BASE: Create & Sip - Accordion Art Books
2025-08-13 19:00 - 21:00 (America/Chicago) | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
BASE: Create & Sip – View From Your Window Accordion Art Books with Susan Teller

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 month’s class will be led by August’s Artist of the Month, Susan Teller, who will teach us to make Accordion Art Books. Recycle paper CD covers into your own unique accordion art book! Participants will paint, draw, and / or collage each page, with Susan’s guidance.You can also see Susan’s work displayed in the Brushwood Center Gallery from July 26 – August 30.

We’ll have a variety of supplies and tools available. Everyone’s project will be unique. No experience necessary, all skill levels are welcome.

About the Artist:

Susan Teller graduated from the University Of Illinois Chicago with a BFA in 1979. She worked at Spring Studio, United Letter, and the Marshall Fields Advertising Department. She was the Skokie Public Library Staff Artist/ Librarian, from 1997-2022. She currently teaches workshops in paper making, watercolor painting, and book binding. She also teaches classes about women artists, the process of making art, and storyboard drawing and development.

What to Bring:

Your favorite beverage (alcohol is allowed for those 21 +)

Some snacks to enjoy as you immerse yourself in the creative process

Your friends (make sure they register!)

Any extra supplies you want to incorporate into your project (Optional! We have lots of supplies!)

Questions? Please contact Director of Public Programs and Music, Parker Nelson at pnelson@brushwoodcenter.org$20/person. Please register by August 11. BYOB.

register

Military Kids Fest
2025-08-16 10:00 - 14:00 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
Military Kids Fest

Celebrate Summer with Brushwood Center’s At Ease initiative and enjoy art, music, activities, games, and nature with other members of the Military Community! In collaboration with Kids Rank, Veteran Art Tribe and other Veteran organizations. Brushwood’s second annual Military Kids Fest offers an open house with art, exploration, and fun.

Join us for:

Music fun and a singalong for all ages with Ukulady Lisa

A squishy slime-making activity with Veteran Art Tribe

Meet and greet reptiles and amphibians with the Lake County Forest Preserves

Information and resource tables from: Brushwood Center, Growing Healthy Families, Blue Star Families

A nature hike with Brushwood Center

Outdoor games, art activities, and more!

Please note, that this event is for Veterans, current service members, and their families only.

Contact Jessica Klinge at jklinge@brushwoodcenter.org if you have questions or concerns.

Register here

Art Impact Project
2025-08-19 10:00 - 11:30, 2025-09-16 10:00 - 11:30, 2025-10-21 10:00 - 11:30 | ​Mundelein Park & Recreation Community Center, ​888 Dunbar Road, Mundelein, IL, 60060, United States
Art Impact Project

Art Impact Project facilitates supportive art projects designed to provide participants a different way to express themselves through art-making. With a focus on emotional wellness through creative expression, Art Impact Project’s small-group environment gives participants the chance to self-reflect and safely share their observations. Each 90-minute session involves the completion of an art project from start to finish. Projects will vary from week to week, exploring various art media and objectives.

Parking is available outside of the building. Ask for the Veteran art program once in the building.

Activity Expectation: Indoor, sitting, cushions available Sensory Expectations: Indoor environment and forest landscape, very little noise, calming area, natural area sounds Available Accommodations: No language interpretation available.Questions? Please contact Veterans Program Specialist, Jessica Klinge at jklinge@brushwoodcenter.org.

REGISTER

Nature Book Club: August
2025-08-23 10:00 - 11:30 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
Nature Book Club: Braiding Sweetgrass (Part 2)

The Brushwood Nature Book Club is a place to talk about and explore nature literature in a friendly environment. Each meeting includes discussion, creative writing, and art activities to engage with the themes of the chosen book, led by Brushwood’s Poet-in-Residence Kathryn Haydon, and writer-artist Megan Donahue.

Our summer series of meetings is focused on the work of the 2025 Smith Nature Symposium Honoree, Robin Wall Kimmerer. In July and August, we’ll read Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, and in September, The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World.

Receive 15% off of the purchase price of the books at Lake Forest Book Store when you mention Brushwood Nature Book Club or Kathryn Haydon! Copies of the books can be purchased online at the links below:

The Serviceberry

Braiding Sweetgrass

REGISTER

Paint and Photograph the Prairie
2025-08-23 15:00 - 19:30 | River Road Trailhead – Midewin Tallgrass Prairie, Elwood, Illinois, 60042
Paint and Photograph the Prairie

Join Brushwood Center’s At Ease initiative in a special program at the Midewin Tallgrass Prairie to enjoy four hours of painting and photographing the prairie with U.S. Veteran artists and photographers. Increase your skills while enjoying the camaraderie of fellow Veterans!

