This season, The Arboretum at Penn State and the Palmer Museum of Art are teaming up to bring you a dynamic lineup of programs. From lending a hand with exhibition prep to turning everyday litter into a community collection, our collaboration highlights how art and nature connect in surprising ways.
Tracking Trash: A Community Collection
August 25–September 25
Together, the Arboretum and Palmer are inviting the public to join Tracking Trash, a month-long citizen science project that turns litter into learning. By documenting everyday discarded items, participants will help create a shared “collection” that’s equal parts science and art.
Findings will be revealed during September’s Art After Hours.
Learn more about Tracking Trash: A Community Collection.
September Art After Hours: Journey to Nature’s Underworld
September 25
Step into the striking environments of Journey to Nature’s Underworld during this special Art After Hours, co-hosted by the Arboretum and the Palmer Museum of Art.
The evening will feature:
- an interdisciplinary gallery conversation with Chanel Lange-Maney (doctoral candidate in geography and women’s, gender, and sexuality studies) and representatives from the Arboretum team
- a collaborative community paint-by-numbers mural
- opportunities to connect with the Civic Engagement Alliance and explore service projects focused on sustainability
- light refreshments and conversation
This program will also unveil the first results from Tracking Trash: A Community Collection, connecting art, science, and community action in new ways.
Learn more about September Art After Hours.
Garden and Gallery Book Conversation
Thursday, November 6 | 6:00 p.m.
Educators from the Arboretum and Palmer come together for a book-meets-art conversation around Robert Macfarlane’s Underland: A Deep Time Journey. The book’s explorations of underground worlds pair with the exhibition’s themes of ecology, climate, and humanity’s impact on the environment.
Copies of Underland will be available for purchase in the Palmer Museum Store. Prior reading is expected.
Learn more about the Garden and Gallery Book Conversation.
DIRTy Date Night
November 20 | 5:30–7:30 p.m. | Palmer Museum of Art
The Arboretum and Palmer present DIRTy Date Night: a playful, hands-on workshop where couples create pigments from natural materials like soil and clay before exploring the exhibition together. You’ll leave with a colorful canvas (and maybe some dirt under your nails).
$45 per couple | Limited to 10 couples
Learn more about DIRTy Date Night.
Looking Ahead
From art installations to citizen science, and from book conversations to creative date nights, this fall’s Arboretum–Palmer collaboration brings together two worlds: the natural and the artistic. We look forward to welcoming you into both spaces.