NEWS about Botanical Art and for Botanical Artists

Tulipa Tulipae - the Slideshow Video

30/6/2018

Marta Chirino who co-ordinated the recent Tulipa Tulipae exhibition and associated catalogue at the Real Botanical Gardens in Madrid has made a very effective slideshow video of the sequence of how the show came about from beginning to end.

You can view it below.

This exhibition celebrated the tulip and was a collaboration between

the Society of Botanical Artists,
the Real Botanical Gardens in Madrid and
the Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas.

It featured 87 paintings of different tulips by 47 SBA members, historical botanical illustrations of the tulip and was complemented by 20,000 tulips planted specially in the botanical garden.

More details of the exhibition can be found in my blog posts about

the exhibition Tulipa Tulipae at Real Jardin Botanico Madrid
the exhibition catalogue Book Review: Tulipa Tulipae - El tulipan ilustrado

and my Archive: Past Botanical Art Exhibitions in Europe page on my website

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Book Review: Tulipa Tulipae - El tulipan ilustrado

2/5/2018

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Tulipa Tulipae - El tulipa ilustrado (Tulipa, Tulipae - the illustated tulip) is a book about botanical art relating to tulips.

It's also the catalogue (in Spanish) for an exhibition at the Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid which is all about how tulips have been represented by botanical art from the 600 years - by botanical artists past and present.

Fortunately for those of us who don't read Spanish it also has an English translation at the end - which is very welcome for a book which is a jolly good read. I've learned a few things while reading it.

The Cover of Tulipa Tulipae

The Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid has joined forces with the oldest botanical art society in the world, the Society of Botanical Artists to develop a comprehensive exhibition about the botanical art of tulips covering 89 different varieties.

The objective of the exhibition is to show the distinct botanical aspects of the tulip - in terms of its anatomy, taxonomy and classification groups of the genus Tulipa - alongside exhibitions which demonstrate how the tulip has evolved in terms of botanical art over time.

It comprises:

an historical overview of the tulip in various important botanical art publications
an exhibition of contemporary plant portraits of a wide variety of tulips by members of the Society of Botanical Artists

The exhibition is in the at Villanueave Pavilion in the Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid until 20 May. However the tulip paintings will live on in this book for a long time afterwards.

Unusually for a catalogue of an art exhibition, Tulipa Tulipae is both comprehensive and a jolly good read - if you like botanical art history as I do.

I learned about

why it is called a tulip
the geographical travels of the tulip bulbs
who identified the genus Tulipa
the number of original wild tulips (somewhere between 78 and 150) and the number of hybrids and cultivars today (c.5,000)
the fact that there are 15 different classification groups within the genus
the curious stories associated with the bubble known as Tulipomania which gripped the Netherlands during the Dutch Golden Age
which books have featured tulips in the past
how the image and portrayal of the tulip has evolved over time

The book has been written by

Marta Chirino Argenta, a botanical artist and scientific illustrator for the Royal Botanical Garden-CSIC (Madrid) and other institutions; and
Esther García Guillén, curator of collections at the Royal Botanical Garden-CSI.

The book covers

Introductions to the garden, the exhibition and the SBA by the Garden's Director Jesús Muñoz and Sandra Armitage, Director of the Society of Botanical Artists
examples of drawings, fine art prints and paintings from the archives of the Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid
images of contemporary botanical portraits of a variety of tulips by members of the Society of Botanical Artists
Various articles covering the development of the tulip and the associated development of botanical art and illustration associated with the tulip

It also includes:

short biographies of all the participating artists (in both Spanish and English) - covering their art education and achievements to date
an index of works
a bibliography

In terms of the artists whose work is included, first of all I'd like to say it is wonderful to be able to see the entire exhibition from my home in London.

