Artist uses beeswax to raise environmental awareness

Minnesota Landscape Arboretum hosts Jodi Reeb’s exhibit

Gathering+along+with+many+other+art+pieces+by+Jodi+Reeb+hangs+on+a+wall+Feb.+23+in+the+Minnesota+Landscape+Arboretum.+According+to+Reeb%2C+the+artwork+originally+was+a+photograph.

Noah Orloff

“Gathering” along with many other art pieces by Jodi Reeb hangs on a wall Feb. 23 in the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. According to Reeb, the artwork originally was a photograph.

Noah Orloff

With the viewpoint of pollinators in mind, mixed-media artist Jodi Reeb said she created her exhibition with the goal of spreading information about environmental issues.

“I wanted to create some artwork that would call attention or raise awareness about the dilemma that is happening with our bees,” Reeb said. “I came up with the idea shooting photographs of plants from the bee’s perspective.”

According to Reeb, the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum served as a great place to research, create and present her work.

“I was interested in the environmental factors about how bees are being affected. I looked for a place to partner with, and the Minnesota Arboretum had a bee research center,” Reeb said. “I contacted them, and they have a gallery space, so we decided to team up and that’s what laid the groundwork for it.”

Sophomore Emmy Pearson said Reeb’s message can allow others to learn about nature.

“I think it is really important because as many people know bees are very essential to life and nature just to spread pollen and help everything grow and function,” Pearson said. “So, from the perspective of bees, I feel that is a really important perspective to have.”

Reeb said she captured images of flowers in order to show what bees see.

I used the beeswax as primary paint to collage the black and white photographs that I was taking but I just wanted to have them have the timeless feel so I chose black and white and then added the color back in with oil pigment sticks so it sort of pulls up the texture in the painting from the wax,” Reeb said.

According to Reeb, the Minnesota State Arts Board helped provide money for the exhibit.

“The grant really allowed me to develop this new body of work, to use photographs in my work like I’ve never used them before and time to explore this idea,” Reeb said. “I worked on it from March 2018 until September of 2018.”

Sophomore Sam Hunt said he would appreciate seeing the work by Reeb.

“It shows a different point of view looking at art, and it’s definitely a beautiful thing, and I would love to go see it,” Hunt said.

Reeb said being passionate about a topic can be useful for artists.

“I think art is about practice and developing what your voice is and you can only do that by making lots and lots of work and making choices and editing. I think it is helpful to start out with a subject matter that you enjoy, and then you can make it your own by experimenting,” Reeb said.  

Reeb said there were many things that she learned during her work around bees.

“I thought the honey bees were in trouble, and it is actually the native bees in Minneapolis that are in trouble,” Reeb said. “They’re solitary dwellers, and they’re having more struggles. It is interesting to raise awareness about ways to support their habitat.”

According to Hunt, pollinators are essential for the ecosystem, which includes humans.

Reeb said there are multiple ways that people can help out bees, such as providing water for them to drink.

“There are bees that borough into dirt and soil to create their nest. At the end of the year, instead of cutting down your woodsy stalked plants, if it’s tubular they actually can borough down in there in winter through and create a nest that way, and also wood chips and leaves are really great places for them to build their nests as well,” Reeb said.

According to the exhibition’s press release, the art will be at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum until March 11.