NEWS about Botanical Art and for Botanical Artists

VIDEO: About Zeng Xiaolian and the new Art Museum named after him

15/12/2021

This morning I got a message telling me about a new video about Zeng Xiaolian - China's top botanical painter - and a new museum which opened this month in Kumming, which is devoted to his artworks.

It has English subtitles and commentary so is both very accessible as well as a very interesting profile of this leading botanical painter.
I recommend you watch full screen as it presents better
I'd like to draw particular attention to the pen and ink drawings in the video which are masterful in the use of lines which never overlap. It should also be noted that he paints in various media.
(Thanks to Carolyn Lim for sending me the link)

Below you can find out more about him.

Timeline for Professor Zeng Xiaolian

Professor Zeng Xiaolian has created more than 2,000 illustrations and has been published in over 50 scientific publications - including 'Flora of China'.

Professor Zeng Xiaolian - sitting in the new museum devoted to his artwork in Kumming

1939 - born in Kunming, China

1958 - he joined the Kunming Institute of Botany in Yunnan Province, under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

1958-1997 he worked as

a senior engineer of Kunming Botanical Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and as
Illustrator, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming,

He is also Former Chairman of the Botanical Scientific Illustration Society of China.

Flora of China
The enormous project, consisting of 126 volumes, records some 31,000 types of plants. It took 45 years to complete and involved the efforts of more than 300 botanists and 160 painters. Zeng said he is proud to be part of the team

Over the two decades since his retirement, he created numerous wonderful drawings of flowers and birds, which are both accurate depictions of the nature and tributes to beauty and life.

2016 - Exhibited at the 15th International at the Hunt. He has also been selected for numerous national exhibitions in China, the United States, Canada and Australia.

With his masterpiece "Journey of Chinese plants," on exhibition in the China Pavilion at the Beijing International Horticultural Expo in 2019 | Courtesy of Zeng Xiaolian

2019 - he exhibited his enormous masterpiece painting "Journey of Chinese plants," in the China Pavilion at the Beijing International Horticultural Expo. It features 37 plants which originally grew in China and then spread around the world.

September 2021 - The exhibition "One Flower, One Bird, One World" opens at Kunming Contemporary Art Museum, 1903 Triumphal Arch, Qianwei West Road Park, Xishan District, Kunming City, Yunnan Province - and continues until 5 Janury 2022. It includes more than 80 newly created works by Zeng Xiaolian on display.

December 2021 - a museum named after him is opened at the site of the 99th World Expo in Kunming.

He is currently working on a series about the rainforests in Xishuangbanna in southwest China's Yunnan Province

You can find out more about him and see more of his artwork in the following articles.
He is also listed on my page about Botanical Artists in Asia

REFERENCE:

60 Years of Blossoming Botany | Chinese Academy of Sciences
Nature in Art: Man devotes life to painting plants | CGTN
The Chinese plant Raphael, Zeng Xiaolian used the tip of a pen to outline the song of life in nature | Min.News
Visit to Botanical Art Exhibition of Prof. Zeng Xiao Lian | Science and Sustainable Development (April 2019)
Zeng Xiao Lian botanical watercolor | Art Kaleidoscope

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The Botanical World of Raymond Booth - exhibition at The Garden Museum

3/12/2021

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The Botanical World of Raymond Booth opened at the Garden Museum next to Lambeth Palace in London on 1st December. It continues until 6th February 2022.

I've seen his botanical artwork - in oils - before in an exhibition at the Watts Gallery in Surrey in April 2019. I can highly recommend a visit to see his paintings despite the fact that I didn't get to see this exhibition yesterday before going into isolation today (for ankle surgery on Monday). I've been finding exhibitions in general a stretch too far of late.

You can read About Raymond Booth (1929-2015) in the dedicated page I've created on my website.

Raymond Booth was a botanical, wildlife and natural history artist of international renown who lived a reclusive life in Yorkshire and exhibited with the Fine Art Society.

I have my fingers crossed that there might be a remote chance of me being able to get to see the exhibition before it closes in February - if I'm out of my cast and in a boot by then.

If you too have problems getting to see this exhibition, you can order the very reasonably priced catalogue from the Garden Museum - which I've just done!

Cover ofthe Exhibition Catalogue

This catalogue to accompany the exhibition includes an essay by guest curator Peyton Skipwith, a fine art consultant and former Deputy Managing Director of The Fine Art Society, as well as an introduction by Garden Museum Curator Emma House and is illustrated with the full exhibition selection of Booth’s paintings.

If you want to check out more of his artwork before deciding whether or not to visit the exhibition, I suggest you check the Memorial Catalogue of his work on Issuu - it's very illuminating as to the exceptionally high quality of his paintings.