The paintings I particularly liked included:

some wonderful individual paintings by Janet Pope, Ros Franklin, Billy Showell, Sue J Williams, Marion Perkins and Penny Brown
an amazing contribution in terms of number of paintings by Susan Christopher-Coulson

I only have one small gripe about the book - and that is the English Translation is at the back and hence the words that go with the images are not next to them. It's OK for the most part. However I personally would have preferred to have what I think of as the Taschen version i.e. two columns of text on each page - for the two languages - and then images opposite. That's the way it works for the biographies and it would have been a really super book if it had been like that throughout.

In terms of getting hold of the book it's available

at the Real Jardín Botánico de Madrid
in the online store
it's available on Amazon - but not for shipping to the UK

I also understand that the Society of Botanical Artists are trying to make arrangements for it to be available in the UK - although I'm not sure what's happening on this (but I'll update when I find out)

Hopefully in future we can get the various Botanical Gardens collaborating so they can each supply the books by the others! They already have so many existing connections - it would be good if their various publishers and stores could also collaborate! :)

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED - for anybody who likes tulips and art history. I'm one such so for me it's just perfect!

Longer term, I can only recommend that more botanical art societies do projects like this and become involved in the creation of books which record the output of their members. Exhibitions are wonderful to visit - but you can keep coming back to a favourite book.

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Botanica 2018 at Royal Botanic Garden Sydney

26/4/2018

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Botanica - Australia’s leading contemporary botanical art exhibition now in its 19th year - is the second of two botanical art exhibitions at the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney until 6th May.

Venue: Lion Gate Lodge, Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney
Dates: 21 May - 6 May 2018
Exhibiting artists: listed below. They include some of the best Australian and international established and emerging botanic and natural history artists

The can be viewed at the same time as the Margaret Flockton Exhibition (see Nataneal Nascimento wins Margaret Flockton Award 2018) which is a short stroll away at the Maiden Theatre)

Theme: 'Symbiosis'. The theme of this year's exhibition explores the complex and remarkable relationship we humans have with plants. Artwork reflects the symbiotic relationships some plants have with other plants and animals.

Artwork is for sale with the proceeds of original artwork and limited-edition prints going to the artists and to Foundation and Friends of the Botanic Gardens. The latter contribution helps this not-for-profit organisation support horticulture, conservation, scientific research and education programs within the Botanic Gardens.

Exhibiting Artists

The exhibiting artists include:

A

Amanda Ahmed,
Beverly Allen,
Tane Andrews,

Janette Barlow,
Samantha Bayly,
Shannon Bellamy,
Sylvia Beresford,
Samantha Blanks,
Esther Bolz,

Linda Catchlove,
Stephanie Chambers,
Yvonne Chan,
Glenys Clarey,

Barbara Davison,
Pauline Dewar,
Rosemary Donnelly,

Roslyn Earp,
Judith Edmonds,
Melinda Edstein,
Alison Ellis,

Helen Fitzgerald,
Ros Franklin,

Susan Grace-MacDonald,

Anne Hayes,
Cheryl Hodges,
Tanya Hoolihan,
Annie Hughes,

Kerriann Indorato,

Jillian Lloyd,
Angela Lober,
Marina Lommerse,
Anna Lu,

Janet Matthews,
Lynda McPherson,
Mary Ann Mein,
Peter Mesenberg,
Mali Moir,
Elaine Musgrave,

Julie Nettleton,
Kate Nolan,
Leonie Norton,

Rita Parkinson,
John Pastoriza-Piñol,
Joy Pearson,
Vivien Pinder,
Patricia Prince,

Lauren Sahu-Khan,
Sandra Sanger,
Anne Saville,
Peter Schouten,
Shipra Shah,
Claire Stack,
Sue Stuart,

Heather Trott,

Olivia Unicomb,

Bronwyn Van de Graaff,
Anna Voytsekhovich,

Christine Weldon,
Colleen Werner,
Sue Wickison and
Sue Wilcockson.

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Nataneal Nascimento wins Margaret Flockton Award 2018

24/4/2018

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Brazilian scientific illustrator Natanael Nascimento has won the Margaret Flockton Award 2018.

