Learn to watch, sketch birds at museum class

The Elgin Public Museum is hosting a Bird Walk and Sketch Class from 9 a.m. to noon Sept. 8, at the museum and outdoors on the Willow Creek Nature Trail in Lords Park.

Join artist and avid birder Pete Olson from Northern Illinois Art Gallery on a one-of-a-kind bird-sketching event at the museum and in Lords Park.

As an avid birder, Olson uses birds as his primary source of artistic subject matter. Olson will share his sketching techniques with his audience and help them learn to pencil sketch local species. He is a curatorial assistant at the Art Museum at Northern Illlinois University. Recent exhibitions include the international Birds in Art show in Wausau, Wis.

Join Olson in the field for a morning of bird watching in Lords Park from 9 to 10 a.m., and then learn to draw what you saw outdoors in a pencil-sketching class. You can choose to attend just the sketching class, just the bird walk or both, depending on your interests. Bring binoculars, a 9- by 12-inch sketch pad, and field guides if you have them. Register by Saturday.

Meet at the Elgin Public Museum at 9 a.m. and be prepared and dressed for the weather.

To register or for details, call the Elgin Public Museum at (847) 741-6655. The fee is $25 per person.

The museum is at 225 Grand Blvd. in Lords Park in Elgin. Visit the Web site at elginpublicmuseum.org.