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The Highgrove Florilegium on splendid display in Chelsea

23/9/2021

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“The Highgrove Florilegium:
Watercolours Depicting Plants Grown in The Garden at Highgrove”

Paintings are organised according to the different parts and rooms within the garden at Highgrove

After visiting the RHS London Botanical Art & Photography Show in Chelsea on Tuesday (of which more later), I walked down to Chelsea Barracks to see what I think might be the first display in London of all the paintings completed for the Highgrove Florilegium (Volumes 1 and 2) since 2009.

“The Highgrove Florilegium: Watercolours Depicting Plants Grown in The Garden at Highgrove” is only on until Sunday 26th September. It's also very easy to access for those visiting the Chelsea Show. The paintings are hung in the former Guards Chapel in the former Chelsea Barracks - now known as the Garrison Chapel - which is now owned by The Prince's Foundation Trust - hence the location of the exhibit.

I cannot recommend this exhibition too much. The quality of the paintings is excellent.
In fact, this is a much better exhibition of contemporary botanical art than the current RHS Botanical Art Show.

The Cottage Garden

To my mind, it's also a much better exhibition than the original one twelve years ago, which was in a very small space in the Garden Museum at Lambeth Palace. (See my original review of the exhibition Exhibition Review: The Highgrove Florilegium at the Garden Museum (14th July 2009)

This time there's much more focus on the paintings and much less on the book - which is nowhere to be seen!

The big bonus of this exhibition is that the space is large and the paintings have been hung according to the different "rooms" of the garden where the subject plants were located. As such, it's a much better representation of the garden at Highgrove - which, of course, is what a florilegium is intended to do.

The paintings also look excellent on the green walls and they benefit from both natural light and additional lighting but both are up high so there's some reflection but not too much.

The Kitchen Garden and The Nursery

The Highgrove Florilegium is the first Royal Florilegium in the UK. It contains botanically accurate watercolour paintings of the plants grown in the garden of Highgrove near Tetbury in Gloucestershire - which has been the country home of the Prince of Wales since 1980.

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Botanical Art Exhibitions (Autumn 2021) in London

16/9/2021

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RHS | London Botanical Art and Photography Show

The RHS's London Botanical Art and Photography Show opens at the Saatchi Gallery in Chelsea on Saturday 18th September 2021.

This is the link to the exhibition page on the Saatchi Gallery website.

Features of this exhibition are that it

runs for two weeks for the first time
AND is on at the same time as the Chelsea Flower Show (21-26th September 2021)

I now understand why it was decided to try and hold it at the Saatchi Gallery. This is a hop skip and longish jump from the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea where the Chelsea Show is always held.

Participants in the 2021 show include portfolios exhibits by:

15 botanical artists and illustrators
19 botanical photographers portfolio collections

RHS Medals
The RHS medals awarded to each exhibitor - Gold, Silver Gilt, Silver or Bronze - have been announced today (Friday 17 September) and the award winners will be listed in a future blog post.

The Saatchi Gallery

Tickets

Details of booking and prices are on the Saatchi Gallery website
Admission to this ticketed show is free for Saatchi Gallery Members and RHS Members.
RHS Members only:
- Note that the code required which enables RHS members to enter for free is included in the notice about the exhibition in "Your Gardening" update from the RHS date 2nd September 2021.
- Note also that getting the code and including it your booking is NOT enough. You will also need to present your RHS membership card to gain entry.
- I found booking the ticket using the code to be confusing. You need to enter the code BEFORE you start to select date and time because the free RHS option is only generated when the code has been inserted. Be careful you select the right one!
- My recommendation - take it slow and if you need to try more than once I won't be surprised!

Sloane Square station top centre; Saatchi Gallery top left; RHS Chelsea Flower Show in the grounds of the Royal Hospital / Ranelagh Gardens bottom centre/right

The Highgrove Florilegium at The Guards Chapel, Chelsea

“The Highgrove Florilegium: Watercolours Depicting Plants Grown in The Garden at Highgrove” will also be on view to those attending the Chelsea Flower Show.

This is not an opportunity which comes along very often - so definitely one not to miss. It features:

original watercolours by Florilegium artists painted for The Highgrove Florilegium, a two-volume set of botanical prints depicting the plants, vegetables, fruit and trees grown in the garden at Highgrove.
work by 72 artists from around the world

Venue: The Garrison (Guards) Chapel, Chelsea Barracks (link to location on Google Maps)
Dates: 21st - 26th September 2021
Hours 11am - 4pm daily
Booking not required
Organisers: The Prince's Foundation
Below is a video of the gardens and the range of plants which can be found there.

