For immediate release.

Fernbank Museum Announces Colorful New Exhibit

Guests can view art and displays exploring the color yellow in Golden Opportunity: Botanical Illustration.

(AUG. 6, 2024) ATLANTA, GA — Fernbank Museum embraces a new golden opportunity later this summer. The special artistic exhibit “Golden Opportunity: Botanical Illustration” runs from Aug. 31, 2024 – Jan. 1, 2025, and will showcase the science of the color yellow as it occurs naturally in plants, how pollinators see yellow and yellow as a pigment through art pieces and other objects.

Created by the Denver Botanic Gardens’ School of Botanical Art & Illustration, “Golden Opportunity” includes 15 botanical art works of yellow plants that were created with colored pencils, watercolors, graphite, ink and mixed media, including the daffodil, Buddha’s hand, sunflower, pansy, tomato and more.

“Art and nature are natural companions—we love talking about nature as both material for artists and aesthetic inspiration, and we thought that color would be a fun way to explore the relationship between those two ideas.” says Jen Tobias, Associate Director of Exhibitions & Art Collections; Curator of Art, Denver Botanic Gardens. “Showcasing the different ways that plants, natural dyes, and colors are interconnected is also such an interesting way to think about all of the different ways the natural world influences our daily life.”

Along with the artwork, guests can investigate different pigments in display cases around the exhibit. These cases contain plant material from turmeric, saffron, Dyer’s rocket, safflower, plains coreopsis and marigold, also revealing the pigments’ uses in textiles. Visitors can also watch a short video explaining how certain insects see yellow and how flower color helps aid in the pollination of plants.

Additionally, visitors will be able to learn about the daffodil, which has an estimated 18,000 different variations; play a game with flip panels to match dye colors to the plant or animal it comes from, like avocado skin or black beans; and view bowls of dye powder that have surprising appearances and origins, such as powder made from cochineal bugs or henna powder.

Guests can admire the natural wonder that goes into creating everyday objects, including something as simple as a yellow shirt, offering a new appreciation for the science and artistic creation from botanical sources.

“Golden Opportunity” is presented in both English and Spanish. For more information, please visit https://www.fernbankmuseum.org/experiences/exhibits/special-exhibits/golden-opportunity-botanical-illustration/.

“Golden Opportunity: Botanical Illustration” is organized by Denver Botanic Gardens. Sponsored locally in part by the Frances Wood Wilson Foundation.

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Tickets

General admission tickets include three floors of exhibits in the natural history museum, choice of one giant screen film, and 75 acres of nature explorations in Fernbank Forest and WildWoods. Fernbank After Dark and some other special after-hours events are available at a separate ticket price. Fernbank is located at 767 Clifton Road NE in Atlanta, minutes from midtown Atlanta and downtown Decatur.

For more information and tickets, visit FernbankMuseum.org. Tickets are $25.95 for adults, $24.95 for seniors, $23.95 for children ages 3-12, free for children ages 2 and younger, and free for Fernbank Members. Tickets not purchased in advance are offered, if available, at a higher price at the Box Office. 

Media Inquiries  

Jena Allison, Communications Manager   

Jena.Allison@FernbankMuseum.org  

404.929.6381   

About Fernbank  

Fernbank is one of the most popular and iconic cultural destinations in Atlanta. Known as Atlanta's Science and Nature Experience, Fernbank invites guests to discover a World of Wow through an expansive natural history museum, 4-story Giant Screen Theater, and 75 acres of nature adventures in WildWoods and Fernbank Forest. One of the oldest not-for-profit conservation organizations in the country, Fernbank was founded in 1939 to preserve Fernbank Forest, the largest urban, old growth, Piedmont forest in the United States. The museum and giant screen theater opened as "a school in the woods for nature studies" on Oct. 5, 1992, and is today known for its giant dinosaurs, hands-on STEAM* programming, immersive experiences, and year-round nature exploration. Visit fernbankmuseum.org for more information and join the conversation on Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube and TikTok.

*Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics.