Located among pristine woodlands in the Ryerson historic home in Riverwoods, Il., Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods promotes the importance of nature for nurturing personal and community wellbeing, cultivating creativity, and inspiring learning.
Author: Megan Donahue
Meet Julia Kemerer
Julia Kemerer is a mixed media artist and an avid maker of all things. She paints and sculpts with paper, found objects, fabric, wood, and clay, and has a passion for creative reuse, or what she refers to as “using what you have to make what you need.” Julia’s creations will often make appearances at Brushwood Center, where she is the Director of Arts and Administration. Through her work at Brushwood, she curates shows and art markets, runs the Brushwood Art Supply Exchange, and teaches classes in addition to working behind the scenes on several area public arts projects. Julia attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and holds a degree in Art History from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She lives in northern Lake County, Illinois with her husband and daughter in a 100 year old lake house full of pets, art,and plants.
See Julia’s art on display at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods October 25- November 30, 2025.
The Nightwatch, by Julia Kemerer Media: Mixed media sculpture
Julia’s Artist Statement
Art is alchemy. It is the transmuting of everyday materials using a lifetime of accumulated experiences, skills and knowledge into a magical new substance that only exists as a result of that particular recipe. The art I make now is the result of a fleeting moment in 2023 when a large round mirror frame in my living room suddenly resembled the opening to a birdhouse. I imagined for a moment what it would be like for an enormous bird to pop through that opening into my space, and I could not shake the feeling of awe and wonder it created. I found myself compelled to make it a reality, and it has led me to a series of work I call “Portals.” These sculptures of oversized birds were born out of my love of nature and the wonder it brings into my life when a wild creature appears in my path. Made from a combination of traditional and non-traditional materials, including light fixture parts, plaster gauze and plastic spoons, they are also an expression of my love of experimenting and doing things differently. They exist in an “in-between” space, inhabiting a world between sculpture and painting, 3D work and wall art, nature and human made, and fantasy and reality. They have taken on a bit of a life of their own.
Image: Make Way for the King, by Julia Kemerer Media: Mixed media sculpture
Artist of the Month Events
October 25 10:00 am – 3:00 pm | Free Open Art Workshop with Julia Kemerer
Open Art Workshop is open to anyone who wants to make something in any area of visual arts and crafts, from the experienced artist looking for a community of others to work with, to the complete novice who just wants to try something out in a low pressure environment, or the family looking for a fun kids’ activity to fill their afternoon – this workshop is for you!
Image: Julia Kemerer with her sculpture, Make Way for the King. Media: Mixed media sculpture
November 19 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm | $20
Create & Sip – Make a Wreath
Create & Sip is a monthly workshop hosted at Brushwood Center where participants can explore fun projects using supplies and tools from the Brushwood Art Supply Exchange, BASE. It’s an opportunity to get creative, try something new, and enjoy the company of fellow art enthusiasts in a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere.
The outdoor celebration invited participants of all ages to join in art-making, music, and collective care for the land. Plant, Baby, Plant is a grassroots movement of people taking meaningful, regenerative action to care for the Earth—in the garden and in the streets. Together, they aim to:
Build Community: support and widen the circle of people who work with the land.
Grow Power: transform love of land into social change through creative resistance.
The event featured opening remarks from Kimmerer, collaborative outdoor art led by Osage artist Lydia Cheshewalla, and live music by Elexa Dawson. The event marked the inaugural in-person gathering of Plant, Baby, Plant, the first in a series of community activations that will bloom wherever Robin visits, turning inspiration into action.
“Together, we can spark a grassroots movement to heal land, build community, and transform love of land into social change. Not only will we plant trees and food and wildflower meadows, but we will plant our feet and say ‘no more destruction’. We will plant a flag, to claim that this is what good citizens do on behalf of Mother Earth,” said Kimmerer.
Photos by Michael Kardas Photography
Brushwood’s Impact in 2025
Flourishing Together: Ashley’s Brushwood Story
Ashley Cullen-Williams first came to Brushwood when she worked as TRiO Educational Talent Search manager in Waukegan. She was looking for a safe place for staff and students to relax and connect after the pandemic. Little did she know that she was stepping into a new chapter, one that culminated in her becoming Brushwood Center’s Senior Program Director.
