Current Indoor Exhibit
Adkins Arboretum’s ongoing exhibition series highlights regional artists whose work engages with natural themes. Exhibits rotate every other month. The Art Gallery is located in the Caroline Room at the Visitor’s Center.
The Peace of Wild Things
Plein air paintings by Julia Sutliff
Exhibit: Tuesday, November 3, 2026–Friday, January 1, 2027
Reception: Saturday, November 14, 2026
Intimate and joyful, Julia Sutliff’s plein air paintings capture fleeting light dancing across grasses, flowers, trees and water. In her show, The Peace of Wild Things, she explores natural landscapes throughout the seasons.
In these small works painted in oil or acrylic, cattails stand sentinel in a snowy marsh, lily pads float in water reflecting the blue of the sky, and the pinkish white flowers of a star magnolia hover in the soft air of a spring evening. True to the long tradition of plein air painting, Sutliff prefers to paint outdoors. Although she acknowledges its challenges—changing weather, shifting light and the tricky business of finding scenes that inspire her, it’s the experience of being out in nature that gives her joy.
Ridgetop Milkweed by plein air painter Julia Sutliff. Image courtesy of the artist.
Artists may submit their work for consideration in future exhibits. Click here for details.
