NEWS about Botanical Art and for Botanical Artists

Botanical Art for the Medici

27/8/2019

The National Gallery of Art in Washington has a very civilised arrangement where all the books and exhibitions catalogues they have produced in the past, which are now out of print, are reproduced in pdf format for personal/educational consumption online.

Which is how I can recommend all those with an interest in botanical art history take a look at The Flowering of Florence - Botanical Art for the Medici published by the National Gallery of Art, Washington in 2002 for an exhibition of the same name. The idea for the show emerged from Lucia Tongiori Tomasi's research and study at Bunny Mellon's Oak Spring Garden Library.

The book is available in pdf format View PDF (41.29MB)

The Flowering of Florence: Botanical Art for the Medici
Lucia Tongiorgi Tomasi and Gretchen A. Hirschauer
Published 2002
132 pages
Catalog of an exhibition held at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, Mar. 3-May 27, 2002

While the wonders of nature have long been an inspiration to artists, the birth of modern science in the 16th century provided a new way of seeing and interpreting the natural world. The Flowering of Florence celebrates the close ties linking the arts and the sciences in Tuscany between the 16th and 18th centuries. Pursuit of the natural sciences—in particular botany and horticulture—and passion for the arts were supported by the Medici grand dukes, following a Florentine tradition. The 68 works in this exhibition include paintings, works on vellum and paper, pietre dure (hardstone mosaics), manuscripts, printed books, and textiles. The catalog contains two essays focusing on botanical art for the Medici and the plants seen in Pietro Perugino’s altarpiece The Crucifixion with the Virgin, Saint John, Saint Jerome, and Saint Mary Magdalene.
National Gallery of Art

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The front cover is a detail crop of Chinese Plate with Cherries and Bean Pods, c. 1620, gouache on vellum by Giovanna Garzoni. She started with botanical illustration for the Medici Court but is best known as a still life painter, her paintings of flowers, fruit and vegetables are absolutely impeccable in terms of shape, form, colour and tone - a well as being exceedingly attractive to look at! You can see more of her artwork in:

The practice of botanical illustration constituted valuable training for Giovanna Garzoni, who gradually broadened her repertoire until she felt prepared to attempt her first still-life paintings, a genre that would win her fame at many of the most illustrious courts of Europe— Paris, Rome, Naples, and Turin. These works were almost always executed on vellum, never on canvas, and she became known as the "illustrious miniaturist." The important role played by botanical painting in her art can be seen in a series of four large works in gouache at the Uffizi and datable to the late 16405, three of which are included in this exhibition. In each work the plant is depicted with its roots and flowers, suspended in the center of the page, in accordance with the tradition of Ligozzi. However, the artist enlivens each composition by unobtrusively adding other elements such as small fruits, vegetables, insects, and reptiles; portrayed with minute precision, each casts a faint shadow against the page on which it seems to have been delicately posed.1

The book also includes artworks (in order) by

Leonardo da Vinci
Albrecht Durer
Pietro Andrea Mattioli
Jacopo Ligozzi (major chapter)
Georg Dyckmann
Daniel Froeschl
Filippo Napolitano
Gerolamo délia Valle
Giovanna Garzoni (major reference)
Bartolomeo Bimbi
Gaspare Lopez

I found the mosaic murals and table tops based on botanical paintings to be particularly interesting.

Yet another aspect of botanical art in other media!

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Roses by Rosie Sanders

14/8/2019

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Next month, in September 2019, the award-winning and best-selling artist Rosie Sanders has:

an exhibition opening of 20 new botanical paintings in watercolour at Jonathan Cooper's Park Walk Gallery in Chelsea
a book being published

Rosie Sanders has been awarded five Gold Medals for her botanical art by the Royal Horticultural Society, has been regularly exhibited in various exhibitions at the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art, Kew Gardens, and has exhibited at the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, Carnegie Mellon University and has work in their collection of botanical art.

She is renowned for creating very large paintings of flowers in watercolour.

Rosie Sanders: By Any Other Name

Rosie Sanders: By Any Other Name
Venue: Jonathan Cooper, Park Walk Gallery, 20 Park Walk, London, SW10 0AQ
Dates: 26th September - 12th October 2019

Rosie has been exhibiting with Jonathan Cooper since 2002 and it is a mark of a very successful and best selling artist that in general she has a solo exhibition at his gallery every other year. Latterly these have coincided with the publication of a new book (see below)

This exhibition will include 20 new paintings - with most included in her new book. I'll be visiting this exhibition and writing a review - with images - late in September.

The exhibition will focus primarily on the beauty of the rose, and will feature many of the works included in the publication Rosie Sanders’ Roses: A celebration in botanical art, which will be released by Batsford in September 2019.

Gallery hours are 10 am – 6.30 pm (Monday to Friday) and 11 am – 4 pm on Saturdays.

