Events

Director’s Series | Life: The Arnold Arboretum as an Institution of Public Health

Location:

Arnold Arboretum—Online

The Arnold Arboretum's sesquicentennial Director's Series traces the Arnold’s significance in the landscape architecture movement, value for the people of Boston, and leadership in creating global connections between plants and people.

Panelists include:

Dr. Michelle Kondo, Research Social Scientist, UDSA-Forest Service
Rev. Mariama White-Hammond, Chief of Environment, Energy, and Open Space, City of Boston
Laurence Cotton, Consulting Producer, “Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing...

MassQ Ball 2022: Origin | African Folklore Lecture

Location:

Arnold Arboretum (Hunnewell Building), 125 Arborway, Boston

Dr. Liseli A. Fitzpatrick, a Trinidadian-scholar in the field of African Diasporic cosmologies and sacred ontologies, will lead an engaging lecture and discussion exploring African mythologies and folkloric cultures.

Learn more and register.

2022 Jun 04

Art Exhibit | Stoneroot Epistle: Collage and Words in Conversation

Repeats every week on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday until Sat Jun 25 2022 .

12:00pm to 4:00pm

Location:

Arnold Arboretum (Hunnewell Visitor Center), 125 Arborway, Boston

Visit the Arnold Arboretum's newly reopened Hunnewell Visitor Center and immerse yourself in this truly unique exhibition. The book, Stoneroot Epistle, was born out of Joyce Swagerty (Harvard class of '78) and Daina Swagerty's desire to understand the connection between themselves, the natural world, and the universal journey inspired by the African diaspora. The project by this mother and daughter was a spiritual adventure.

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Art Exhibition | Seeds for Tomorrow: Woody Plants of the Arnold Arboretum

Location:

Arnold Arboretum—Online

Laura Fantini uses colored pencil to render seeds in exquisite, hyper-realistic drawings. This series is called “Hope,” and therein lies the power of seeds. They are emblematic of both birth and growth—small, complicated, and extraordinary, like the wonderful drawings in this exhibition.

Learn more about and view this virtual exhibition....

In the Groves

Location:

Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

Immerse yourself in the deep beauty of trees in this story and music journey through the Arboretum. Led by Oracle award-winning storyteller Diane Edgecomb and Celtic harper Margot Chamberlain, this unfolding performance of ancient tales and songs from cultures around the world takes place in a variety of groves—birch, cherry, and evergreen—at some of the Arboretum’s loveliest spots.

This event is free, but registration is required and limited. Not designed for children under 12, and dogs are not allowed. COVID guidelines will be followed.

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"Every Pecan Tree": Trees, Meaning, and Memory in Enslaved People’s Lives

Location:

Arnold Arboretum—Online

This is the third lecture in the Arnold Arboretum's 2021 Director's Lecture Series. Tiya Miles takes up the pecan tree as inspiration for exploring the meaning of trees in the lives of enslaved African Americans. Using a family heirloom, slave narratives, oral histories, and missionary records, her talk underscores the importance of trees in the Black experience of captivity and resistance, ultimately revealing the centrality of the natural world to Black, and indeed human, survival.

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A History of Path-Making at the Arnold Arboretum

Location:

Arnold Arboretum—Online

At the time of its founding in 1872, the land on which the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University is sighted was a patchwork of farmland and forest. As the Arboretum was planted, pathways were developed to lead people through the picturesque landscape. As the landscape developed, economies shifted, wars took place, and directors changed. Each of these factors subtly influenced shifts in the park’s path system. Join the Arnold Arboretum on Zoom with Jared Rubinstein as he reveals the layers of change in this beloved landscape.

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Over Time: Through Art, the Impact of Change in the Arboretum Landscape

Location:

Arnold Arboretum—Online

Five decades of weekly walks in the Arnold Arboretum find expression in Ginny Zanger’s art. “Ambling” gives her time to sketch and paint. Using the unique possibilities of her favorite medium—watercolor—and printmaking, Zanger explores, with articulate interpretations, the Arboretum’s rich botanical display. In this online show, most of her work is on Yupo, a silky, polypropylene paper that enhances the flow of the watercolor.

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Urban Ponds: Essential Ecosystems for the Enjoyment and Discovery of Nature

Location:

Online Event

Ponds are one of many beautiful features of the Arnold Arboretum’s ecosystem and landscape. The Bradley Rosaceous Collection garden is the setting for three eco-rich ponds—Dawson, Faxon, and Rehder—named for former Arboretum staff. Photographer Bruce Wilson brings his now practiced eye to the discovery of shadows, reflections, visitor interaction, and flora in those ponds, as well as in an urban pond in Newton. His pond images complement the trees, emphasize the subtle or saturated colors of water, and capture interactions between visitors and the scenes of rich pondlife.

This...

Opening Reception for The Path Taken: Photography by Lawrence Mullings

Location:

Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

Join the Arnold Arboretum for an opening reception for their newest exhibition, The Path Taken: Photography by Lawrence Mullings.

On any given day, Lawrence Mullings can be found exploring the paths and hidden corners of the Arboretum. While walking in the landscape to regain his health, his joy in photography was rekindled. He saw how the Arboretum was many different things to him, and to the many different people who come here from around the neighborhood and around the world. To Mullings, the Arboretum is its trees, as well as the myriad ways visitors enjoy them...

