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Brookside Gardens – Art in the Garden

Art in the Garden ART EXHIBIT AND SALE

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Art is part of our mission! We are proud to support local artists through rotating monthly art exhibits at the Visitor Center. Many of the art pieces showcased in exhibits are for sale. Our exhibit schedule is currently booked through the end of 2027. We are not currently accepting applications for future art exhibits.

Current Exhibit: Photographer Angela Altomare and Artist Jan Carey

September 14 – October 12, 2026

A small gray mockingbird is perched among clusters of vivid red berries on thin, leafy branches. The bird occupies the center of the photograph and is shown in profile, facing left. The plumage is predominantly light gray, with a pale gray-white breast and throat, darker gray wings marked by subtle white edging, and a long, narrow tail extending downward toward the lower right corner of the image. A slender black bill and a dark eye stand out against the softer tones of the bird's face. The bird is positioned among several berry-laden stems. Bright, glossy red berries appear in dense clusters throughout the foreground and lower portion of the image, creating a strong contrast with the bird's muted gray coloration. The surrounding leaves are green with patches of brown and darkened edges, suggesting late-season foliage. The background is rendered in a smooth, out-of-focus blur, featuring warm autumn colors including golden yellow, orange, tan, and hints of soft green. This shallow depth of field isolates the bird and berries, drawing attention to the sharp detail of the feathers, leaves, and fruit. Natural sunlight illuminates the scene evenly, highlighting the texture of the bird's plumage and the shiny surface of the berries.

From My Backyard to Brookside: Nature Photography

Are you excited about connecting with nature on your walk? Angela Altomare photographs amazing moments outdoors just as she sees them. Angela says that nature relaxes her and the experience of shooting photos is her love.

Her passion is the untouched image. There is no Photoshop or staging in her work, just the wonderful world. She explores the world through a lens. It has always been the best way for her to express herself artistically. Sharing her photos and sharing the beauty of nature tends to make people happy. If one can focus on nature for a few moments a day, one will gain so much from that connection.

Angela is a lifelong Montgomery County resident, an avid gardener, and a passionate photographer for more than 30 years. Her work has been featured on websites such as The Old Farmer’s Almanac, The Rock Creek Conservancy, Photographer’s Edge, The Washington Post, and every summer at the Montgomery County Fair.

Jan Carey is an emerging abstract painter working in acrylic and mixed media. As a colorist, she uses a saturated, yet nuanced palette to evoke mood and emotion, creating immersive environments on canvas that invite viewers to find their own meaning — a sensory experience that transcends narrative.

Carey thinks of her paintings as lucid dreamscapes, capturing the ephemeral feeling of a dream just before waking. She hopes he work transports viewers into that in between moment, if only for a few seconds, where imagination and sensation merge.

She is drawn to abstraction precisely because it resists easy answers. Rather than handing viewers a fixed narrative, each piece offers a space to look, wonder, and discover their own story. She hopes people walk away with a little novelty, a little curiosity, and maybe even a small sense of adventure. Working pastels, crayons, and pencils into the paint keeps her lines alive and full of movement, giving her work an organic, bold, and often unpredictable character — she seeks shapes and contrasts that surprise even her.

To learn more about Jan’s art, she her website.

An abstract acrylic painting composed of layered blocks and sweeping shapes in deep burgundy, black, crimson, pink, cream, and ochre. Broad, overlapping forms create a dynamic composition, with a large field of rich red near the center contrasted by darker vertical and curved shapes that frame the image. Areas of pale pink and cream emerge beneath the darker layers, adding depth.

Art works will be on display at the Brookside Gardens Visitor Center and available for purchase in the Gift Shop.

Art is part of our mission! We are proud to support local artists through rotating monthly art exhibits. The Visitor Center is open 9:00am to 4:00pm daily. Sale of art is arranged directly through Brookside Gardens Gift Shop. To purchase art visit us in person, call 301-962-1448, or email ArtintheGarden@MontgomeryParks.org.