The Columbia Museum of Art will be hosting the Art Blossoms event during Mother’s Day Weekend, with presentations from experts. Photo by Carson Peaden.
The Art Blossoms exhibition is returning for a second year to the Columbia Museum of Art during Mother’s Day weekend.
From May 5 to 8, the event will include four days of classes and presentations, all showcasing a blend of flowers and artwork. General admission tickets are $15 for non-members and $5 for museum members.
One of the presenters, Jenks Farmer, will be demonstrating how people can create and design their gardens. With a creative lens, he will show how any space can be brought to life, regardless of its size and the person’s budget.
Raised on a farm in Beech Island, South Carolina in a family of artists and musicians, Farmer has possessed a love for the environment as long as he can remember.
“There’s nothing we have ever had or needed that didn’t come from plants, or something that’s connected,” Farmer said. “I mean, to me, that connection is so deep and obvious.”
After receiving a Ph.D. in botanical garden design from the University of Washington, he established two botanical gardens in S.C., including the botanical gardens at Riverbanks Zoo. He currently owns and operates an organic farm where he grew up. He also helps design gardens for homes and museums.
Farmer is especially looking forward to showing people the ability to transform a garden at the Art Blossoms event.
“In this case, they wanted me to talk about creativity, and things that normal people can do in their backyard,” he said. “I want to emphasize a garden is really about living things.”
Other presenters include John Nelson, the retired curator of the A.C. Moore Herbarium at the University of South Carolina. A botany specialist, Nelson will be educating event goers on plant diversity, plus their anatomy and functions, in his presentation “Botany Artbreak.”
“I want them to get a sort of understanding of the science of flowers, the fact that science doesn’t do anything to diminish their beauty,” Nelson said. “They represent truly stupendous evolutionary achievement.”
All proceeds from tickets will go towards the museum’s art education and programming for the Midlands.
Jenks Farmer, who specializes in botanical garden design, has possessed a love for the environment since he was a child. Photo courtesy Jenks Farmer.
This garden design, by Farmer, features Egyptian onion and pansies, which are both edible and beautiful. Photo courtesy Jenks Farmer.
John Nelson, who holds a Ph.D. in botanical sciences, hopes those who attend his presentation will gain an “understanding of the science of flowers.” Photo courtesy John Nelson.
First introduced last year, the Art Blossoms event will feature four days of classes, demonstrations and artwork. Photos courtesy Columbia Museum of Art.
All the proceeds from the event will go towards the museum’s art education and programming in the Midlands.