Cameras will be provided, but feel free to bring your own! All art materials will be provided at the event.

__

Please note, that this event is for Veterans, current service members, and their families only.

Snacks will be provided. Please bring water.

Activity Expectation: Walking, possible uneven trails

Sensory Expectations: Prairie and forest landscape. Wear comfortable shoes.

Available Accommodations: No language interpretation available. We have walking sticks available.

Contact Jessica Klinge at jklinge@brushwoodcenter.org if you have mobility concerns.

REGIster

Veteran Paint and Plant
2025-08-28 13:00 - 15:00 | Chicago Vet Center, 8658 S. Sacramento Ave, Chicago, Illinois, 60652, United States
Veteran Paint and Plant

Nurture your creativity and your spirit. In this class, you’ll paint a pot with meaningful designs and re-pot a plant to take home—a living reminder of growth and resilience. This grounding experience blends artistic expression with the calming rhythm of nature and the therapeutic act of planting.

Register by calling the Chicago Vet Center at: 773-962-3740.

Watercolor Painting for Women Veterans and Families
2025-08-28 18:30 - 20:00, 2025-09-25 18:30 - 20:00, 2025-10-23 18:30 - 20:00
Watercolor Painting for Women Veterans and Families

Develop your unique artistic expression through watercolor painting. We will delight in the colorful, transformative nature of the watercolor while also sharing factual information about the natural world and flowers. Student input and discussion are welcome!

Class taught by Gabrielle Tufano.—Art materials will be mailed to your home. Materials will be sent via Amazon, you must register a week beforehand to receive materials.

If registering the day before or of the event, please have your own materials at home – watercolor paint, paper, pencil.

Activity expectation is sitting.

Available Accommodations: No language interpretation available. Virtual Class.

REGIster

BASE: Open Art Workshop with Kirsten Saunders
2025-08-30 10:00 - 15:00 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
You Choose the Project · Use Tools and Supplies From BASE · Get Help When You Need It

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!

This month, our upcoming September Artist of the Month, Kirsten Saunders will be our guest artist. Kirsten is a potter and mosaicist. Stop by to learn from Kirsten!

WHEN DOES IT HAPPEN? 10am-3pm, the last Saturday of every month (no meetings in November and December 2025). Come anytime during the day, and stay as long as you’d like.

WHAT DOES IT COST? Workspace, use of our tools and any instruction or assistance you need is free; supplies from BASE are “pay what you want” (free to teachers and organizations).

WHAT CAN I MAKE? Almost* anything! Come with a project you want to work on in mind, or pick one from our list of project ideas for all ages and abilities. You are welcome to bring your own supplies and tools, or use ones from BASE. You can work independently, or work with an instructor. Here are just a few ideas of what you can learn and do at the Open Art Workshop:

Watercolor · Embroidery · Mosaics · Book Binding · Charcoal Drawing · Knitting & Crochet · Decoupage · Sewing & Mending · Jewelry Making · Plein Air Painting · Basket Weaving · Picture Framing · Card Making · Kids Art Projects · Block Printing · Stained Glass · Acrylic Painting · Costume Making · Weaving · Collage · UpCycling · Gift Wrapping · Sculpture · Upholstery · Colored Pencil · Wreath Making · Beading · Rubber Stamps · Oil Painting · Quilting · Pastels · Macramé · Miniatures

*We will do our best to accommodate all types of projects, but there may be limitations on what is possible on a particular day due to limitations of space, supplies or tools (supplies and tools are mostly donated, and what is available is always changing), or due to a particular project being too messy or dangerous to be done in a public space. If a particular project cannot be worked on during the Workshop that day, we will do our best to help you figure out how to proceed on a future Workshop date or on your own. Since this Workshop is open to ALL topics and media, we won’t be experts on everything, but we can definitely help you get started.

If you have questions about Open Art Workshop or BASE, please contact Julia Kemerer at 224-633-2426 or jkemerer@brushwoodcenter.org.

REGISter

Opening Reception: Before Dreams Are The Last Place We Find You
2025-09-07 13:00 - 15:00 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
Opening Reception: Before Dreams Are The Last Place We Find You

Lydia Cheshewalla is an Osage ephemeral artist from Oklahoma, living and working in motion throughout the Great Plains ecoregion. Through the creation of site-specific land art and ephemeral installations grounded in Indigenous land stewardship practices and kinship pedagogies, Lydia engages in multivocal conversations about place and relationship.