Exhibitions at the Shirley Sherwood Gallery, Kew Gardens

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Mrs Priscilla Susan Bury and a selection of hexandrian plants

2/6/2021

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The feature image for the Botanical Art and Artists website and Facebook Page for Summer 2021 is this image of Crinium Augustum [Queen Emma] by Mrs Priscilla Bury (1799 - 1872)

This post is about Mrs Bury and her very impressive book about hexandrian plants i.e. plants with six stamens called "A selection of hexandrian plants, belonging to the natural orders Amaryllidæ and Liliacæ, from drawings by Mrs. Edward Bury, Liverpool"

Crinium Augustum [Queen Emma] by Mrs Priscilla Bury FROM "A selection of hexandrian plants, belonging to the natural orders Amaryllidæ and Liliacæ, from drawings by Mrs. Edward Bury, Liverpool"

About Mrs Priscilla Bury (1799-1872)

Priscilla Susan Falkner was born in Liverpool. She was the daughter of a rich Liverpool merchant whose estate outside the city at Fairfields 'boasted a garden with many rare and exotic plants' (Tomasi).

As a young woman she was an enthusiastic botanist and flower painter and was particularly interested in lilies and allied flowers. She had no pretensions as to scientific knowledge and, in effect, was a very talented amateur.

By 1829, (age 30) she had produced a number of paintings of hexandrian plants, which she wished to publish.

In 1830, Falkner married Edward Bury F.R.S. (1794-1858), a wealthy and ingenious railway engineer and she had three sons - and her paintings were transcribed by Robert Havell into engravings. (Havel was also responsible for his engravings for John James Audubon).

Following the publication of Hexandrian Plants, Priscilla Bury continued to contribute illustrations to botanical works including

producing eight plates for Maund's The Botanic Garden (London: 1825-1851) and
Maund and Henslow's The Botanist (London: 1836-1842).

Between 1852 and 1860 the family lived at Hillsborough Hall near Sheffield and later moved to Croft Lodge, Ambleside in the Lake District. By 1866 she was living at Fairfield, Thornton Heath, Croydon. She died at Fairfield on 8 March 1872 of bronchitis and cerebral congestion.

About "A Selection of Hexandrian Plants"

Crinum pedunculatum. [River lily] (1834) by Priscilla Susan Bury

Mrs Bury's place in botanical art history is due to her flower paintings which were published - as engravings - in A Selection of Hexandrian Plants, belonging to the Natural Orders Amaryllidae and Liliacae in London by Robert Havell the younger, [plates watermarked 1831-1834].

There were 79 subscribers to this book and hence this is now a rare book of some significance. A copy of her book was auctioned at Christies in 2001 and fetched £75,250. Wilfrid Blunt described it (in The Art of Botanical Illustration) as

"one of the most effective colour-plate folios of the period"

For me, I think her book is an excellent teaching aid in relation to those wanting to learn about composition. Note her technique - subsequently replicated by Pandora Sellars - of putting her light coloured blooms against the dark leaves of her hexaodrian plants so that they can be seen much more clearly.

All the good techniques are there in past paintings. You just need to study the past to learn a lot about what does and does not work in relation to telling the story of a plant within the context of botanical art and illustration.

How to see her book

You can see examples of the images from the book in various online collections of botanical images, namely:

Amaryllis fulgida by Priscilla Susan Bury

There are copies of the book in the libraries of:

National Art Library, Victoria and Albert Museum London, SW7 2RL
Natural History Museum London, SW7 5BD
Royal Botanic Gardens, KEW Richmond, TW9 3AB
Boston Athenaeum Boston, MA 02108 United States
Morgan Library & Museum Pierpont Morgan Library, New York, NY 10016 United States
New York Botanical Garden The LuEsther T. Mertz Library, Bronx, NY 10458 United States

REFERENCE:

Priscilla Susan Bury | Wikipedia
Mrs Edward Bury (nee Priscilla Susan Falkner), Botanical Artist | Archives of Natural History (Vol. 5 (1) | 71 - Sept 1, 1968
Bury, Priscilla Susan 1799 - 1872 | Science Museum Group
Mrs Edward Bury | The Art of Botanical Illustration (1955 - page 213) by Wilfrid Blunt
Mrs Edward Bury | Christies
Bury [née Falkner], Priscilla Susan (1799–1872) by D. J. Mabberley | Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

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VIDEO: How to paint like a botanical artist

3/5/2021

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Lucy T Smith, one of the botanical artists at Kew Gardens, who both works with the botanists and also provides tuition in botanical illustration, has created a new video.

How to paint like a botanical artist is a simple introduction to the process of botanical painting using watercolour. It provides a step-by-step guide on how to paint the perfect Primula flower.

Find out what equipment you’ll need, how to highlight the important details of your flower, and tips for bringing a botanical painting to life.