The following film shares Ashley’s story, and highlights Brushwood’s impact through her unique perspective. This video, created by our videographer in residence, Kateryna Sazonova, debuted at the 2025 Smith Nature Symposium Awards Dinner, and we wanted to share it with our entire community. Watch Ashley’s Brushwood journey from participant, to partner, to director!
The latest news from Brushwood’s ensemble-in-residence
Black Moon Trio is a horn, violin, and piano ensemble redefining the chamber music experience through adventurous programming, community-centered education, and a commitment to equity in the arts. By engaging with diverse audiences, youth, and artists of every type, Black Moon Trio works to prove that classical music is for everyone.
Parker Nelson is the French horn player for Black Moon Trio, and the Director of Public Programs and Music at Brushwood Center. “Convergence offered a really unique opportunity for me flex the artistic side of what Brushwood’s mission is: to do work at the intersection of wellness, the arts and nature,” he says. He thinks this integration of the arts into health equity work is ” Kind of our special sauce, this unique combination of things that we’re able to provide here at Brushwood Center. Because of the staff that we have and because of the connections that we have, we’re able to tell these really unique stories and kind of get to this type of storytelling that only Brushwood Center can provide.”
October is a busy month for the Trio. They are preparing to launch their latest album, Flourish, a collaboration featuring author Robin Wall Kimmerer, inspired by her writings. Influenced by Kimmerer’s work as a scientist and Indigenous knowledge keeper, Flourish embraces nature not as something to be conquered or consumed, but as a living, breathing partner, whose wisdom is available to those who take the time to listen. Kimmerer’s insights, expressed through her reflective and poetic voice, guide listeners to see the land as a giver: one that offers more than sustenance, but also lessons of gratitude, respect, and care. The album will be released on October 17, 2025.
The Trio has also launched a For Your Consideration campaign for this year’s GRAMMY Awards®, for their album, Principal. Here at Brushwood, we’re cheering them on!
Meet alexandra ok
alexandra ok is a Midwest-based painter showcasing the beauty of queer community. Ok received their BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2023, where they honed their figurative painting abilities and passion for color work.
See alexandra’s art on display at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods September 27- October 25, 2025.
act gay in public like your life depends on it, because it does, by alexandra ok. Media: acrylic and mixed media on canvas
alexandra’s Artist Statement
Sometimes sad, sometimes raunchy, ofttimes downright confusing but always colorful; ok’s work revolves around their identity and the memories that formed their sense of self. Using the language of figure painting, portraiture, and color theory, ok reflects on what it means to be a contemporary queer.
Image: angels on the beach, by alexandra ok Media: acrylic and mixed media on fabric
Artist of the Month Events
September 27 10:00 am – 3:00 pm | Free Open Art Workshop with alexandra ok
Open Art Workshop is open to anyone who wants to make something in any area of visual arts and crafts, from the experienced artist looking for a community of others to work with, to the complete novice who just wants to try something out in a low pressure environment, or the family looking for a fun kids’ activity to fill their afternoon – this workshop is for you!
October 15 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm | $20
Create & Sip – Portrait of a New Friend
Create & Sip is a monthly workshop hosted at Brushwood Center where participants can explore fun projects using supplies and tools from the Brushwood Art Supply Exchange, BASE. It’s an opportunity to get creative, try something new, and enjoy the company of fellow art enthusiasts in a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere.
This year, Brushwood and a network of dedicated community partners teamed up to distribute 1,300 Nature Explorer Backpacks/ Mochilas de Explorador. These backpacks were filled with supplies and resources to encourage families to explore the natural spaces around them through activities focused on nurturing wellness and creativity.
Juan Diaz is the Community Engagement Coordinator, and Sandra Lopez is the Communications and Organizational Development Director at the Round Lake Area Public Library. We sat down with them to talk about our collaboration, which grew from summer backpack distributions to a year-round multi-faceted partnership.
What does the partnership between Brushwood Center and the Round Lake Area Public Library look like?
Juan Diaz: We originally started with Brushwood offering the Nature Explorer Backpack program. We hosted a program here where we talked a little bit about education/nature, and then we would give out the backpacks to the participants. Once we saw how successful that program was, we decided to do other nature programs. We started meeting quarterly and we would do other one-off programs. The last one we did was Scavenger Hunt.
We’re actually lucky that we’re right next door to the park district, and we have a woods area behind the library-a part of it has been made into a trail.
