NEWS about Botanical Art and for Botanical Artists

Finnis Scott Foundation: £10,000 Botanical Art Prize 2024

18/9/2023

Applications are invited for the £10,000 Botanical Art Prize 2024 awarded by the Finnis Scott Foundation. This is about the Call for Entries, who can apply and how to apply.

In summary, the Botanical Art Prize is dedicated to the practice and promotion of botanical art. It aims

to support and promote collaborative botanical art projects in the UK and Ireland; and
through established botanical art groups which go beyond their day-to-day activities and recognises those which have already helped to raise the profile of botanical art.

Specifically the £10K Award is:

intended to fund discrete and collaborative projects that promote and encourage the practice and appreciation of botanical painting in the UK and/or Ireland
awarded biennially i.e. every two years.
sponsored by The Finnis Scott Foundation - a charity that was established by the will of the late Valerie Finnis to support Horticulture and Art.

Projects might include:

a new education programme,
the development of an existing course,
an exhibition, publication, event or collaborative project.

Previous Winners of this Botanical Art Prize have been:

2018 – Sir Cedric Morris Florilegium
2020 – Gloucestershire Society for Botanical Illustration
2022 – Scottish Society of Botanical Artists.

Links are to information about the projects which won the award.

Call for Entries: Botanical Art Prize 2024

What follows is about:

which organisations are eligible to apply
how to apply
how applications are assessed
the timeline
monitoring processes

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Crainn na hÉireann – an exhibition by the Irish Society of Botanical Artists

14/8/2023

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This autumn, The Irish Society of Botanical Artists (ISBA) has a new exhibition Crainn na hÉireann (Native Irish Trees) - Delighting in the Detail opening:

AT: the Visitor Centre at the National Botanic Gardens of Ireland at Glasnevin
ON: Saturday 28th of October 2023
ENTRY: Free

There will be

an introduction by Seamus O’Brien, Director of the National Botanic Gardens Arboretum in Kilmacurragh, Co. Wicklow.
a high quality book/catalogue, which will be launched at the exhibition. I'll be highlighting this in due course.

The Poster for the Exhibition (above) features a painting of a Wych Elm by Elaine Moore Mackey

Arbutus, Strawberry tree, Arbutus unedo, Caithne by Janet Colgan

Crainn na hÉireann – Delighting in the Detail celebrates twenty-two of Ireland’s native trees which are

Alder, Alnus glutinosa, Fearnóg
Arbutus, Strawberry tree, Arbutus unedo, Caithne
Ash, Fraxinus excelsior, Fuinseóg
Aspen, Populus tremula, Crann Creathach
Downy Birch, Betula pubescens, Beith Chlúmhach
Silver Birch, Betula pendula, Beith gheal
Blackthorn, Prunus spinosa, Draighean
Bird Cherry, Prunus padus, Donnroisc
Wild Cherry, Prunus avium, Crann silíní fiáin
Crab Apple, Malus sylvestris, Crann fia-úil
Hawthorn, Crataegus monogyna, Sceach gheal
Hazel, Corylus avellana, Coll
Holly, Ilex aquifolium, Crann cuileann
Juniper, Juniperus communis, Aiteal
Oak Pendunculate, [English], Quercus robur, Dair ghallda
Oak Sessile, [Irish], Quercus petraea, Dair Ghaelach
Rowan (Mountain Ash), Sorbus aucuparia, Caorthann
Scots Pine, Pinus sylvestris, Péine Albanach
Whitebeam, Sorbus hiberica, Fioncholl Gaelach
Willow (goat willow), Salix caprea, Saileach
Wych Elm, Ulmus glabra, Leamhán Sléibhe
Yew, Taxus baccata, Lúr

YEW Taxus baccata by Niamh Harding Miller

Over the last two years, a number of botanical artists who are members of ISBA, have produced a set of paintings for each tree:

enlarging the smallest of details such as the tiny, and very beautiful buds, flowers, seeds, and leaves, which the public may miss
providing a record for identification and appreciation for the wider public.

Rowan by Susan Sex

ISBA hopes the exhibition will encourage everyone to appreciate anew the wonder of nature, and instil a sense of ownership and responsibility for its preservation.

