URBANA, Ill. — The costume Eliana Brown wore to last year’s Illuminating Art in Nature event created one of many memorable moments.
“I was a swallowtail butterfly, which is a pollinator our garden supports, complete with large yellow wings,” said Brown, director of the Red Oak Rain Garden at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and University of Illinois Extension water quality and stormwater specialist. “Kids even asked to have their photo taken with butterfly-me. It made my heart soar.”
That’s the goal of the popular fall event, returning for a third year of impactful fun and inspiration, where carved pumpkins line the walkway, glowing brightly as dusk settles. Music drifts through the air from the nearby residence hall as volunteers welcome attendees to an evening of wonder and exploration.
A host of campus and community experts, organizers, and students help participants of all ages gather both fond memories and practical ideas for preserving the natural world around them. The free interactive event features jack-o’-lantern lighting, an education fair, and interactive art displays by students from the courses Manga: The Art of Image and Word and Manga, Anime, and the Margins of Culture.
Illuminating Art in Nature takes place from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 28. The Red Oak Rain Garden is next to Allen Hall on South Dorner Street near Campus Recreation Center East. Free parking is available after 4 p.m. in lots F28 and F29 and at other metered spots after 6 p.m.
Creativity meets conservation
The growing event resonates with Champaign-Urbana area residents, attracting 400 attendees in the first year and 700 the second. The spacious rain garden and its surroundings easily accommodate the inquisitive masses.
“Attendees learn about rain gardens, native plants, and pollinators. They learn practical ways to protect the environment in a festive atmosphere,” Brown said. “Engagement and discovery permeate the event.”
Brown attributes the event’s success to the growing number of partnerships, listed below, that make it possible, and Illinois Extension’s director agrees.
“The event strengthens relationships across disciplines and demonstrates how an Extension site can serve simultaneously as a teaching landscape, gathering place, creative space, and community resource,” said Matthew Vann, associate dean and director of Extension.
Commitment to community
When it comes to sustainability, the event organizers practice what they promote. A Certified Green Event, Illuminating Art in Nature features LED and solar lighting, diverts pumpkin-carving waste through University Housing’s Grind2Energy system, and composts biodegradable materials at the Landscape Recycling Center.
Illinois Extension brings university science and research into communities, and events like Illuminating Art in Nature infuse this mission with joy.
“Across the state, Illinois Extension shares ways to strengthen families, communities, and the environment,” Brown said. “We strive to translate the information people need in ways that are engaging so they’re both memorable and actionable. Energy and enthusiasm can be infectious in the best ways.”
Event partnerships, possibilities
- Asian American Cultural Center
- College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences
- College of Fine and Applied Arts
- Champaign County Design and Conservation Foundation
- Champaign County Master Gardeners
- Department of Crop Sciences at ACES
- East Central Illinois Master Naturalists
- Facilities & Services
- Illinois Extension
- Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant
- Illinois Student Council
- Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment
- McKinley Health Center
- Parking Department
- University Housing
About Red Oak Rain Garden: The Red Oak Rain Garden is a 13,000-square-foot demonstration landscape that prevents flooding on the University of Illinois campus and is managed by Illinois Extension and Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant staff. It serves as a living laboratory for education and research. Engineered soils and native plants absorb and filter up to 27,000 gallons of rainwater runoff per storm event instead of allowing it to overwhelm sewer systems and contribute to poor water quality. It also provides wildlife habitat, connects the community with green spaces, and inspires sustainable landscape design and nature-based solutions.
Learn more about rainfall management at go.illinois.edu/rainfallmanagement. To stay up to date, subscribe to the Red Oak Rain Garden newsletter and follow the garden on Facebook and Instagram.
Related Illinois Extension programs: Extension’s natural resources, environment, and energy program provides research-based education for awareness and action to sustain healthy environments and ecosystems that support quality living and resilient communities. Extension staff empower people across Illinois to make a difference through the Master Naturalist, Climate Steward, and Watershed Steward volunteer and training programs.
University of Illinois Extension develops educational programs, extends knowledge, and builds partnerships to support people, communities, and their environments as part of the state's land-grant institution. Extension serves as the leading public outreach effort for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences in all 102 Illinois counties through a network of 27 multi-county units and over 500 staff statewide. Extension’s mission is responsive to eight strategic priorities — community, economy, environment, food and agriculture, health, partnerships, technology and discovery, and workforce excellence — that are served through five program areas — 4-H youth development, agriculture and agribusiness, community and economic development, health and community wellness, and natural resources, environment, and energy.