The Arts at MBG

Botanical Art

Mobile Botanical Gardens has a wonderful Botanical Art program that is lead by renowned botanical artist, Derek Norman. He is the former President of the American Society of Botanical Artists and his work can be found in collections ranging from the Library of Congress to the British Museum. Derek offers a wide variety of classes, including graphite, colored pencil, watercolor, pen and ink and more. For information on current classes being offered, please visit our Events and Classes page.

Garden Sketch Club
Interested in joining the fun? Come join us every Friday from 2-4pm for an afternoon of sketching in the Gardens. All levels of experience welcome! General admission applies for those who are not member of the Gardens.

Derek Norman and his wife, Ursel, are members of MBG and and retired to the area after moving here from Chicago. Derek was born educated in England before he moved to the States. His graphic works, paintings, drawings and botanical works have been exhibited in Europe and America. He has won Gold and Silver Gilt Medals at the Royal Horticultural Society in London and he is represented in many private and permanent collections including the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, Pittsburgh, the Library of Congress, the British Museum and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden’s Florilegium Society. Learn more about Derek here.

Creative Writing

Creative Writing Creative Writing classes are lead by Dr. Sue Brannan Walker and Dr. Linda Busby Parker – whether you are just being to explore writing, or almost ready to publish, you will find inspiration and guidance in these writing classes! Sue teaches regularly on Wednesday mornings and Linda offers Thursday afternoon classes. For details on current offerings, please visit our Upcoming Events page.

Poetry by Moonlight is an annual poetry reading event held at the Gardens in the Fall. Organized by Sue Brannan Walker, and sponsored by the Carolyn W. Saunders Foundation, it has continued to grow in popularity since 2017. It’s a not to be missed event of the year!

About our Instructors:

Sue Walker (left) receives 2019 “Horace Ray Roberts Jr Award for Excellence in Writing”. Photo by Danny Moore https://tinyurl.com/tlvkh44

Sue Brannan Walker, Ph.D. is Professor Emerita at the University of South Alabama where she served as Chair of the Department and the Stokes Distinguished Professor of Creative Writing. She served as Poet Laureate of Alabama from 2003-2012 and has published eight books, including poetry and an award-winning book on the ecopoetics of James Dickey. Sue is the Publisher at Negative Capability Press, which has been publishing quality books and a journal for 39 years.

Photography

MBG Photographer in Residence Program

Elizabeth Gelineau is a member of the Gardens and a well regarded photographer in the area. As photographer in residence, Elizabeth will be our liaison for promoting and scheduling photo sessions at the Gardens. She will also be offering photography classes and other photography related events. Learn more about this program here