You can

find out more about the Irish Society of Botanical Artists and how to join at www.irishbotanicalartists.ie
purchase publications associated with past project

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Botanical Art Medals at Bloom 2022

5/6/2022

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This is about the medals awarded for botanical art at Bloom 2022 - which for those unfamiliar with it is the Irish equivalent of the RHS Botanical Art Show.

The Bloom Horticultural Show is Ireland's largest horticultural event. It has returned to Phoenix Park in Dublin at its normal time of year (June 2nd-6th, from 9am to 6pm) after a two year break for the pandemic.

Within the show, there is an exhibition of botanical and floral art at the Visitor Centre in the centre of the park. This is the Eight Botanical Art Exhibition at Bloom in Phoenix Park since it started.

You can find listings of all the exhibits and the medals awarded on this page. Below I highlights the

Botanical Art Medals and awards and
the top awards for Floral Art.

Best in Show - Botanical

'Take a Breath' - Tree Lungwort, Lobaria pulmononaria with Pertusaria multipuncta by Shevaun Doherty. GM (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 + Best in Show, 2018, 2022) )

Shevaun lives in Kildare and works full time as a professional botanical artist and tutor. She graduated with a Distinction in the SBA's Diploma course in 2012 and is now a Co-President of the Society of Botanical Artists in the UK. She has won Gold Medals at this show in previous years and also won Best in Show in 2017.

Take a Breath' - Tree Lungwort, Lobaria pulmononaria with Pertusaria multipuncta by Shevaun Doherty. GM (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 + Best in Show, 2018, 2022)

Gold Medal - Botanical

'Making Hay' - Agrostis stolonifera, Holcus mollis, Holcus lanatus and Agrostis capillaris by Lynn Stringer GM (2015, 2016, 2022) - Lives in Wicklow and is a professional artist. She is a member of The Watercolour Society of Ireland, Irish Society of Botanical Artists, American Society of Botanical Artists and an Associate Member Irish Specialist Nursery Association
Geranium sanguineum var. striatum by Olwyn Burke - GM (2022) Olwyn is a member of the Irish Society of Botanical Artists (ISBA) and has exhibited at the Botanical and Floral Art exhibition in Bloom since 2016. This is her first Gold Medal.

Patrica Butler and Deborah Lambkin

Deborah Lambkin (on the right) an Irish Botanical Illustrator who is the RHS Orchid Artist and was one of the Judges of the Show. She is pictured here with Patricia Butler (on the left) who curated “Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art” at the National Gallery in Dublin celebrating three centuries of Irish botanical art and also wrote Irish Botanical Illustrators and Flower Painters
(See my blog post Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art at the National Gallery of Ireland)

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TALK: Yanny Petters in conversation

5/11/2021

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A Verre Eglomisé painting in 'Field of Vision'

There's a video of Yanny Petters - in conversation with Art historian Jean Ryan - in the midst of Yanny's current solo show of Verre Eglomisé paintings at 'Field of Vision' at the Olivier Cornet Gallery in Dublin. (details below)

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: In conversation with Yanny Petters (YouTube) 58 minutes - it's absolutely fascinating!

Jean Ryan and Yanny Petters

She talks about

all the various influences on her work ranging across art history.
the history and techniques of Verre Eglomisé paintings
how different materials allow her to create art in different ways
her approach to painting plants in different formats - and how she likes painting both big and small - including a drawing on a roll of paper nearly 3 metres high.
how she approaches drawing and design when her work is contained by a specific format
making work for her exhibition during lockdown
why the glass for the paintings are the same format as a glass slide

A Verre Eglomisé painting in 'Field of Vision' - the paintings are on glass which is the same format as glasswork microscope slides

The exhibition includes 75 small Verre Eglomisé paintings proportionally similar in shape to glass slides used in the old microscope. Each plant is drawn from nature, a selection from the myriad wild plants growing on about half an acre, native plants which all too often go un-noticed, but which are part of delicate and precious habitats. They include spring flowers like Celandine, Primrose and Cowslip, summer flowers such as Bluebell, Foxglove, Poppy, Forget-me-not and Clover as well as autumnal favourites like Bramble, Rowan and Hawthorn.