Before Dreams Are The Last Place We Find You will open at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods on Sunday, September 7th. This exhibition is an ephemeral, site-specific installation by Cheshewalla, and will be created during her August residency at the Center for Humans & Nature in Libertyville, Illinois.

Once the work is created, it will be carefully transported to Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods for installation. Because this work is time and season reliant, what it will look like remains to be seen.

Cheshewalla’s practice is built on an ethos that views all beings as sacred, with their own agency, and with a right to complete their cycle of life and death. She works mainly with naturally shed material and seeds that are ready for collecting. At the end of installations, each being is returned to its original place in nature where it was gathered, closing the circle of creation.

A selection of Cheshewalla’s work will be published by the digital branch of Humans & Nature Press. The Digital Press celebrates diverse sources of wisdom about what it means to be human in an interconnected world.

Please join us at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods for an Opening Reception and Artist Talk.

RSVP HERE

Before Dreams Are The Last Place We Find You
2025-09-07 13:00 - 2025-11-02 15:00 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
Before Dreams Are The Last Place We Find You

Lydia Cheshewalla is an Osage ephemeral artist from Oklahoma, living and working in motion throughout the Great Plains ecoregion. Through the creation of site-specific land art and ephemeral installations grounded in Indigenous land stewardship practices and kinship pedagogies, Lydia engages in multivocal conversations about place and relationship.

Before Dreams Are The Last Place We Find You will open at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods on Sunday, September 7th. This exhibition is an ephemeral, site-specific installation by Cheshewalla, and will be created during her August residency at the Center for Humans & Nature in Libertyville, Illinois.

Once the work is created, it will be carefully transported to Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods for installation. Because this work is time and season reliant, what it will look like remains to be seen.

Cheshewalla’s practice is built on an ethos that views all beings as sacred, with their own agency, and with a right to complete their cycle of life and death. She works mainly with naturally shed material and seeds that are ready for collecting. At the end of installations, each being is returned to its original place in nature where it was gathered, closing the circle of creation.

A selection of Cheshewalla’s work will be published by the digital branch of Humans & Nature Press. The Digital Press celebrates diverse sources of wisdom about what it means to be human in an interconnected world.

Please join us at Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods on September 7 at 1:00 pm for an Opening Reception and Artist Talk.

Before Dreams Are The Last Place We’ll Find You is part of the Smith Nature Symposium.

Learn More About the Exhibition

Veterans Acrylic Paint & Sip Nights
2025-09-10 18:30 - 21:00, 2025-10-08 18:30 - 21:00 | American Legion Cicero Post 96, 5820 W 35th St, Cicero, Illinois, 60804
Veterans Acrylic Paint & Sip Nights

Join us for a fun and relaxing acrylic paint event led by Veteran artists. ​This event promises to be both educational and therapeutic. Take home your own hand-painted masterpiece!All skill levels welcomed.Non-alcoholic drinks, beer and wine will be available for purchase with the American Legion Cicero Post 96.​ Small snack items will be available for free.Brought to you by Brushwood Center’s At Ease Program, Veteran Art Tribe, and the American Legion Cicero Post #96!​Registration is required.

REGISTER

Convergence at Lake Forest College
2025-09-12 16:00 - 17:30 | Lake Forest College, Lake Forest College - Holt Chapel 555 N Sheridan Rd, Lake Forest, Illinois, 60045, United States
Convergence at Lake Forest College

Everyone deserves a healthy environment and access to the outdoors.

Research demonstrates that clean air, water, and access to the outdoors are vital to human health. So if nature is a necessity for everyone’s health and well-being, why is it so hard for some people to access it? What are the consequences?

The vital connections between health, equity, and nature are increasingly visible across the United States. Throughout special 90-minute experience, audiences will watch and listen to the lived experiences of members of communities affected by environmental racism and health inequities and their interconnections through music, illustration, and videography and be guided in a Forest Bathing Invitation by Jess Rodriguez from Reciprocal Forest Bathing.

Convergence: Health Equity in a Changing Climate is a collaboration between Black Moon Trio and Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods and features two commissioned compositions from composers Marc Mellits and Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate as well as original artwork from five visual artists across the country to emphasize the data collected from Brushwood Center’s Health, Equity, and Nature Accelerator Report.