This Award and Exhibition at the Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney is very prestigious and attracts submissions from scientific botanical illustrators from all over the world - as demonstrated by the prizewinners below.

Margaret Flockton Award 2018
for Scientific Botanical Illustration

This is very much an award for the professional botanical illustrator since it is very much focused on the plates produced for the record and for scientific botanical publications.

What happens is that illustrators from around the world

digitally submit scientifically accurate taxonomic illustrations
i.e. highly detailed black and white drawings primarily undertaken in pen and ink, pencil or digitally rendered.
that accompany a published taxonomic description of the plant,
with the drawing clearly highlighting all of the distinctive features of the species.

The Criteria used to judge the Award are listed below:

Accurate interpretation and portrayal of the plant characters and diagnostic features highlighted in the botanical description
Technical merit
Artistic merit
Composition
Reproducibility

See A Guide to Scientific Illustration for more information on judging criteria.

First Prize $5,000 (AUS)

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Botanical Art Exhibitions opening 30-31 March 2018

30/3/2018

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It's a VERY big weekend for celebrating botanical art exhibited in botanical gardens!
One botanical art exhibition opens today Friday 30th March and three open tomorrow, Saturday 31 March. These are listed below by location and venue.

The first two exhibitions are associated with the Botanical Art Worldwide initiative and are at

the Auckland Botanic Gardens in New Zealand and
the Royal Botanical Garden in Edinburgh, Scotland respectively.

Plus there are two exhibitions opening at the Shirley Sherwood Gallery in the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew - one of which has come all the way to Kew from the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney, Australia! (Plus a further exhibition about the refurbished Temperate House which is relevant to both the botanical art exhibitions)

New Zealand:
‘Ngāi Tipu Taketake – Indigenous Flora’

Exhibition ‘Ngāi Tipu Taketake – Indigenous Flora’

Venue: Auckland Botanic Gardens - Visitors Centre Gallery 102 Hill Rd, Manurewa, Auckland 2105
Dates: March 30th - 1st July 2018

followed by a tour to:

Wellington Botanic Gardens from 1 August - 9 September 2018
Millennium Gallery, Blenheim from 3 November - 9 December 2018

Selected artworks: see my blog post Selected New Zealand artists for ‘Ngāi Tipu Taketake - Indigenous Flora’ (Botanical Art Worldwide #3)

Scotland - Flora Scotia

Dear friends, artists and supporters, please come and join us for a glass of wine on Saturday 31st March at the opening of the Flora Scotia exhibition, John Hope Gateway, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, 3.30 - 5.30 pm. We look forward to seeing you there!

Exhibition: Flora Scotia

Venue: John Hope Gateway at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh
Dates: 31st March - 3rd June 2018

Selected artworks: See my blog post Selected Scottish artists for 'Flora Scotia' (Botanical Art Worldwide #5)

DO READ: There are a number of splendid stories about how the plants were chosen and painted by the different artists on the Scottish Botanical Art Collective website.

Kew Gardens - Australian Flora: three new exhibitions

All three exhibitions relate to Australian flora and can be seen in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

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Selected Italian Artists for 'A Flourishing Heritage – Portraits of Italian Flora' (Botanical Art Worldwide #8)

27/3/2018

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The artwork has been selected for A Flourishing Heritage – Portraits of Italian Flora - the Italian contribution to the the Botanical Art Worldwide initiative taking place in May 2018.

Below you can find:

details of the exhibition and its location
a list and profile of the artists whose work has been selected for the exhibition, together with a list of the native plants of Italy to be included in the exhibition - and images of some of them.

A Flourishing Heritage – Portraits of Italian Flora

The exhibition details are as follows:
Venue: Orto Botanico di Padova / Padua Botanic Garden, Padua, Italy
Dates: 18th May - 18th June 2018

The exhibition has been organised:

by Floraviva, the Italian Association of Botanical Artists, established in 2004 to promote and sustain the development of the ancient tradition of botanical art. It brings together the most qualified exponents of this art in Italy today.
in collaboration with the Padua Botanic Garden
as part of the project to link people to plants through botanical art initiated by the American Society of Botanical Artists.

