the permanent home for the RMLL, in South Park, CO, a few miles outside of Fairplay, CO, including waterway, main ranch house, a bunk house, and majestic mountains rising in the distance.
 
Once the rehabilitation of buildings is complete, the main house, attendant bunk houses, a huge barn, and massive concrete cattle stalls will all be re-purposed.
The main ranch house on renovation day, with outside paint and repair in progress
 

A volunteer works hard on a warm day, as two smart pups find a spot of shade
 

The outbuildings of Buffalo Peaks Ranch in South Park near Route 9, as a storm walks across the valley. Clouds moving in fast demonstrate the capabilities for high plains to generate capricious weather, looking back through the bunk house, with large cattle sheds barely visible mid-right of the picture
 The main library will be in the upper level of the wood-beam barn, residency settings located in the bunk houses and artist studios and work areas created in the cattle stalls.  General meeting and education areas are planned for the main house. There will be room to honor, preserve, research and expand the many activities that encompass the land.
Their commitment to our land, and their support of the arts that portray it are a perfect match for botanical artists. Click HERE to reach their informative website, and find your niche to participate in this terrific organization.

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Name Change for Our July Exhibition

Vanessa Martin has secured a terrific gallery event for us in July of this year, at Square Deal Framing and Gallery J(click HERE for information about this gallery), July 15 through August 29th. This gallery has a number of exhibits annually, and we are delighted we are on this year's schedule.

The exhibit, originally titled "Botanical Art, with Altitude!," has had its name changed to "High on Botanicals" so that there is no confusion with the Small Works Exhibition scheduled in conjunction with this year's ASBA Conference here in Denver. For this exhibit, we are invited to submit any images which include botanicals. This is a little more open event than some, and is unjuried. You may submit up to 3 artworks, matted and framed in the manner you wish, and ready to hang with hanging wires.

We will hang at least one, but hope to be able to include more. The entry form allows you to number your images in order of hanging preference. Images labeled as "1" will be hung first, and then we'll hang the others in your order of preference once space is determined. We have room for 45 to 50 paintings.

Works may be for sale. Gallery retains 25% commission. There is a small entry fee ($25) to support organizational expenses and tasty treats for the opening, which is scheduled July 19th, 2014, 4-6 PM.


High on Botanicals
Specifications:*Submit up to 3 artworks, number them for hanging preference.
*Submission deadline: 28 June 2014
*Artworks must be matted, framed and wired for hanging.
*Drop off art Saturday at Square One, July 12th between 1-4pm
*Exhibit Start: July 15, 2014
*Reception: July 19, 2014, time to be determined.
*Exhibit closes August 29, 2014.
*Pick up artworks August 30th, between 1-4pm
You may enter up to 3 artworks. Please fully complete all requested
information on the entry form.

Location: Square Deal Gallery
1460 S. Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO  (next to Black Eyed Pea Restaurant)
Contact: Vanessa Martin; Click HERE to contact her.

Special Exhibit Information: You may enter up to 3 matted and framed
artworks, wired and ready to hang. At least one artwork will be hung, and
second and third images may be hung if there is room. We have room for about
45 to 50 paintings. Please include genus and species if known, common names are always good, and you may title the work.
Click HERE for the Entry form.