So we went to the trail and we were able to take a small group back there, and Brushwood came in and was able to share their expertise on nature and how to look at the leaves or the birds. From that program, Brushwood also developed their Little Explorer backpacks, and then they were able to give us four backpacks. We’ve just been building off from all the previous programs to either offer more nature programs or even resources that we can let our patrons borrow.
How does this partnership help you with your goals for community engagement at the library?
Sandra Lopez: Brushwood has been a force that has helped us reach more people. Without Brushwood, we were limited by our reach because of funds and also because of manpower. The library and Brushwood have a similar vision in a lot of ways: we both value lifelong learning, the arts, science, things like that. So the partnership just makes sense. We’re very aligned.
JD: Partnering with Brushwood has allowed us to reach a lot more people who might have a specific niche with nature and art that we might have not been able to reach before. Out of the partnership, we were able to establish a lot of new programs, offer more resources.
SL: We value Brushwood’s creativity and generosity and just overall commitment to the community. The team has brought in a lot of tools to make it happen. So it’s definitely the partnership that’s rooted, in a lot of mutual respect and shared goals that inspire that connection to nature, that as a library, I don’t think we’d be able to necessarily do alone. Brushwood provides a lot of access to the nature tools, to the guidance on how to explore the outdoors. And the Nature Explorer and Little Explorer Backpacks have really been what has helped us bridge that gap so that every child can develop through play, and discover nature and wellness.
JD: Thanks to Brushwood we’ve been able to reach different community needs. Like some patrons, were excited to use the backpacks since it was close to the start of school, they could use it for that reason. There were other families who were really excited because the backpack was going to aid the parents to have tools for their children to use when they go outside and explore nature. Round Lake has a lot of nature trails, so that’s another resource that parents can have and use with their children. We were able to reach different interests and provide something for anyone.
BW: What is the impact of the Nature Explorer and Little Explorer Backpacks?
SL: They encourage observation, creativity, reflection, which aligns really beautifully with the library’s literacy and STEM and STEAM goals that we have in our strategic plan. The backpacks help us remove some of the barriers by giving families free access to the tools, or the ideas, or outdoor explanation. I know that sometimes as parents, we want our children to know more about nature, but we’re so disconnected sometimes that we don’t even know how. So I feel like the backpacks help bridge that gap for that “how” and explain or support mental wellness, curiosity, even physical health.
BW: Through this partnership, the library has invested in connecting the community with nature and the outdoors. Why?
SL: Yes, we’re a library and one of our values is literacy, but our second highest value is bridging the gap in the community. And part of that is connecting to nature, connecting to creativity, connecting to STEAM and STEM. Through this collaboration we’re helping the community, helping families build that deeper relationship with lifelong learning, with nature, with each other. Our partnership just shows what’s possible when two organizations come together with a shared purpose. Brushwood has brought their vision and their resources to the library, and together we’re creating this educational experience that I feel is very joyful for families who might not have been able to have it otherwise. And that’s really the heart of the partnership.
BW: How does the library contribute to community resilience?
JD: Going back to when we started this partnership with Brushwood, it started during COVID. That’s a good example of the resilience of both organizations, to come together and still meet the needs of the community in an entirely different way. It shows the adaptability of libraries and how no matter what hardships the community might be going through or just the world in general, the library will always be an institution that will be able to, or try our best to be,.a resource. Whether that be through books or partnering with organizations to provide more resources.
SL: I feel like the library’s resilience is within the community by being a consistent, reliable resource for learning, for connection, for support in times of uncertainty. Libraries are often the safe haven that provides access to the information, to the resources, sometimes even emotional support to help people either cope or cope and thrive. That often happens through educational programs, community events, resources like the Nature Explorer and Little Explorer Backpacks that encourage this outdoor learning exploration that we’ve been talking about.
We help individuals and families figure out challenges and build skills for resilience. I think we’re the connector that links people to services, to mental health resources, to tools that they might not otherwise be able to access. We’re not just books, right? Our role isn’t just about providing books. It’s about creating connections in an environment where people feel empowered, people feel informed, and people feel supported.
Check Out Little Explorer Backpacks at a Library Near You!
The Nature Explorer Backpacks have received a rave response from our partners and participants, so we decided keep the excitement going all year long. Brushwood has partnered with libraries across Lake County to create the Little Explorer’s Backpack, filled with new and thrilling activities for families to enjoy.
