In late June into July, 2022 ~ for 6 pretty glorious days I did some restoration and art work on the Kids Tool Shed, an enchanting natural building at the Wellfield Botanical Gardens in Elkhart, IL.
The building was originally constructed in 2018 as a collaboration between Josh Newman, of the Botanical Gardens, and a local awesome carpentry crew who designed and contructed this really sweet little building as a Garden Shed. After the foudation, frame and roof was done, Tyler Shaeffer and I plus volunteers constructed the natural wall system on this awesome little building Kids Tool Shed Blog.
The wall plaster on the East side needed some repairs due to unknown factors…weathering? Ladders against the wall? Other? So I was hired in to fix and weather-proof it! Staff at the Gardens, Mary, Amy, Michael & Kyle assisted with the restoration. We patched holes with earth plaster, added sculptures, and used a variety of strategies to make it beautiful & protected: pigments, oils, and lime wash. It turned out to be quite lovely and it was a joy to be in the Botanical Gardens, being co-creative.
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