The exhibition in Italy will be held at the oldest botanical garden in the world, the Padua Botanic Garden (Orto Botanico di Padova) established in 1545 and declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997. Recently, a new modern sector called The Biodiversity Garden was inaugurated adjacent to the ancient Garden of Simples which dates back to the 16th century.

The Selection Process

Floraviva issued an invitation to submit artwork for this worldwide event was extended to independent botanical artists as well as Floraviva members.

A total of 67 artworks were admitted by 31 artists, 27 of whom are women. The majority of artists (22) are members of the Floraviva Association.

The Jury of Experts comprised:

Prof. Barbara Baldan, Director of the Padua Botanic Garden,
Prof. Fabio Garbari, former President of the Italian Botanical Society, and
Prof. Lucia Tomasi Tongiorgi, Art Historian of the University of Pisa.

They met at the end of February to carefully examine all the artworks presented by the artists.

Particular attention was given to the endemic contingent of the national flora. Out of all the native species depicted (approximately 70), only two are considered naturalised, while 18 are endemic to Italy, some are very rare and several are endangered.

This is in line with the recommendations expressed at an international level i.e. raising awareness of

the flora and biodiversity that characterise each country, and
the fundamental role they play in the landscape.

Given that botanical art and representation of the natural world went through a great development during the Renaissance, the name given to the Italian exhibition wishes to recall this legacy: A Flourishing Heritage - Portraits of Italian Flora.

Selected artists and artwork of plants native to Italy

The following list contains the names of the exhibiting artists from Italy whose botanical artworks of native Italian plants have been selected for A Flourishing Heritage, Portraits of Italian Flora - Italy’s contribution to the Botanical Art Worldwide Exhibition 2018.

A link to the website of the artist (or a more detailed profile of the artist) is embedded in the name (if available).

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Tulipa Tulipae 2018 at Real Jardin Botanico de Madrid

21/3/2018

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Tulipa Tulipae opened yesterday in the Villanueva Pavilion at the Real Jardín Botánico (RJB) in Madrid. The exhibition comprises:

a review of the techniques used for drawing, painting and printing tulips over the centuries - drawing on the archives and library of the RJB and drawing with images of the RJB Archive and Library
85 original artworks portraying a variety of tulips by 47 botanical artist members of The Society of Botanical Artists.
the blooms of 21,000 bulbs that have been planted at the entrance of the Botanical Garden, in the Terrace of Paintings.

The exhibition continues until the 20 May 2018. Opening hours vary by month.

You can see a video of a television segment on the local news about the exhibition - which includes an interview with Marta Chirino who has organised the exhibition and contains views of the exhibition.

There is a rather wonderful catalogue in Spanish and English and I hope to be able to find out more about how this will become accessible and/or available in the next few days.

I've been promised some pics from exhibition after the excitement of the launch activities - so there'll be another blog post

There are also a wide range of educational and outreach activities, including workshops, guided tours and live demonstrations during the next two months.

Botanical illustration courses + Meet the artist

Some of the activities are art-related. For the student of botanical illustration these include:

Botanical watercolor illustration with Diane Sutherland 12 - April 14, 2018
Botanical illustration with gouache and watercolor on dark background Shevaun Doherty 19 - 21 April 2018
Botanical drawing course Marta Chirino 3 - 5 May 2018
Children's workshop: We draw a flower 6 - 16 years old Marta Chirino May 13 2018

There are also a couple of opportunities to meet some of the artists participating in the show.

Meet the artist: Shevaun Doherty and Marta Chirino April 22, 2018
Meet the artist: Sylvia Balch, Christine Flintham, Pamela Taylor and Marta Chirino29 April 2018

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