Thank you to our 2025 Nature Explorer Backpack Sponsors! BCU | The Buchanan Family Foundation | Grainger | Grainger Foundation | Jonathan Huisel | Northwestern Medicine | Jessica P. Sarowitz | Wintrust Community Banks
A Life dedicated to the arts and Environment
Remembering Robert Redford
It is with great sadness that Brushwood Center mourns the death of Robert Redford. “His lifetime dedication to the environment and justice was an inspiration to the Brushwood Center community and our commitment to ensuring health equity and access to nature for all,” said Executive Director Catherine Game. “He was a humble but powerful voice in this work, and passionate about the impact of art and nature.”
Robert Redford, Donna LaPietra, Bill Kurtis, and Sibylle Szaggars Redford at the 35th Annual Smith Nature Symposium Awards Dinner
In 2018, Brushwood honored Robert and his wife, Sibylle Szaggars Redford, with our highest honor, the Distinguished Environmental Leadership Award at the 35th Annual Smith Nature Symposium Awards Dinner. As a part of the event, Brushwood presented the Chicago-area premiere of The Way of The Rain – Voices of Hope, for Brushwood Center, for which Sibylle was artistic director and Robert graced the stage. Robert’s comments ahead of the premiere resonate with great clarity today:
“With everything that is going on in the world right now, I believe art plays a critical role in so many issues we are facing today; art nurtures the soul, provokes thought and inspires critical thinking. And during times like these, art can also foster a deeper understanding and connection to the Earth. We desperately need these messages right now.”
“Honoring Robert’s legacy to inspire, educate, and activate people to care for our Earth is central to all that we do at Brushwood Center,” said A. Gail Sturm, Brushwood Center Board Chair. “He understood that art is a basic need of human survival, one of the ways we make sense of our lives, one of the ways in which we express feelings when we have no words, a way for us to understand with our hearts when we cannot with our minds.”
Robert’s powerful words on stage called on each of us to do more for the natural world, recognizing the deeply interconnected relationships of life on this planet. He shared, “Only together, like rain drops, will we be able to nourish the river of life. I do not believe we go up to the sky, unless it is to come down again with the rain.”
We invite you to revisit Robert’s interview with Bill Kurtis and Donna LaPietra at the 35th Annual Smith Nature Symposium and join us in honoring his legacy.
art in action
Convergence in the Community
On June 28, 2024, Gorton Center in Lake Forest hummed with conversation and rang with applause as audiences experienced Convergence for the first time. Brushwood Center debuted the world premiere performance of music and art inspired by the findings of our recent report Health, Equity, and Nature: A Changing Climate in Lake County, Illinois, that links access to clean air, water, and nature to healthier lives.
Convergence: Health Equity in a Changing Climate, is a bilingual (English and Spanish) performance, guided by Brushwood Center’s Ensemble-in-Residence, Black Moon Trio. It translates the lived experiences of communities in Lake County, Illinois, affected by environmental racism and health inequities through original music, illustration, and storytelling.
This signature concert experience features live music performed by Black Moon Trio (Parker Nelson, Jeremy Vigil, and Khelsey Zarraga), including two commissioned compositions from composers Marc Mellits and Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate. Visually, it includes original artworks from five artists from across the country: Natashna Anderson, Kelley Clink, Laura Horan, Lakosh, and Naimah Thomas. The live performance is complemented by filmed narration in English and Spanish.
Since 2024, Convergence has quickly become a conversation-starter in communities in the region. Audiences in Waukegan saw a performance in August 2024. In the winter and spring of 2025, Convergence was condensed into a shorter program for educational and community settings. It connects students to the important data of health equity through art, while promoting social and emotional learning, and music and art literacy skills.
“Some of my favorite responses that I’ve gotten from audiences are things like the music program that we visited in North Chicago, where the program had grown from about five students to over 150. The students were just really excited to have real live musicians in their school, something that they had never dealt with before, something that they have never experienced before. Just having a chance to connect with these young musicians and talk a little bit more about how they can use their artistic talent to make change in their community was something that was really, really special,” says Parker Nelson, Director of Public Programs and Music at Brushwood Center.
“Brushwood Center is working with our artistic and community partners to make this data as accessible as possible,” says Catherine Game, Executive Director of Brushwood Center. “As an organization committed to improving health equity through community, nature, and the arts, we also know that art is a powerful tool for social change. By translating the research of the report into a multi-disciplinary performance, we hope to mobilize even more people and communities in this movement for a healthy and just future.”
