Capital Nature

(DC) (Smithsonian Associates) Guided by the founding instructor of the National Gallery of Art’s Writing Salon, Mary Hall Surface, immerse yourself in the colors, light, and forms of Claude Monet’s exquisite The Japanese Footbridge to explore the bridge as a metaphor for the thresholds and journeys of our lives. Designed for writers of all levels, and for the curious, the workshop ...

(DC) (Smithsonian Associates) Learn to sketch animals and objects found in nature, then combine your drawings with painting and additional elements and textures to create whimsical or serious mixed-media art. This is the first of 8 sessions from January 15th ​to March 5th.​ Find more Smithsonian cultural and nature events here.

(DC) (Smithsonian Associates) Learn how to see beauty in the natural world and render it in stunning watercolor paintings, using various watercolor techniques to represent the metallic shell of a beetle, the soft, fuzzy wing of a moth, and the delightful colors of a butterfly. This is the first of 8 sessions from January 16th ​to March 6th.​ Find more ...

(DC) (Smithsonian Associates) Delightful detailed prints on paper can be made using real fish. Using direct printing and water-based printing inks, create realistic-looking schools of fish or a single artistic print simply by inking a whole fish and pressing it to paper. The result is a gyotaku, a term derived from the Japanese words for fish (gyo) and print (taku). ...