You can see some of the images of her paintings which will be in the exhibition on her Instagram account https://www.instagram.com/rosiesanders.4apple/

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Rosie Sanders' Roses - a celebration in botanical art

Rosie Sanders' Roses: A celebration in botanical art is due to be published on 5 September 2019 by Batsford.

This NEW BOOK is a follow up to her very popular and successful book Rosie Sanders' Flowers: A Celebration of Botanical Art, also published by Batsford in late 2016 (UK) and early 2017 (USA).

I predict this one will be every bit as popular - if not more so - than the last. One of the most popular "how to" query about flower painting on Google is "how to paint a rose in watercolour" which generates over 90 MILLION responses.

This book focuses just on roses - however it's not a "how to" book.

It's introduced by an introduced by an extended essay on the resonance of the rose as a timeless motif - all across the world - in our art, literature, poetry, folklore and gardens.
it contains over 80 stunning paintings and sketches are shown for the first time
the text sitting next to the image of her painting includes the text from the personal letter which explains the creative and emotional process she went through to create it.

I've not seen a copy yet but I've no reason to suppose it won't be just as good as the last one which was very highly rated.

ORDER THIS BOOK

Rosie Sanders' Roses: A celebration in botanical art from Amazon UK
Rosie Sanders' Roses: A Celebration of Botanical Art from Amazon.com

These are affiliate links if you order using these links to help me pay for the cost of this website.

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Call for Entries: Botanical Artists in Residence Program at the Oak Spring Foundation

3/8/2019

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The inaugural Botanical Artists in Residence Program (BAiR) offered by the Oak Spring Garden Foundation is now accepting applications - as part of its Artists Awards program

The opportunities offered by BAiR and the requirements for applications are detailed below, followed by

information about other artists awards made by OGSF and
how to find out more about the Oak Spring Garden Foundation and its gardens, library and botanical art.

What's on offer

a $1,500 award
stay at the Oak Spring estate in Upperville, Virginia - with accommodation and 24-hour access to studio space.
for a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of four weeks sometime during the period April 1 – May 22, 2020.
ground transportation to/from Oak Spring (from either Dulles Airport or Union Station).
This is a copy of the 2020 OSGF Residency Handbook
This is a link to the Oak Spring Foundation's page on Google Arts and Culture which demonstrates some of the artwork in the Library.

Transportation to/from Washington, D.C. is the responsibility of the applicant.

The aim of this program is to extend our support for artists to practitioners of botanical illustration

The Oak Spring Estate - home to the Oak Spring Garden Foundation - from above (House and gardens bottom left and Library top left) in Upperville, Virginia

What's required

Artists must choose from plants in Oak Spring’s living collection, during the period of residency. in order to maintain the integrity of The Oak Spring Florilegium
Artists must submit at least one original artwork produced as a result of the residency to The Oak Spring Florilegium and assign all copyright in the artwork to the Florilegium.

The award is contingent upon the awardee submitting one original work that Oak Spring obtains full copyright to, and which will become part of The Oak Spring Florilegium.

Artists will also be asked to provide digital submissions of other works started or completed on-site for an archive held at Oak Spring. However, the artists may keep their original sketches and any additional original works produced as part of the residency.

Who can apply?

Botanical artists who:

demonstrate artistic excellence in botanical art over time
have been selected to exhibit in international juried exhibitions of botanical art.
are available for a minimum of two weeks and a maximum of four weeks during April 1 – May 22, 2020 for a residency on the Oak Spring estate in Upperville, Virginia
have a visa to visit the USA if a non-resident/citizen
can finance getting and from Washington DC (Dulles Airport or Union Station)

What you have to do to apply

First READ the flyer about the Botanical Artists in Residence Program (BAiR)

Next

create a profile and login to our OSGF Applicant Portal at osgf.force.com/grantee/.
Log in and select “Explore Grant Opportunities” in the upper left
Select “2020 Botanical Artists Application.”

You may encounter errors in creating an application profile if you use Safari as your web browser. Please try using a different web browser, and if you continue to encounter issues, try clearing your cache.

You must submit

a resume/curriculum vitae (not to exceed 3 pages);
a short description of your creative practice and how you would benefit from a residency at Oak Spring;
five images of your best works (required). All images submitted must be of art executed by hand in two-dimensional media including watercolor, pencil, pen and ink, colored pencil, mixed media, oil, acrylic, gouache, egg tempera, and original prints (aquatints, etchings, etc.).
any and relevant links/uploads to/of an online portfolio of work (optional);
references who can speak to your artistic practice and suitability as a resident. (Successfully completed residencies at other arts organizations or botanical institutions will be an asset.)

Deadline for receipt of applications: November 8, 2019 at midnight EST.

The aim is to notify all applicants on the status of our selections by mid-December 2019.

Other Artists Awards

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