Honoring the mother of all mothers, Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, hosted their 4th annual Mother Earth Market on May 10th and 11th, a celebration of spring and Mother’s Day weekend.
The event showcased an art market, featuring artists, makers, vendors and organizations from Cook and Lake Counties, all inspired by nature and working towards a more sustainable future.
Julia Kemerer, director of arts and administration at Brushwood, says the purpose of the event is twofold – to provide artists the opportunity to share their work and to bring the community together for a fun celebration of springtime nature-inspired art.
The Mother Earth Market ran both Saturday and Sunday, featuring local art for purchase, family friendly activities like Bird Walks and Forest Bathing with Brushwood Center staff, Haiku readings by poet-in-residence, Kathryn Haydon, a spring flower crafting station, live music from Veterans from the James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center, and much more.
“Of the 37 multidisciplinary artists participating this year, each one draws their inspiration from nature in their own unique way,” Kemerer said.
Artists like Vaiju Saraf, from Lincolnshire, who says she has been creating nature-based works linked to her travels since 2018, or Nicholas Hellman, a woodworker from Vernon Hills, who says in woodworking, all his raw materials come from nature.
Dionne Venhorst of Mundelein attended the market Saturday with friends.
“It’s incredible how this event not only connects attendees to the untouched natural beauty of Ryerson Woods, but to the history of our area, through the Brushwood Center,” Venhorst said.
Randi Merel, president of the Riverwoods Preservation Council, attended the Mother Earth Market for the first time this year.
“Today we are here offering custom seedling packets to help residents grow native species from seeds in their own backyard,” Merel said.
Lake Villa, artist, Natalie Ingrum of Tinkering Tilly, says she has created an art practice out using recycled and ethically foraged materials.
“As a kid spending time out in nature in a forest preserve near my house, I started cleaning up, picking up trash, this was the beginning of my adult passion of making art out of what I find,” Ingrum said.
Brianna Borger of Evanston says she loves to support small business artists and the market gives her a glimpse into nature-inspired creativity.
“It’s such a great weekend to come out to the woods and see tons of locally made art, do a bit of shopping, and enjoy fun activities for the family,” Kemerer said.
Gina Grillo is a freelancer for Pioneer Press.