Photography with Chris Morgan

Location:

Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

Chris Morgan is fascinated by the patterns and textures in nature, the shapes of trees, and the movements of birds. He captures these beautifully in his photographs, which were on display at the Arnold Arboretum in the winter of 2019.

In this program, Chris will discuss his photographic interests and methods in the classroom and then move outdoors to demonstrate his techniques. Class participants will be able to learn alongside Chris, evaluating views, debating camera angles, and considering focal points in order to shoot better images. Participants should bring their...

The Light You Cannot See: Infrared Photography by Betsey Henkels

Location:

Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

Opening Reception with the Artist: Saturday, October 26, 1:00pm–3:00pm

Betsey Henkels uses the camera to explore the world in two ways—first by noticing and appreciating objects that she might otherwise overlook, and second, by transforming ordinary scenes into prints that are compelling and unexpected. Henkels spent many hours in the Arboretum, photographing tree canopies, bark, and above ground roots in infrared. Infrared is magical and mysterious. The photographer shoots images without knowing exactly what will show up in the print. Looking through the viewfinder of an...

Art Workshop: Revealing the Wild Print

Location:

Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

Join the Arboretum's exhibiting artist, Steffanie Schwam, in this hands-on workshop. You will make your own unique monoprint on paper or fabric, using leaves from the Arboretum's collections, paint, printmaking tools, recycled materials, and the inspiration of the surrounding landscape.

Note: This workshop is appropriate for ages 8 and up. An adult must accompany anyone between ages 8–12.

Cost: $15 for members; $25 for nonmembers.

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Art Workshop: Cyanotype Printing for Families

Location:

Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

Sarah Cross, the Arnold Arboretum's exhibiting artist of Between the Leaves, will hold a cyanotype printing workshop for families. Join Sarah to make beautiful blue prints of leaves and blooms found at the Arboretum, while you learn about this alternative printing technique. After making your own unique cyanotype photogram, you will be able to take it home. All materials will be provided.

Please note: This free drop-in activity is appropriate for ages 7 and up.

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Art Workshop: Making Art in the Landscape

Location:

Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

Join Paul Olson, the Arnold Arboretum's exhibiting artist of Drawn to Paint, for a sketching workshop "en plein air" (outside, in the landscape). Olson, an instructor at Mass College of Art and RISD, will focus on teaching you to sketch trees from direct observation outdoors. He will encourage you to think about simplifying your design with just the essential shapes to make a good composition in light pencil. Then, you can use ink and water for an expressive tonal image. Bring pencils and sketchbooks; some supplies will be available.

Cost: $10 for...

The Art of Botanical Prose

Location:

Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

All writers must contend with translation. A poet translates the movement of a dancing figure into a brief couplet, and an essayist translates the noise and commotion of the city where she lives into a single paragraph. The three-dimensional world filters into text, and when done especially well—the realm of literature and art—readers often forget that translation has even occurred.

In this talk, Jonathan Damery, the associate editor for Arnoldia, will provide a readerly tour through horticultural and botanical reference books, encouraging readers to see the artistic endeavor...

In the Groves: A Summer Solstice Journey

Location:

Hunnewell Building and Arboretum Landscape, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

Join us for an enchanting evening of Tree Myths, Songs and Summer Solstice Legends. Attendees will hear tales of the human connection with trees and the deep meaning we have assigned to them through the ages. This unique performance, designed specifically for the Arnold Arboretum, travels through the Arboretum with story and music. Each story is told under a different tree or among a unique collection of Arboretum plants, culminating with the haunting Czech legend “The Wild Woman of the Birch Grove” told amid the birches at sunset. Appropriate for adults and for children twelve years and...

Drawing Daffodils Workshop: Exploring the Botany Behind the Art

Location:

Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, Boston

Have you ever dissected a flower? Do you know what a corona and a corolla are? Join botanical artists, Angell and Duncan as they lead you in creating pencil sketches of several varieties of daffodils. You will slice the flowers open to examine and draw their reproductive anatomy. The instructors will explain distinguishing features of the beautiful spring flowers and teach basic terminology to add to your understanding of the diverse botanical world.

Some pencils will be available, but bring your own if you have them. We will provide everything else, including microscopes....

Opening Reception for Transitions: Winter Into Spring, Photographs of the Arnold Arboretum

Location:

125 Arborway, Hunnewell Building, Boston

Chris Morgan's goal as a photographer is to evoke the emotions he feels when he views patterns and textures in nature, in the shapes of trees, and in the movements of birds. He brings details to life. The Arboretum, with its rich collections of flora and fauna, has been a major interest of his for over fifteen years, especially during blizzards, when dramatic photo opportunities appear. Digital photography, which offers a happy marriage of the arts and the sciences, lets him explore larger-format photography in creative ways through digital panorama techniques.

Morgan has...

2019 Mar 10

Transitions: Winter Into Spring, Photographs of the Arnold Arboretum

Repeats every day until Sun May 05 2019 .

(All day)

Location:

125 Arborway, Hunnewell Building, Boston

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114 Mount Auburn Street
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Cambridge, MA 02138
T (617) 495-1585 | F (617) 495-0754