Register Here

At Ease Book Club: The Serviceberry
2025-09-16 18:00 - 19:00, 2025-09-23 18:00 - 19:00 | IL
At Ease Book Club: The Serviceberry, by Robin Wall Kimmerer

As Indigenous scientist and author Robin Wall Kimmerer harvests serviceberries alongside the birds, she considers the ethic of reciprocity that lies at the heart of the gift economy. How, she asks, can we learn from Indigenous wisdom and the plant world to reimagine what we value most? As Veterans and military community members, we will explore how these questions and ideas impact the author, ourselves, and our community.

This virtual book club will meet weekly on Zoom on Tuesdays from 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm on September 16th and 23rd. Books are provided. Please provide your phone number and address so the book may be shipped to you.

Brushwood Center will also have an in-person Nature Book Club meeting open to all on September 26th for The Serviceberry as well.

Questions? Please contact Veterans Program Specialist, Jessica Klinge at jklinge@brushwoodcenter.org.

Register here

BASE: Create & Sip - Clay Ornaments
2025-09-17 19:00 - 21:00 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
BASE: Create & Sip – Clay Ornaments with Kirsten Saunders

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 month’s class will be led by September’s Artist of the Month, Kirsten Saunders, who will teach us to make Clay Ornaments. Use clay, large cookie cutters and clay stamps to create your own ornaments for any occasion. Great for ages 10+. Working with clay relieves stress, increases focus, and engages both hands and mind. It’s a fun way to expand your creative and expressive repertoire! You can also see Kirsten’s work displayed in the Brushwood Center Gallery from August 30 – September 27.

We’ll have a variety of supplies and tools available. Everyone’s project will be unique. No experience necessary, all skill levels are welcome.

About the Artist:

Kirsten 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. She is most inspired by her ever changing garden, whimsy, and her love of nature and it’s 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.

What to Bring:

Your favorite beverage (alcohol is allowed for those 21 +)

Some snacks to enjoy as you immerse yourself in the creative process

Your friends (make sure they register!)

Any extra supplies you want to incorporate into your project (Optional! We have lots of supplies!)

Questions? Please contact Director of Public Programs and Music, Parker Nelson at pnelson@brushwoodcenter.org$20/person. Please register by September 15. BYOB.

register

Celestial Nature and Forest Therapy: Autumnal Equinox
2025-09-22 13:00 - 15:00 | Bowen Park, 1800 N Sheridan Rd, Waukegan, Illinois, 60085
Celestial Nature and Forest Therapy: Autumnal Equinox

Forest bathing is a guided experience that works to mend the relationships humans have with themselves, the concept of time, their communities, and their environment. It is a practice focused on remembering reciprocity by connecting to our senses through the natural world.

Join Jess Rodriguez, certified Nature and Forest Therapy guide, for a two-hour practice filled with a series of guided invitations that offer opportunities of presence, stress relief, and relaxation.

During this time, participants can expect to walk slowly for less than a mile with plenty of opportunities to stop and simply notice the world around them. Forest bathing is an adaptable and flexible practice that welcomes people of all abilities. For more information visit reciprocalforestbathing.com

REGISTER HERE

Nature Book Club: September
2025-09-27 10:00 - 11:30 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
Nature Book Club: The Serviceberry

The Brushwood Nature Book Club is a place to talk about and explore nature literature in a friendly environment. Each meeting includes discussion, creative writing, and art activities to engage with the themes of the chosen book, led by Brushwood’s Poet-in-Residence Kathryn Haydon, and writer-artist Megan Donahue.

Our summer series of meetings is focused on the work of the 2025 Smith Nature Symposium Honoree, Robin Wall Kimmerer. In July and August, we’ll read Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants, and in September, The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World.

Receive 15% off of the purchase price of the books at Lake Forest Book Store when you mention Brushwood Nature Book Club or Kathryn Haydon! Copies of the books can be purchased online at the links below:

The Serviceberry

Braiding Sweetgrass

REGISTER

BASE: Open Art Workshop with Alexandra Ok
2025-09-27 10:00 - 15:00 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
You Choose the Project · Use Tools and Supplies From BASE · Get Help When You Need It

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!

This month, our upcoming October Artist of the Month, Alexandra Ok will be our guest artist. Alexandra is a Midwest- based painter showcasing the beauty of queer community. Stop by to learn from Alexandra!

WHEN DOES IT HAPPEN? 10am-3pm, the last Saturday of every month (no meetings in November and December 2025). Come anytime during the day, and stay as long as you’d like.

WHAT DOES IT COST? Workspace, use of our tools and any instruction or assistance you need is free; supplies from BASE are “pay what you want” (free to teachers and organizations).

