WHAT: Artists in residence at the University of Illinois Springfield’s Therkildsen Field Station at Emiquon will debut original works inspired by the Emiquon Preserve during “Projects Unveiled.” The event is free and open to the public.

WHEN: 1 to 4 p.m. Aug. 23

WHERE: UIS Therkildsen Field Station, 11316 N. Prairie Road, Lewistown, Illinois

DETAILS: Visitors will experience a variety of original works inspired by the Emiquon Preserve, including musical compositions, paintings, sculptures, illustrations, creative writings and a live performance of improvised music. The event will also feature a multimedia digital project that incorporates music and environmental sounds recorded on-site.

Artists Ann Marie Greenberg, Adrienne Hagen, Basia Krol, Whitney Johnson-Lessard, Valeria Walters, along with composer Bill Camphouse, writer and author Doug Reichert-Powell, and musicians Adam Larison, Richard Gilman-Opalsky and Brian Stark will present their work and discuss how the landscape influenced their creative processes.

Greenberg’s work draws from her impressions of the geological feature known as a“meandering scar” and will explore the ways water archives its presence on the land and what can be learned from it. Hagen’s miniature portrait series will highlight the often unnoticed and underappreciated world of the preserve’s macroinvertebrates. Krol’s plein air painting captures a vast swath of the wetland and its American Lotus. Johnson-Lessard’s work is made by using pigment created from industrial remnants found at the preserve. Walters’ work draws from studying all aspects of Emiquon life from plants to birds and insects and their illustrations will be made on handmade paper. Camphouse gathered songbird vocalizations to create original musical compositions for woodwind quintet soloists accompanied by string orchestra and percussion. Reichert-Powell’s writing will draw on his research and experience at Emiquon, connecting different stories with specific spaces in a kind of story-map that can locate some of the narratives that shape this place among its physical landmarks. The Freedom Therapy Trio, Larison, Gilman-Opalsky and Stark, will perform a live improvisation that responds to the natural soundscape of the preserve.

The Artist in Residence (AIR) program at the Therkildsen Field Station connects science and art at Emiquon, one of the Midwest’s largest floodplain restoration projects and a designated Ramsar Wetland of International Importance. The AIR program is supported by the UIS Visionary Giving Circle, with additional funding from the Illinois Arts Council Agency and the Two Rivers Arts Council.

Attendees are encouraged to dress for the weather, as parts of the event may take place outdoors.

About the UIS Therkildsen Field Station at Emiquon

The Therkildsen Field Station at Emiquon is located within The Nature Conservancy’s Emiquon Preserve and provides researchers and students of all ages with the opportunity to explore, discover and learn from this unique floodplain restoration project. Learn more at the Therkildsen Field Station website or follow the Therkildsen Field Station at Emiquon on Facebook.