Imagine stepping into a place where time slows, where the natural world unfurls its beauty in every leaf, petal, and shadow. Imagine your hands, dusted with indigo and earth, pressing nature’s artistry onto paper and cloth, capturing moments of light, memory, and wonder. Welcome to The Wonders of Nature: Cyanotypes and Eco-Printing, a three-day art retreat at Big Raven Farm—a sanctuary for creatives, seekers, and nature lovers alike.
This September 11–14, 2025, immerse yourself in a one-of-a-kind retreat designed for those who long to connect more deeply with the world around them through hands-on artistry. Led by artist and guide Joleen Emery, this retreat invites you to explore two of the most enchanting printmaking techniques—cyanotype printing and eco-printing—set against the breathtaking backdrop of Big Raven Farm’s rolling meadows, forests, and expansive skies.
The Magic of Cyanotype: Painting with Light Cyanotype is an early photographic printing process that transforms the simple into the extraordinary. Using a light-sensitive solution of ferric ammonium citrate and potassium ferricyanide, cyanotype allows us to capture detailed images through exposure to sunlight, yielding deep, rich blues that feel almost otherworldly.
At this retreat, we’ll go beyond the basics, exploring the reserve image process—where negatives are used alongside natural elements to create layered, ethereal prints. You’ll experiment with botanical specimens, fabric, and hand-cut transparencies, learning how to manipulate contrast, exposure, and tonality.
Cyanotype prints aren’t just standalone art—they can be stitched into journals, transformed into wall hangings, layered into mixed media collages, used in bookbinding, or even incorporated into textile projects like quilting and wearable art. Imagine your prints becoming the covers of hand-bound nature journals, the fabric for a one-of-a-kind scarf, or the perfect personalized touch on greeting cards and postcards sent to loved ones.
Through this process, you’ll see light in an entirely new way—not just as something that illuminates but as something that creates, transforms, and remembers.
Eco-Printing: Nature’s Hand on Fabric and Paper
Eco-printing is a deep collaboration with the natural world, a way of imprinting leaves, flowers, and organic materials onto textiles and paper using heat, moisture, and time. Every leaf tells a story, every petal leaves a trace, and every piece of fabric becomes a tangible memory of place and season.
Using techniques that Joleen Emery has shared in Strawberry Moon Magazine, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of how to:
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Identify the best natural materials for printmaking
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Prepare fabrics and papers for optimal dye retention
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Bundle and steam plant materials to extract rich, natural pigments
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Enhance prints with modifiers, natural tannins, and post-dyeing techniques
The beauty of eco-printing is that every piece is a surprise—the alchemy of nature’s colors will reveal soft ochres from willow, rusted oranges from eucalyptus, deep purples from berries, and moody greens from ferns. Your eco-prints can become beautifully bound art books, scarves, textile wall hangings, book covers, stationery, or fabric for sewing unique clothing. Each print is a conversation between you and the land, capturing a moment in time that can never be replicated.
Eco-printing is about more than art—it’s about tuning in, slowing down, and appreciating the unseen magic in the world around you.
Big Raven Farm: A Retreat for the Soul
More than just a place, Big Raven Farm is an experience—a haven for creatives where the air is filled with birdsong, the food is nourishing, and inspiration flows like the nearby rivers. Nestled in the heart of the Midwest Driftless Area, it’s a place to retreat from the noise of daily life and rediscover the joy of making.
Here, you’ll wake up in a cozy space surrounded by nature, enjoying farm-to-table meals prepared with love and working with fellow artists and adventurers. Whether you’re sharing stories around a crackling fire, walking the trails to gather materials, or stretching into a morning yoga session, every moment at Big Raven Farm is an opportunity to refill your creative well.
This retreat is for you if:
✅ You crave time and space to create, explore, and experiment
✅ You find joy in working with your hands, making art from nature itself
✅ You seek connection—with art, the environment, and a community of kindred spirits
✅ You love the idea of turning ordinary materials into extraordinary works of art
When you leave, your hands will be filled with one-of-a-kind artwork, your mind will be brimming with inspiration, and your heart will be fuller for taking this journey.
Join Us for a Retreat Like No Other. This isn’t just an art workshop—it’s an experience that will shift how you see and create. It’s a chance to escape, play, make mistakes, follow curiosity, and let the elements of sun, water, plant, and earth guide you toward something truly special.
If you’ve ever longed to create with nature, to see the world through an artist’s lens, or to learn how to make something truly unique with your hands, then this retreat is for you.
Spots are limited to ensure an intimate, personalized experience. Don’t miss your chance to be part of this extraordinary retreat at Big Raven Farm—where creativity and nature intertwine to leave an imprint on both your art and your soul.