Barbara Thomas Friday Art in the Garden

Art in the Garden with Barbara Thomas: Fridays at LongHouse Reserve

LongHouse Reserve presents a summer of immersive art experiences that connect the beauty of the gardens - sculpture, flora, trees, and ever-shifting summer light - with the joy of creative expression. Teaching artist Barbara Thomas leads each session, inviting participants to slow down, look closely, and make art inspired by nature.

A seasoned artist and educator, Barbara has a long-standing relationship with LongHouse and a deep love of the land. Her classes welcome everyone; whether you're picking up a brush for the first time or returning to your practice. Materials are provided, though participants are welcome to bring their own. 

Making Art with Nature
Fridays, June 27 & July 11 | 10:00am–12:30pm
Put down your paintbrush—this class explores how natural materials themselves can become tools for artmaking. Paint with twigs and branches, stencil with leaves, print with rocks and bark. With Barbara’s guidance, you’ll create poetic and expressive works that capture the essence of the natural world using the world itself.

Exploring the Art in the Gardens
Friday, July 25 | 10:00am–12:30pm
LongHouse’s renowned sculpture collection becomes your subject as we learn how to render form, light, texture, and perspective. Barbara will help you see how art lives within nature—and how to capture that harmony on paper or canvas.

Abstract Painting in the Gardens
Fridays, September 12 & 19 | 10:00am–12:30pm
Let the colors and forms of the garden guide you into abstraction. Barbara will lead exercises to help you move beyond representation and into emotional and expressive painting—drawing on what you see, but also what you feel. No experience necessary.

Barbara Thomas has been making art all her life. She studied at The Art Students League and Pratt Institute in New York and earned her MFA from the Art Institute of Boston at Lesley University. Her work explores nature and humanity’s relationship to it, depicting earth, sky, flora, and fauna in oil and gouache, as well as digital photography, video, land art, and sculpture. Known for her public art and commissioned pieces, Barbara has created everything from intimate tree portraits to large-scale murals. An experienced educator, she has taught art for over 20 years, designing museum docent programs, art school curricula, and lectures on art history and process. Learn more about Barbara at www.barbarathomasart.com and explore her work for sale at ArtSprings Studio in Springs, NY: www.artspringsstudio.com.