Tomorrow is the last chance to see the exhibition - for those in Dublin.
All visitors are asked to book a slot that suits them before coming to the gallery.

Tomorrow is also an opportunity to meet Yanny. Saturday 6 November when a Finissage will be held for the last day of the show. Yanny will be at the gallery from 2pm to 5pm. Please book a 30-minute timeslot by emailing the Gallery.

Exhibition: 'Field of Vision', botanical treasures in focus, a solo show by Yanny Petters
Venue: Olivier Cornet Gallery
3 Great Denmark Street, (beside Belvedere College, off Parnell Square), Dublin 1
Dates: 10 October - 06 November 2021

Each painting is 21cm x 8.5cm on 4mm glass and involves acid etching, drawing, painting and gilding in the technique of Verre Eglomisé. The back of each panel is gilded to cast a glow behind the plant, emphasising its preciousness, making that which is considered common more exquisite. The paintings are presented in groups of three reflecting the season, their habitat or their relationship with each other, capturing their delightful vivacity.

MORE ABOUT YANNY PETTERS

Yanny Petters is a botanical artist from County Wicklow in Ireland. She works exclusively from life, either in her studio in Glendarragh, Newtownmountkennedy, County Wicklow, or out in the midst of her subject's habitats. Yanny paints in a variety of media, including oils and water colours, and she produces exquisite drawings and fine art nature prints. She also specialises in Verre Églomisé, or painting on glass, an old and rare technique she has been developing and adapting to suit her plant portraits since her years working as a sign writer in the 1980s. Her paintings are in a number of important collections including the Dr. Shirley Sherwood Collection at Kew Gardens, London, and the Office of Public Works in Dublin. She is a member of Visual Artists Ireland, the Irish Society of Botanical Artists (ISBA), the Water Colour Society of Ireland and the Dublin Painting & Sketching Club.
Website: https://www.yannypetters.net
More about Verre Églomisé (paintings on Glass) https://www.yannypetters.net/verre-églomisé
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YannyPettersBotanicalArtist
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/yannypetters
Yanny is represented by The Olivier Cornet Gallery, Dublin.

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Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art - Online and Reopening

30/5/2020

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Some good news for those who thought they might miss Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art at the National Gallery of Ireland - which features botanical art in Ireland spanning almost 300 years, from the 1720s to 2019.

Back in March I wrote about the opening of this new exhibition of botanical art (see link to blog post above). As luck would have it, it had hardly been open any time at all when the Pandemic started and all art galleries - and exhibition were closed around the world.

The GOOD NEWS is that:

Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art will reopen on 20 July. The exhibition will then continue until 30 August 2020.
In the meantime, you can view Drawn from Nature Online - an online exhibition of a selection of watercolours, drawings and illustrations from the exhibition. This includes sections on
- Botanical Illustration
- The Botanical Portraitist
- plus a selection of artwork by Contemporary Botanical Artists on this link

Drawn from Nature celebrates three centuries of Irish botanical art. The exhibition includes drawings, watercolours, prints, and illustrated publications dating from the 1700s to the modern day. ....

While some of these artists ventured far across the world, others barely travelled beyond their townlands. Many were celebrated during their lifetimes; others (mainly women) worked diligently, anonymously, and with little recognition. In their work, art and science become one.

The Botanical Portraitist

The artworks depict a wide variety of plants - common and rare; native to Ireland and exotic; growing wild and carefully cultivated. Included are Botanical Portraits, Illustrated Flora, and the work of Botanical Illustrators. The exhibition also features work by ten contemporary artists who follow in this rich artistic tradition and forge the way ahead.

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Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art at the National Gallery of Ireland

7/3/2020

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Last night was the formal opening of the Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art exhibition of Irish Botanical Art in the Print Gallery, at the National Gallery of Ireland. This exhibition:

celebrates artists - past and present - who have made significant contributions to art, science, and our understanding of the natural world.
spans almost 300 years, from the 1720s to 2019
features and highlights botanical artworks by over 15 women artists
was inspired by Patricia Butler’s book Irish Botanical Illustrators and Flower Painters and celebrates three centuries of Irish botanical art
has been curated by Patricia Butler (below) assisted by Janet McLean (National Gallery of Ireland)
opened to the public today 7 March and continues until 21 June 2020.
Admission is free.

