Reception: "The New Herbarium"

Join local artist Madge Evers as she presents her show The New Herbarium at the Springfield JCC.

The New Herbarium series reimagines the centuries-old process of collecting and preserving plants for science and art. For traditional herbaria, botanical specimens are pressed and arranged on paper. Evers departs from tradition by using mushroom spores to render leaves, petals, and stems. In compositions that contain organic patterns and photographic detail, Evers tries to make visible mycorrhiza, the ancient and intimate collaboration between fungi and plants.

Madge Evers is an educator, gardener, and visual artist whose work is informed by the transformative actions of decomposition and regeneration. Referencing the ancient collaboration in mycorrhiza, her practice involves foraging for mushrooms and plants and sometimes includes the cyanotype process. In 2021, she was a Mass Cultural Council fellowship finalist in photography. After teaching for 25 years in Rhode Island and Massachusetts public schools, Madge now works as a full-time artist.

This event is free and open to the public. No pre-registration is required.