WHAT CAN I MAKE? Almost* anything! Come with a project you want to work on in mind, or pick one from our list of project ideas for all ages and abilities. You are welcome to bring your own supplies and tools, or use ones from BASE. You can work independently, or work with an instructor. Here are just a few ideas of what you can learn and do at the Open Art Workshop:

Watercolor · Embroidery · Mosaics · Book Binding · Charcoal Drawing · Knitting & Crochet · Decoupage · Sewing & Mending · Jewelry Making · Plein Air Painting · Basket Weaving · Picture Framing · Card Making · Kids Art Projects · Block Printing · Stained Glass · Acrylic Painting · Costume Making · Weaving · Collage · UpCycling · Gift Wrapping · Sculpture · Upholstery · Colored Pencil · Wreath Making · Beading · Rubber Stamps · Oil Painting · Quilting · Pastels · Macramé · Miniatures

*We will do our best to accommodate all types of projects, but there may be limitations on what is possible on a particular day due to limitations of space, supplies or tools (supplies and tools are mostly donated, and what is available is always changing), or due to a particular project being too messy or dangerous to be done in a public space. If a particular project cannot be worked on during the Workshop that day, we will do our best to help you figure out how to proceed on a future Workshop date or on your own. Since this Workshop is open to ALL topics and media, we won’t be experts on everything, but we can definitely help you get started.

If you have questions about Open Art Workshop or BASE, please contact Julia Kemerer at 224-633-2426 or jkemerer@brushwoodcenter.org.

REGISter

Photography at Jackson Park for Veterans & Families
2025-09-27 13:00 - 15:00 | Jackson Park, Chicago, Stairs Overlooking the Columbia Basin - Griffin Museum of Science and Industry 5700 S DuSable Lake Shore Dr, Chicago, 60637
Photography at Jackson Park for Veterans & Families

Come learn and enjoy photography at the historical and beautiful Jackson Park with your fellow veterans and family members. Enjoy the comradery, scenery, and history in one of Chicago’s finest parks. Brushwood Center will be able to loan cameras as needed. All skill levels welcomed.

Brought to you by Brushwood Center’s At Ease Program, Veteran Art Tribe, and Chicago Lighthouse!

​Registration is required.__Please note, that this event is for Veterans, current service members, and their families only.Contact Jessica Klinge at jklinge@brushwoodcenter.org if you have questions or concerns.

Register Here

The Way of the Rain - Hope for Earth - A Symphony for Our Planet
2025-09-27 18:30 - 21:30 | Gorton Center, 400 E. Illinois Road, Lake Forest, Illinois, 60045, United States
Film: The Way of the Rain – Hope for Earth – A Symphony for Our Planet

Doors open at 6:30 pm, screening at 7:00 pm

Brushwood is honored to co-sponsor this performance of The Way of the Rain- Hope for Earth- A Symphony for Our Planet. Conceived by environmental artist Sibylle Szaggars Redford to explore the issue of climate change resulting in rapidly changing weather patterns, Sibylle Redford collaborates with world renowned artists to create a piece that illustrates crucial environmental dilemmas through performance art.

The Way of the Rain was inspired by the annual monsoon rains that sustain life on the fragile landscape of the high desert plateaus of the Southwest. This live multidisciplinary performance, narrated by actor and environmental activist Robert Redford, invites the audience to remember their physical and spiritual connection to our planet’s beauty and plight through paintings, music, dance, film, light and spoken word.

RESERVE Your Free TIcket

The 42nd Annual Smith Nature Symposium Awards Dinner
2025-10-11 17:30 - 21:00 | Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, Illinois, 60022
The 42nd Annual Smith Nature Symposium Awards Dinner

Join our movement for change! The Smith Nature Awards Dinner is Brushwood Center’s largest fundraising event of the year, and all funds raised from the evening directly benefit our programs for youth, families, and Veterans across our community.

This year, we honor Robin Wall Kimmerer, author, scientist, mother, professor, and member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation with the Environmental Leadership Award.

Learn More

Day of the Dead Art Workshop for Veterans
2025-10-16 13:00 - 15:00 | IL
Day of the Dead Art Workshop for Veterans

Día de los Muertos, also known as Day of the Dead, lasts from October 31st until Nov 2nd. It is celebrated in Mexico and several other Latin American countries. This celebration is filled with rich symbolism and colorful traditions, offering families and communities an opportunity to remember and honor loved ones who have passed away.

Sugar Skulls are iconic symbols of Día de los Muertos which represent the cyclical nature of life and death, reminding us to celebrate the lives of our deceased loved ones. Please join other Veterans and family members at the Chicago Vet Center to create these beautiful cultural symbols at an art workshop.

__Please note, that this event is for Veterans, current service members, and their families only.Contact Jessica Klinge at jklinge@brushwoodcenter.org if you have questions or concerns.

Register Here

Digital Art for Veterans and Families
2025-10-16 18:30 - 21:00 | American Legion Cicero Post 96, 5820 W 35th St, Cicero, Illinois, 60804
Digital Art for Veterans and Families

Enjoy learning about digital art with your fellow veterans and families members. Please download the proper software to your phone.

A smartphone is required for this class.

Prior to class Download ArtRage (free for Android, $2.99 for iPhone). Make sure to also open the app prior to class. This will ensure we can start right away if there are updates or login needed for the app.

Activity Expectation: Indoors and seated; a smartphone is required for this class.

Sensory Expectations: Indoors

Available Accommodations: No language interpretation available.

Snacks will be served; please let us know if you have any food allergies. ​Registration required.

For questions, accessibility or mobility concerns, please contact Veterans Program Specialist, Jessica Klinge at jklinge@brushwoodcenter.org

REGISTER

Nature Book Club: October
2025-10-25 10:00 - 11:30 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
Nature Book Club: The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating

The Brushwood Nature Book Club is a space to talk about and explore nature literature in a friendly environment. Each meeting includes discussion, creative writing, and art activities to engage with the themes of the chosen book, led by Brushwood’s Poet-in-Residence Kathryn Haydon, and writer-artist Megan Donahue.

For our October meeting, we’ll be reading Elisabeth Tova Bailey’s The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating.

Elisabeth Tova Bailey tells the inspiring and intimate story of her year-long encounter with a Neohelix albolabris—a common forest snail. While an illness keeps her bedridden, Bailey watches as the snail takes up residence on her nightstand. Intrigued by its molluscan anatomy, cryptic defenses, clear decision making ability, hydraulic locomotion, and mysterious courtship activities, Bailey becomes an astute and amused observer. The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating is a remarkable journey of survival and resilience, showing us how a small part of the natural world illuminates our own human existence.

REGISTER

BASE: Open Art Workshop with Julia Kemerer
2025-10-25 10:00 - 15:00 | Brushwood Center at Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Rd., Riverwoods, IL, 60015, United States
You Choose the Project · Use Tools and Supplies From BASE · Get Help When You Need It

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!

This month, our upcoming November Artist of the Month, Julia Kemerer will be our guest artist. Julia 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.”. Stop by to learn from Julia!

WHEN DOES IT HAPPEN? 10am-3pm, the last Saturday of every month (no meetings in November and December 2025). Come anytime during the day, and stay as long as you’d like.

WHAT DOES IT COST? Workspace, use of our tools and any instruction or assistance you need is free; supplies from BASE are “pay what you want” (free to teachers and organizations).

WHAT CAN I MAKE? Almost* anything! Come with a project you want to work on in mind, or pick one from our list of project ideas for all ages and abilities. You are welcome to bring your own supplies and tools, or use ones from BASE. You can work independently, or work with an instructor. Here are just a few ideas of what you can learn and do at the Open Art Workshop:

Watercolor · Embroidery · Mosaics · Book Binding · Charcoal Drawing · Knitting & Crochet · Decoupage · Sewing & Mending · Jewelry Making · Plein Air Painting · Basket Weaving · Picture Framing · Card Making · Kids Art Projects · Block Printing · Stained Glass · Acrylic Painting · Costume Making · Weaving · Collage · UpCycling · Gift Wrapping · Sculpture · Upholstery · Colored Pencil · Wreath Making · Beading · Rubber Stamps · Oil Painting · Quilting · Pastels · Macramé · Miniatures

*We will do our best to accommodate all types of projects, but there may be limitations on what is possible on a particular day due to limitations of space, supplies or tools (supplies and tools are mostly donated, and what is available is always changing), or due to a particular project being too messy or dangerous to be done in a public space. If a particular project cannot be worked on during the Workshop that day, we will do our best to help you figure out how to proceed on a future Workshop date or on your own. Since this Workshop is open to ALL topics and media, we won’t be experts on everything, but we can definitely help you get started.

If you have questions about Open Art Workshop or BASE, please contact Julia Kemerer at 224-633-2426 or jkemerer@brushwoodcenter.org.

REGISter
