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Free Fall Art Lecture Series starts September 1st

Studio Class with Allen Reamer – Seashells in the Georgia O’Keeffe style starts September 2nd

Drawing Fundamentals with Allen Reamer starts September 3rd

Textures & George & Shin Meadows show opens First Friday September 4th

Nature Journaling Workshops

Seurat Sunday at Caledon State Park – Plein Air Painting, Workshops & Art Show on September 20th

Member’s Art-Inspired Book Club October 27th

This year’s Seurat Sunday Plein Air Event and Art Show promises to be special.
Artist’s interested in showing their work should contact Esther Evans at memberatlarge@fccagallery.org to learn more.

FCCA has received funding from The Community Foundation of the Rappahannock River, to expand our outreach efforts by offering free, outdoor nature journaling workshops for the community. Programs will take place at FCCA and at the Crow’s Nest Research Center (CNRC) with support from environmental educators. In addition to general workshops, specialized programming — including nature journaling for the visually impaired — will promote accessibility and inclusion. By combining artistic expression with environmental exploration, the initiative encourages creativity, collaboration and community connection while increasing access to meaningful cultural experiences.

Classes are limited to 10 participants and require pre-registration.  You can register here.

Using your Phone for Nature Journaling – Aug. 29 10am – Noon CNRC
Instructor: George Meadows

A phone can add a great deal to your nature journaling experience. It adds:

• A camera with macro, telephoto, and video capabilities
• A sound recorder and sonogram viewer
• A note transcriber
• Apps for collecting information
• Apps for identification
• A sketch pad

We will explore and practice all these possibilities as well as digiscoping (connecting your phone to binoculars or a spotter scope) and printing from your phone to a phone printer.

Botanical Cyanotypes for Nature Journaling – Sept. 19 10am – Noon CNRC
Instructor: Diane Moser

Use the power of the sun to capture solar prints from nature.  Cyanotype is an early form of photography that uses light sensitive chemicals and UV light to create Prussian blue x-ray like images.  Participants will be able to print on light sensitive paper, treated paper, a greeting card and a canvas tote bag.  We will have the opportunity to gather items from nature, but feel free to bring any special items you would like to experiment with.  Think thin translucent items such as leaves, fresh or pressed flowers, feathers, lace and photograph negatives.

Mosaics and Nature Journaling – Sept. 26 10am – Noon CNRC
Instructor: Cathy Smith

Come join us to create your own 10” mosaic circular piece of art, created from everyday natural materials such as dried seeds, lotus pods and pinecones.

Innovative Tech and Nature Journaling – Oct. 10 10am – Noon CNRC

Instructor: George Meadows

We will explore and practice the use of some innovative technology and techniques that can enhance your Nature Journaling experience. We’ll be looking at and working with:

• Instant cameras
• Thermal printers
• Tactile drawing boards for raised relief sketching
• Sonograms
• Tablets
• Lithophanes

Pottery and Nature Journaling – Oct. 17 10am – Noon CNRC
Instructor: Lawton Clites

Students will hand-build nature-inspired pottery mimicking organic textures using such things  as leaf imprints, tree bark, pebbles, and blooming flowers.  The designs will try to capture one or more of the different settings at Crow’s Nest including ponds, marsh, and forested areas.  The student-created pottery will be glazed and fired after the class.

Nature Journaling for Visually Impaired 1 – Postponed Date TBD
Nature Journaling for Visually Impaired 2 – Postponed Date TBD
Instructor: George Meadows

In this class we will examine materials and techniques that will enhance the nature journaling experience for the visually impaired. We will be looking at working with:

• Tactile drawing boards
• Raised relief images and 3D prints
• Creating mosaics with natural materials
• Magnifiers
• Voice recorders

Nature Journaling for Hearing Impaired 1- Postponed Date TBD FCCA
Nature Journaling for Hearing Impaired 2 – Postponed Date TBD FCCA
Instructor: George Meadows

In this class we will examine materials and techniques that will enhance the nature journaling experience for the hearing impaired. We will be looking at working with:

• Sonograms
• Voice to text
• Resonance speakers

nclusive Technology for Nature Journaling – Postponed Date TBD 10am – Noon FCCA
Instructor: George Meadows

Inclusive technology is technology that assists folks with learning disabilities to better access learning experiences.  In this class we will examine and work with different types of technology that can enhance the Nature Journaling experience.  The first part of the class we will discuss and practice the materials and techniques.  The second part will be outdoor practice in the FCCA garden.

