Barbara Benda

Upcoming art events and classes-save these dates!

Posted on August 14, 2024 by Barbara in Uncategorized

Please mark all these dates into your calendars today!

Thursday, August 15th, 5-7pm

Rural Art Exhibition Reception
Red Door Art Gallery
418 Dakota Avenue, Wahpeton, ND
All art during this reception is 15% off!
My watercolors, Smokin’ Fast II, Sand Save at Dakota Winds,
and Farm Livin’ is the Life for Me will be exhibited.

Tuesday, September 17th, 5:30-7:00
Artist Reception Lake Region Arts Council Juried Exhibition
133 South Mill Street
Fergus Falls, Minnesota
My watercolor, Red River Reflections, will be featured in this exhibition.

Saturday, September 28th, 9am-4pm
BLING, BLING Vendor Show
Fargo Fine Arts Club
601 4th Street South
Fargo, ND
I will be selling original watercolors and acrylics, priced for gift-giving.

Saturday and Sunday, October 5-6th,12-6pm
FMVA STUDIO CRAWL
My Mourning Dove Studio is located at
809 20th Street North
Moorhead, MN
Pick up a brochure at local F-M businesses or download one
in September at fmva.org

November 13th, 20th, 26th
Moorhead Community Education Classes
Vista Center for Education,
2777 34th Street South, Moorhead, MN
Seeing Things Differently I, Seeing Things Differently II and Let’s Sketch Birds!
1:00-3:30 pm
Sign up for each of my classes individually at Moorhead Community Ed

Looking ahead:
Monday-Friday, March 10-14th,9:00-3:30
Beginning Drawing and Watercolor Workshop
NDSCS Fargo Campus
1305 19th Avenue N.
Fargo, ND 58102
Download a registration form here: 2025 Beginning Drawing and Watercolor Workshop Flyer

Contact me
to have a flyer and registration form mailed to you.

Please contact me if you have any questions! Email barbara@barbarabendanagle.com
or call 218-443-1126.
I look forward to seeing you soon!- Barbara

Going Full Circle at the Circle of Nations School

Posted on May 24, 2024 by Barbara in Uncategorized

Thank you to Circle of Nations School staff of Wahpeton, ND, for hosting Beverly and me for an Artist in Residency through the ND Council on the Arts on April 29th-May 3rd, 2024. Beverly and I spent 5 days teaching amazing, energized students from grades 4-8th. I taught my own “Birds in Art” curriculum to the students, focusing on the artistry of John James Audubon and teaching students how to sketch birds using contour line and basic forms. We painted the birds in watercolor after studying their colors and markings. Each grade level had a different bird species including the Dark-Eyed Junco, Northern Cardinal, Downy Woodpecker, Black-Capped Chickadee, Blue Jay, and American Eagle.

Each day we enjoyed having lunch with the students in the cafeteria and they shared personal stories with us. It was a wonderful experience for us and we loved watching how quickly their skills progressed from day to day. We shared with them how to go “birding”, and how to identify birds. With electronics and screens dominating the attention of many young people, we encouraged the students to get back in touch with their ancestors and nature by going outdoors, listening for bird songs, and looking up to discover birds all around.They were amazed at how Audubon was able to create life-sized watercolors of 437 species of birds over the course of several years to create The Birds of America.

Circle of Nations was the first school where I taught in 1981, when it was called the Wahpeton Indian School. Beverly and I grew up in Wahpeton. It was a dream come true to return 41 years later and find that children still love to learn, children still love to draw and paint, and children are still excited to express themselves artistically with their own unique minds. We hope to return in the future because it truly was one of the best weeks of our lives. Thank you, students and staff for blessing our lives with your kindness and generosity.- Barbara and Beverly