Brushwood Initiatives
Building Resilience with the Health, Equity, and Nature Accelerator
By Dani Abboud and Jess Rodriguez
What will our region look like in the next 5, 10, 20, and 100 years? How will our communities adapt to future crises, rising food and housing costs, extreme weather events, shifting populations, and supporting climate refugees?
Already this year, we have experienced record heat, storms, and major flooding events. The time for solutions is now. Brushwood Center’s Health, Equity, and Nature Accelerator supports building resilience through collaboration with communities and the healthcare sector.
Mobilizing Community Leaders
Last summer, more than 100 Lake County community leaders gathered in Waukegan for Brushwood Center’s fourth annual Community Leadership Roundtable. This gathering built on the momentum of our recently-released report, Health, Equity, and Nature: A Changing Climate in Lake County, IL, with focused conversations about local impacts of climate change on health. Inspired by Lake County’s resilience and strong community networks, leaders responded to four different climate scenarios based on real and predicted impacts, and collaborated on a community response. The responses showed the depth of assets in our region, as attendees discussed innovative approaches to urban gardening, ideas for community response systems, and ways to build community connection to improve resource access and data sharing.
Jess Rodriguez leads a forest bathing activity at the 2024 Community Leadership Roundtable
Based on feedback from the community leaders at the 2024 Roundtable, in 2025 Brushwood Center took our community into the field with two Environmental Justice and Healing Tours. Participants learned about the current state of environmental justice in Waukegan, visiting some of the most relevant sites of environmental damage and rehabilitation in the area.
Eddie Flores and Jess Rodriguez led two Environmental Justice and Healing Bus Tours
Driven by Data
Community assets are one of the major highlights of Health, Equity, and Nature: A Changing Climate in Lake County, IL. This report, first released at the 2023 Leadership Roundtable, compiled public data sets, interviews with community members, original artwork, and GIS maps to tell the story of nature and health inequities in Lake County. While there were many interesting and frustrating findings within the report, the key message was clear: while our region has a wealth of green space and community assets, Northeast Lake County is overburdened by environmental racism and health injustices, including exposure to toxic industrial pollution, lower income, lower life expectancy, and increased respiratory and pulmonary disease risk.
More than 3,000 people have engaged with the report data since it was published.
This report has had a profound impact on our work since its publication. We have shared the data with more than 3,000 people, distributing thousands of copies of the report in English and Spanish, providing over fifteen presentations to various organizations and stakeholders, and multiple artistic interpretations of the data, including our signature art exhibition and concert performance, Convergence. The community response has been humbling and overwhelming. We have heard from community members who felt seen and validated by the report, partners who have used the data in grant requests to leverage support for their work, and even faculty from Rosalind Franklin University incorporating the report into curriculum for first and third year medical students. But the work of the Health, Equity and Nature Accelerator does not end with the report– it is only the beginning.
Meet Kirsten Saunders
Kirsten Saunders began working with clay in college in 1982 and was hooked right away. Though her B.A. is in Psychology/Sociology, she took many fine art classes and workshops through the years to hone her skills and develop her own style. She taught children’s art classes while raising her own children, and still enjoys teaching occasionally and experiencing children’s playfulness and discovery.
See Kirsten’s art on display at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods August 30 – September 27, 2025.
Turtle at the pond, by Kirsten Saunders. Media: Pottery
Kirsten’s Artist Statement
Kirsten is most inspired by her ever changing garden, whimsy, and her love of nature and its amazing creatures. Each piece is one of a kind, created in her home studio in Gurnee, Illinois. Working mostly with Terra Cotta clay, pieces are wheel thrown, hand built, or a construction of both. Her mosaics are a blend of crockery, her own pottery, glass and other enticing items.
Image: Loving Hands, by Kirsten Saunders Media: Pottery
Artist of the Month Events
August 30 10:00 am – 3:00 pm | Free Open Art Workshop with Kirsten Saunders
Open Art Workshop is open to anyone who wants to make something in any area of visual arts and crafts, from the experienced artist looking for a community of others to work with, to the complete novice who just wants to try something out in a low pressure environment, or the family looking for a fun kids’ activity to fill their afternoon – this workshop is for you!
Create & Sip is a monthly workshop hosted at Brushwood Center where participants can explore fun projects using supplies and tools from the Brushwood Art Supply Exchange, BASE. It’s an opportunity to get creative, try something new, and enjoy the company of fellow art enthusiasts in a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere.
Image: An monarch butterfly ornament by Kirsten Saunders
