Native Plant Trust, the nation’s first plant conservation organization and the only one solely focused on New England’s native plants, announced the opening of Regarding Nature, the work of Native Plant Trust’s 2024 Visiting Artist Julie C. Baer. For the past year Baer has explored Garden in the Woods, Native Plant Trust’s native plant botanic garden in Framingham, MA. Regarding Nature captures a rich sampling of the plant life that Baer witnessed during her walks. Vines, leaves, lichen, branches, tree fungi, and more fill her canvases.
“My paintings aim to capture fluctuating patterns: shifting light, variegated colors, constant movement, changing forms,” notes Baer. “I try to surprise viewers with unusual views, to induce them to gaze deeply, just as I have done. Art and nature can inspire insight and set healing in motion, as they have done for me. I want my work to offer viewers ongoing opportunities for discovery, to invite them to go outdoors and look around, and to remind them to care for themselves and their own habitats.”
Baer attended the Rhode Island School of Design and graduated from the New School for Social Research. She is a member of Atlantic Works Gallery artist collective in East Boston and TAG: The Artists Gallery at the New England Art Center in SOWA, Boston. She has published two picture books: Love Me Later (Bollix Books, 2005) and I Only Like What I Like, (Bollix Books, 2003).
“Our goal is to engage an ever-widening range of perspectives and opportunities for connecting with the plants and natural world around us,” says Giffen Maupin, Interim Director of Public Programs. “The practice of attention is foundational to our relationship with native plants. To witness Julie’s work in Regarding Nature is to be reminded of how our engagement with a place deepens when we commit to looking at the plants that surround us, again and again.”
A reception to celebrate the opening of Regarding Nature will take place on Saturday, October 5, from 6:30–8:30 p.m. at Garden in the Woods, and an artist’s talk will be offered on Sunday, October 6, from 6:30–7:30 p.m., both live at Garden in the Woods and on Zoom. Julie’s work will be on view from October 5–15 in the Education Building at Garden in the Woods, Framingham.
The full line-up of fall/winter public programs, featuring many new offerings, is now open for registration at www.NativePlantTrust.org. “Plants and learning go hand in hand,” says Tim Johnson, CEO at Native Plant Trust. “Whether you are just developing your green thumb or you are a seasoned professional looking to develop expertise in new areas, Native Plant Trust’s courses offer the opportunity to learn, grow, and connect with teachers and students who love native plants.” Program highlights include: