Join us for ASBA’s 19th Annual Meeting & Conference in Pittsburgh, PA!
September 26, 27, 28, 2013 

Whether you're a beginner or an accomplished artist, there's something for you at ASBA's conference. The conference experience will immerse you in botanical art and leave memories to inspire you for a long time to come. In addition to the three-day core conference, there are pre- and post-conference workshops providing in-depth study.

Our "home away from home" is the Wyndham Pittsburgh University Center (formerly the Holiday Inn Select.) Portfolio sharing, Awards Banquet and Silent Auction will be across the street at the elegant Pittsburgh Athletic Association. Both are surrounded by intellectual and cultural resources such as the Hunt Institute, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Phipps Conservatory, Cathedral of Learning and more.
(www.visitpittsburgh.com) 

Pre- and Post-Conference Workshops
ASBA offers workshops with three exceptional artists in pre- and post-conference workshops. Two-day workshops preceding the conference (Sept. 24-25) include Color in Shadows (watercolor) with world-renowned Katie Lee and Pushing Potential - Colored Pencil Wet and Wild with celebrated artist Libby Kyer. Legendary artist and honored teacher Jee-Yeon Koo of South Korea will conduct a three-day workshop Chrysanthemums in Watercolor following the conference (September 29, 30, October 1).

Visualize Your Day-by-Day Conference Activities:

Welcome Reception
Relax after your travel and kick off the conference on Wednesday evening, September 25th with ASBA's Welcome Reception. Join the Allegheny Highlands Botanical Art Society, our local hosts, for camaraderie and refreshments from 5:30 to 7:30 pm.  Meet up with old friends and make new ones as we begin a full schedule of conference activities. 

14th International Exhibition, The Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation
A highlight of the Pittsburgh experience is the opening of the Hunt Institute’s 14th International Exhibition. The reception on Thursday evening is open exclusively to the exhibiting artists and ASBA conference participants. The exhibition will also be open for more leisurely perusal during the conference. Meet the artists, many from other countries, who are represented in one of the world’s most prestigious exhibitions of botanical art. (http://huntbot.andrew.cmu.edu/).

Classes, Lectures, Trips and More!
The popular Portfolio Sharing will begin the conference on Thursday, September 26, held at the spacious, historic and stately Pittsburgh Athletic Association, just across the street from the Wyndham Hotel. ASBA’s Annual Meeting and Luncheon at the hotel will catch you up on ASBA activities and will be followed by the Techniques Showcase featuring demonstrations by Jee-Yeon Koo (watercolor), Heeyoung Kim (graphite) and Libby Kyer (colored pencil). The Educator's Forum and a hands-on class with Derek Norman on the Basics of Pen and Ink are also scheduled on Thursday. Then it will be off for the evening opening of the Hunt Institute's 14th International Exhibition to see some of the best botanical art being created today.  

Friday and Saturday will include many hands-on classes, lectures, demonstrations and tours. We will be honoring the inspiring work of Jee-Yeon Koo, who will tell us how she has been instrumental in bringing contemporary botanical art to her country, South Korea. Friday evening's Wildflower Forum will focus on a presentation by Carol Woodin about the ASBA’s traveling exhibition Following in the Bartrams' Footsteps. Saturday morning’s Wildflower Forum topics will feature presentations by Molly Steinwald, Director of Science Education at Phipps Conservatory, and Phipps Botany in Action Fellows about Phipp’s program connecting the public with science through the visual arts and other strategies.    

Continuing the concept of "Beyond Accuracy - Creating Art", Lugene Bruno, Curator of Art and Senior Research Scholar of the Hunt Institute, will present an intriguing session on finding inspiration for your botanical art in other historical and contemporary art genres. Lugene will also instruct a hands-on class on building miniature examples of various archival folders for safely storing and preserving your art. Charlotte Tancin, Librarian and Principal Research Scholar at the Hunt, will share her insight about Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717) illustrated by books on display.

There are special field trips that your guests may enjoy as well. Tour Kentuck Knob, a Frank Lloyd Wright Usonian home built in the 1950s, surrounded by beautiful gardens, woods, meadows and sculptures by Andy Goldsworthy, Claes Oldenburg and other noted artists. Visit the National Aviary, America’s premier bird zoo with more than 600 birds of 200 species from around the world, many of them threatened or endangered in the wild. 

The Awards Banquet and Silent Auction are great finales to the conference. The members of the Allegheny Highlands Chapter are looking forward to welcoming you to the 19th ASBA Annual Meeting and Conference in Pittsburgh this fall!

You may download the Pittsburgh 2013 Annual Meeting & Conference pull-out section from the June issue of the journal HERE.