Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden is honored to host the Gaston County Art Guild’s annual Springtime show: A Natural View. Works of art will be on display from April 17 – June 4 in our Garden Pavilion, so visitors and members will be able to enjoy art alongside the beauty of spring and summer blooms.
This unique gallery exhibition, featuring a blend of traditional and experimental artistic approaches, celebrates the beauty of nature through the eyes of talented local artists; in committing the natural light, shapes, textures and colors found in the world around us to canvas, the artist invites you to consider the art growing outside of the frame each day. These glimpses at nature adorning our walls provide the perfect accompaniment to Spring’s arrival, and to some of the Garden’s favorite holidays in these warming months.
Check out some of the featured artists below:

LeeAnn Harris 

LeeAnn Harris is a Gastonia-based artist painting in both acrylic and oil. Focusing on landscapes and wildlife of both Carolinas her work is colorful and fun. Recently she began experimenting with painting and collage using wallpaper samples, acrylic paints and oil pastels to create playful birds. She is represented by Over the Mantel Gallery in Columbia, South Carolina. Check out some of her paintings and collages below: 

Nancy Winker

After residing in Rutherford County for over 30 years, Nancy Winker moved to Belmont, NC in 2022. She retired from a career in medicine and education last year, joined the Gaston County Art Guild and started entering art shows in the area. She has been painting and drawing since she was four years old. Her first art lessons were from her mother, also an artist. Her preferred medium is oil, but she also paints in acrylics and watercolor.

Art by Martha Vickstrom

The Gaston County Art Guild also welcomes you to learn about this year’s presiding judge, Logan Dix: 

Logan is a Charlotte-native who has been a lover of the arts since receiving her first set of crayons as a child. She attended Northwest School of the Arts and was able to travel to Washington, DC, France and Spain on art history trips, sparking her passion for all things art-related. The moment she stepped into the Rothko Room in DC, Logan knew she was destined to work in galleries, which led her to pursue a double major in Arts Leadership & Administration and New Media Design from Queens University of Charlotte. She studied abroad in Nice, France where she dove deeper into French art history.
 
Logan has an eye for curating and understands the time and dedication put towards each work of art. The combination of her experiences landed her in her dream role at Anne Neilson Fine Art. In addition to being an advocate and volunteer within the arts community, she is eminently passionate about the mission of ANFA and believes that art as a visual language can change the world for the better. She has now been with the gallery for over five years and serves on the Board of Directors for Arts for Life.

We at the garden invite you to nourish your own inspiration and explore the meeting point between art and nature. A Natural View will be on display in our Garden Pavilion from April 17 through June 4. For more information on the Guild’s work and participating artists, visit the GCAG’s website here.