Bee Making

Compound eye of bee making.

Miss Bee Haven

Food for Thought
is that every third bite you eat comes from pollination, bee’s feed us. Our mission is to get a handle on our critical relationship with bees with hands on educational program called MISS BEE HAVEN. Join us in making a difference in support of our hardworking bee populations around the world by creating a permanent ceramic tribute to the bees.

MISS BEE HAVEN
is a creative enjoyment with clay and glazes for people of all ages to sculpt a
handmade tribute to our pollinators, the bees.The idea behind Miss Bee Haven was conceived in 2007 at UC Davis by the Art/Science Fusion Program, co-founders Donna Billick and Dr Diane Ullman, an experiential, hands on based learning program. Our initial intention in 2007 was to educate and engage undergraduates in bee culture, from visits to the Haagen Daze Honey Bee Haven and the Harry Laidlaw Research Facility on the UC Davis
campus, to the development of artworks.  This is a strategy where learning about bees
is passed onto a community of people by a team of artists and scientists that
use the medium of clay to teach.  The
intention is to assist the learners to make a beautiful clay sculpture of a
bee. The bee is formed and painted with clay in the course of a one to two hour
session. The bees are fired in a ceramic kiln, to a permanent rock hard tribute
to our bee pollinators. The results are returned to the community members to be
placed in a garden, vase, or other display option.  The bees are mounted on a steel rod for ease
of installation.  The results are so
meaningful and BEE AUTIFUL. 

Miss Bee
Haven is a response to the colony collapse disorder that is reaching all around
the world. Our relationship with our bee populations is in danger and in need of
attention, bee awareness is our mission.
The mission is to identify with bee culture inside of the hive and out
in the fields as pollinators. It is a valuable call to action in making is
possible for communities to support the bees by planting forage, and exercising
good environmental practices in support of bees.  Our idea is to bring this ceramic bee making
practice to your community, school, club or group. The mission is to make it
possible for each participant to be instructed in the creation of a personal
bee sculpture.  The reaction has been
fantastic. The Miss Bee Haven Bee sculptures are educational, and bring
compassion levels up for our bee populations.
It is very valuable and rewarding for all those who are able to learn
and have hands on opportunity to make a bee for their home and gardens. 

You are
invited to contact Donna Billick at 530 2195918, rockartus@aol.com, to set up a workshop to create
ceramic bee’s with your community group or school.  It is a pleasure to see the reaction and the
results come flowing like honey out of communities.  The bees are working so hard to make the
fruits, nuts and vegetables that we eat available.  MISS BEE HAVEN is about bee-ing aware of a
bee- autiful partnership we have with these magnificent pollinators.                                                                                                                                                         Donna Billick is a Northern California
artist that has been doing community build projects with a focus on
environmental awareness. Her 43 year commitment, as director of Billick Rock
Art and Todos Artes   with creating large
scale public art, has brought her to UC Davis where she is co-founder of the
Art/Science Fusion Program.  The bee
issue is a heartfelt interest in using her rock art mediums in collaboration
with various community groups to raise the awareness of how we can create art
and support our bee pollinators. Donna Billick has a website at
Donnabillickart.com .

Diane Ullman
is a nationally celebrated Entomologist and Associate Dean of the College of
Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at UC Davis.  Diane Ullman is co-founder of a 16 year
Art/Science Fusion Program working for environmental awareness.  The Art/Science Fusion Program has created
massive, meaningful artworks at UC Davis and beyond. She can be contacted at
530 3041464 or deullman@ucdavis.edu.
We invite you to view Honey Bee Haven, a magnificent pollinator garden on
the UC Davis campus at our website at artsciencefusion@ucdavis.edu