The painting is on YouTube and lasts just under 30 minutes
RBG Kew has very helpfully supplied indicators as to what comes up when in the video.

Timecodes:

00:00 - 00:20 - Intro
00:20 - 00:31 - What you'll need
00:31 - 02:25 - Preparation
02:25 - 03:55 - Painting the outline
03:55 - 04:54 - Adding initial details
04:54 - 07:55 - Laying down washes
07:55 - 09:56 - Mixing & painting the yellows
09:56 - 11:07 - Mixing & adding the orange details
11:07 - 12:21 - Mixing & painting the green stigma
12:21 - 13:18 - Building the colour using a dry brush technique
13:18 - 14:16 - Adding in another wash
14:16 - 15:27 - Mixing & painting darker colours
15:27 - 18:29 - Adding fine details
18:29 - 18:51 - The finished painting
18:51 - 19:20 - Why botanical art is important
19:20 - 19:29 - Outro

More about Lucy T Smith, her artwork and videos

Lucy T Smith tlking about creating botanical art - including botanical watercolours - at the Worldwide Day of Botanical Art at Kew Gardens in May 2018

Lucy T Smith is a highly regarded botanical illustrator who has won a number of international awards.

She has been Freelance botanical illustrator at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew for the last 20 years.
She also works on commission.

You can see. more of her videos in my blog posts as follows

VIDEO: Watercolour painting of a pomegranate by Lucy T Smith (January 2021)
Kew Video: What is Botanical Art? (April 2019)
Lucy Smith filmed by BBC News (2018)

You can see more of her artwork on the following websites:

website http://www.lucytsmith.com/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/palmsmithy/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Palmsmithy/
Kew Gardens - Meet Lucy T Smith, award-winning botanical illustrator | Kew - Lucy is one of a number of highly skilled freelance botanical illustrators working at Kew to produce line drawings for scientific plant publications.

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Spring 2021 Banner: Citrus limon from the Gottorfer Codex

1/3/2021

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Citrus limon (gouache on vellum) published by Johannes Simon Holtzbecker in the Gottorfer Codex (4 volumes published 1649-1659)

A Citrus lemon painted in gouache on vellum is the Spring 2021 banner image for Botanical Art and Artists on this website's home page and Facebook Page. The image is cropped to create the banner image as per the image below.

This post is about that painting and the Gottorfer Codex which it is part of.

Spring 2021 Banner Image - for the website and facebook page

The Gottorfer Codex

The Gottorfer Codex can be summarised as follows:

It is a florilegium i.e. a record of the very wide assortment of plants that grew in the ducal gardens at Schloss Gottorf (Gottorp) in the duchy of Schleswig. (See the engraving of the castle and garden below)
It comprises four volumes of botanical paintings
It contains images of 1,180 plants over 350 pages of vellum
by Johannes (Hans) Simon Holtzbecker (1610-1671) - a German artist and flower painter who lived in Hamburg. He was responsible for
- the Gottorfer Codex and
- the Moller Florilegium
- the Green Florilegium
Commissioned by Frederick III, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp
Published between between 1649 and 1659
The Gottorfer Codex is now the property of Denmark
- It is part of the Royal Collection of Graphic Art, a part of the National Gallery of Denmark.
- ownership of the Codex transferred after the Great Northern War (1700-1721) when Gottorf Castle and the duke's portion of the duchy of Schleswig were annexed to the Danish crown.
It's been restored in recent years - so that all the vellum is flat and all the paint is securely attached - and can be photographed more easily.

In 2009, a digital version of the codex was created by the National Gallery of Denmark.
VIEW a digitised version of the Gottorfer Codex on Issuu

In 2014, there was an exhibition Der Gottorfer Codex. Flowers and worldview at Gottorf Castle between 25th May and 26th October 26, 2014.

The image is of a lemon tree in blossom. The treatment of the leaves and variety of greens is sophisticated.

An engraving (1745) of the Castle and Garden in 1745 - some 75 years after the publication of the Gottorfer Codex

Neither the Gottorfer Codex nor Holtzbecker are referenced in any of the standard reference books about botanical illustration - which is interesting. It occurs to me that the fact that the only books which do reference it are in German might account for this. It's also very early. However, the current theory is that most of his work was largely unrecognised because - until relatively recently - most of it was attributed to Maria Sibylla Merian.

Holtzbecker is now regarded as one of the finest German botanical artists of the 17th century.

The Gottorfer Codex is also very definitely a real book of splendid botanical illustrations. Below are two videos about the restoration of the Gottorfer Codex by the National Archives in Denmark - in which you can see the book and original paintings and the methods used to restore the paintings, pages, binder and book covers.

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