Claudia Campazzo Spotlight

“The garden allows me to express my love of the natural world and its endless variety. I have a deep appreciation for its rich history and enduring traditions.”

Art and nature go together like the moon and stars. For millions of years, the delicate texture of a rose petal, the flight of a butterfly, or the ebb of a wave have inspired the greatest masterpieces in history. There is poetry in the simplest creations, and no one knows their relationship to nature better than the visual artists, like Claudia Campazzo, who find the inspiration they seek at Marin Art and Garden Center and then show the work they produce in The Studio.  

Claudia grew up in Chile where she casually sketched the natural world around her as an escape from stress and school. By practicing strokes, building pattern recognition, and nurturing her creative skills, she was able to enhance her talent for another art – music.  In time, she mastered the viola so profoundly that she was able to earn a master’s degree in music from the New England Conservatory of Music and move on to a career as a professional violist. Eventually, along the musical road, she made her way to California and became the Executive Director of San Francisco Classical Voice.

In 2016, however, Claudia’s life took an extremely challenging turn. She lost her hearing and could no longer play music. Living in Fairfax at the time, she found herself returning to nature for solace. Mt. Tamalpais, with its lakes, trees, and trails reminded her of summers growing up in Chile, which reignited her love for drawing and spawned a heartfelt collection of botanical art. Her work was first on display at Marin Art and Garden Center in 2019, during the 22nd Annual International Exhibition of the American Society of Botanical Artists. 

“The prestigious exhibition brings together botanical artists from all over the world,” she says, “and Marin Art and Garden Center is the perfect venue for it. In 2019, during the exhibition, I was invited to speak to patrons. I had a wonderful evening getting to know some of Marin Art and Garden Center supporters and sharing my artistic process.” 

Claudia’s presentation was memorable to everyone in attendance that day. Her ability to represent the emergence of beauty through difficulty was particularly inspiring. Patrons were also able to learn about her technique and use of watercolors, charcoal, graphite, and oil paints.

“As a nature lover, Marin Art and Garden Center always feels like a treasure chest, with plants just waiting to be discovered and drawn or painted,” she describes.

“I have beautiful memories of time spent at the rose garden. I have a special fondness for roses, as my grandmother loved growing them and had an impressive collection in her garden. I also enjoy the areas surrounding the water fountain when I am looking for some relaxation and contemplation. Many times, I have opened the gate to the edible garden to admire the vegetables growing there and to look for inspiration for my art.”

Judging by her work, it’s clear that Claudia finds the inspiration she seeks when wandering through the garden, as every piece she displays at Marin Art and Garden Center sparks a sense of awe in visitors to The Studio. 

“Botanical art stands at the center of my art practice,” she says. “The garden allows me to express my love of the natural world and its endless variety. I have a deep appreciation for its rich history and enduring traditions.”

Claudia returned to the Marin Art and Garden Center Studio in 2023 for the 26th Annual International Exhibition of the American Society of Botanical Artists. Hopefully, she will come back for many more special visits and exhibitions in the future. 

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IRS Guidelines for Gifts from Donor Advised Funds to Support MAGC Events

Thank you for your interest in giving to the Marin Art & Garden Center events from your Donor Advised Fund (DAF) or Family Foundation.

We sincerely appreciate your generosity and support!

To ensure your gift follows the current IRS guidelines for DAF/Family Foundation support of an event, we would like to share the below guidelines with you.

  • Raffle tickets, tickets to galas and other special events, auction items, and benefits conferred in connection with a DAF/foundation grant are not permitted.
    • IRS has specifically ruled that fair market value associated with fundraising events cannot be separated, a practice known as “bifurcation.”
      • For example, with Edible Garden, if the price of the ticket is $200 and the FMV fair market value (non-tax-deductible amount) is designated to be $50, the donor must pay from sources other than her DAF/foundation for the full value of the ticket ($200) and not just for the non-tax-deductible amount ($50).
    • We recommend you confer with your financial advisor to confirm if any of these examples of how donors may still use their DAF to support an event would work for you:
      • A donor could sponsor the event, and not attend, and pay fully out of the DAF/foundation.
      • A donor could sponsor the event using DAF/foundation funds and attend by purchasing an individual ticket through non-DAF/foundation funds.
      • A donor could sponsor the event, join the event as a guest of another donor/table guest, and pay fully out of the DAF/foundation.
      • A donor could sponsor the event and host the afforded number of people at their chosen level as long as they pay for the seats at the lowest ticket price ($200 for Edible Garden) outside of their DAF.
        • As an example, a $1,500 sponsor that covers 2 guests, could pay for their sponsorship with $400 from a different source of funds, and then give an additional gift of $1,100 out of their DAF.

 

Please email Tod Thorpe, Director of Development at tod.thorpe@maringarden.org to discuss your gift to Marin Art and Garden Center