Professor Allen Reamer’s 2026 Fall Art Lecture Series
Fredericksburg Center for the Creative Arts (FCCA)
813 Sophia Street, Fredericksburg, Member’s Gallery – Garden level

Free – Open to Public — No registration required

Discovering Your Aesthetic Style
Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026  7:00-9:00pm

What is your aesthetic style?  What is an aesthetic style?  You will discover the aesthetic style of your jewelry, clothing, dishes, home furnishings & many other things, including rooms in your home.  You will learn how to determine your aesthetic style & see how it has influenced your decisions in life.

English Romantic Painters:  Constable, Gainsborough, Turner
Tuesday September 8   7:00pm – 9:00pm

The 18th century English Romantic artists rebelled against the Neo-Classical subject and style.  They produced landscape and seascape paintings that emphasized the dramatic effects of light, atmosphere & color.  We will discuss the life and the paintings of John Constable, Thomas Gainsborough & JMW Turner.

Survey of Modern & Contemporary American Art & Artists
Tuesday, September 15   7:00pm – 9:00pm

We will cover some Modern & Contemporary art styles practiced by American artists, plus a few artists in each style. You will discover the characteristics of each style & the similarities & differences of each artist within each style.  We will start with Abstract Expressionism & continue with Kinetic Art, Pop Art, Magic Realism, Contemporary Realism, Hard Edge, Washington Color School, Minimalism, Junk Art, Installation Art & beyond.

 Goya:  His Life & Art
Tuesday, Sept 22 & 29   7:00– 9:00pm

Francisco Goya was a Spanish painter & printmaker, who is one of the last of the Old Masters of painting, as well as the first of the moderns.  He was the first Spanish court painter, painting for the king & his family, as well as the Spanish nobility.  Goya is probably best known for his “black paintings” that were prominently black in color & in subject matter.  He is also well-known for his etchings & aquatints depicting the horrors of war.

Japanese Prints
Tuesday,  October 6   7:00-9:00pm

In this class we will discuss a brief history of traditional Japanese woodblock prints from the Edo period and later Meiji period.  We will see why this changed in the Taisho period.  We will cover how a print would come about during these periods: the tools & materials used, the carving process; and the printing process.  From there we will look at & discuss Japanese master print artists.

Member’s Art-Inspired Book Club

All members are welcome to join us as we read and discuss books that have an art or artist theme.  In March we read The Art Thief by Michael Finkel, in July we read and discussed Theo of Golden by Allen Levi and our next book is The Muralist by B.A.Shapiro.

The Muralist is a 2015 historical novel by B.A. Shapiro, author of the New York Times bestseller The Art Forger. It blends art history, mystery, and political intrigue, set against the backdrop of pre–World War II America.

The story follows Alizée Benoit, a brilliant young American painter working for the Works Progress Administration (WPA), who vanishes in New York City in 1940 amid personal and political turmoil. Her disappearance is shrouded in mystery — not even her Jewish family in German-occupied France, her patron Eleanor Roosevelt, or her close friends like Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock, and Lee Krasner know what happened B.A. Shapiro+1.

Seventy years later, Danielle Abrams, Alizée’s great-niece, works at Christie’s auction house and uncovers hidden, enigmatic paintings behind works by now-famous Abstract Expressionist artists. These clues may hold answers to her aunt’s fate B.A. Shapiro+1.

The narrative alternates between the past and present, weaving together the lives of historical figures and fictional characters. It explores the rise of Abstract Expressionism, the plight of European refugees denied entry to the U.S., and the moral dilemmas of artists in times of political upheaval B.A. Shapiro+1.

Shapiro’s novel examines:

• The intersection of art and history, especially the overlooked role of European refugees in American art.
• The power of art to challenge or reflect political and social forces.
• The personal cost of talent when it collides with historical injustice.
• The moral choices individuals make in the face of evil

Join us for the next meeting October 27, 2026, 7-9 pm in Members’ Gallery

For information: Contact Diane Moser at education@fccagallery.org

The Fredericksburg Arts Commission created a spotlight on us!