Guest Curator Patricia Butler at the Private View for Drawn from Nature: Irish Botanical Art

Many of the drawings, watercolours, prints, and books will be on display for the first time at the National Gallery of Ireland during the exhibition. Works from public and private collections include selections from the National Botanic Gardens (Glasnevin), National Museums Northern Ireland, Royal Botanic Gardens (Kew) and the V&A (London).

George Victor Du Noyer (1817-1869) Engl. King. King. Musk. Turnip. Black annat. Winter Rose, 1837 Courtesy of the National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin

Below you can find out about the exhibition and see photos of some of the artists who have work in the exhibition.

The exhibition combines the botanical artwork of celebrated Irish botanical artists of the past - many of whom were women - such as

William Kilburn (1745–1818) - an illustrator for William Curtis' Flora Londinensis. A few hundred originals of his water colour designs make up the Kilburn Album, housed at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London
Ellen Hutchins (1785–1815) - specialised in seaweeds, lichens, mosses and liverworts. She also discovered many seaweeds and mosses before her death in Cork at the age of 29.
Lydia Shackleton (1824-1914) - the first artist-in-residence at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Dublin
John Templeton (1766–1825) - an early Irish naturalist and botanist often referred to as the "Father of Irish Botany".
Lady Edith Blake (1845–1926) - an Irish botanical illustrator and writer, noted for her work on the flora and fauna of countries such as The Bahamas, Jamaica and Ceylon
Raymond Piper (1923 -2007) - his paintings of orchids were displayed in the British Museum and the Ulster Museum.
Wendy Walsh (1915-2014) - The Irish Times called her ' Ireland's finest practiotner of botanical art' when she died age 98. She worked closely with Dr E Charles Nelson, formerly taxonomist at the National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin, on two volumes of An Irish Florilegium – Wild and Garden Flowers of Ireland , which were published in 1983 and 1987. She received a number of national and international awards for her work.

alongside a number of contemporary botanical artists (see below).

Items have been lent by private collectors and public collections including the V&A, Kew, and National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin.

“While many Irish botanical artists ventured across the world, others barely stepped beyond their townlands. This exhibition highlights how they are bonded by a common curiosity in nature and a compulsion to record it. It celebrates centuries of looking closely, drawing carefully, and treasuring the complex beauty of plants.”
Janet McLean of the National Gallery of Ireland

Leading contemporary Irish botanical artists (see below for who's who)

The artists in the above photograph are leading Irish contemporary botanical artists. Most are active in organising exhibitions of botanical art by the Irish Society of Botanical Artists and/or at Bloom.

They are (left to right)

Deborah Lambkin GM - The official 'Orchid Artist' to the Royal Horticultural Society Orchid Committee since 2005. Awarded the Jill Smythies Award for excellence in botanical illustration by the Linnean Society in 2019.
Lynn Stringer - Botanical artist living and working in Co. Wicklow. Exhibits botanical art with the Watercolour Society of Ireland and is Chair of the Irish Society of Botanical Artists.
Shevaun Doherty - Won Gold Medals for her botanical artwork on vellum in the Botanical category at Bloom Botanical Art in Dublin (2014, 2015, 2016). Won Gold Medal and Best Painting in Show (Botanical category) at Bloom 2017.
Holly Somerville - A very experienced botanical illustrator with an MA in Botany from Oxford. She has extensive experience of drawing plants from herbarium specimens and was based in the herbarium of the Botany Department of Trinity College, Dublin. Commissioned to draw new illustrations for the 7th edition of David Webb’s ‘An Irish Flora’.
Yanny Petters - Wicklow based botanical artist and tutor who has work in the Shirley Sherwood Collection and the Office of Public Works in Dublin and exhibits regularly at the Olivier Cornet Gallery in Dublin. Specialises in Verre Églomisé, or painting on glass, an old and rare technique which she has developed to suit her plant portraits. Vice Chair of the Irish Society of Botanical Artists.
Jane Stark - a founding member of the Irish Society of Botanical Artists and curator of the annual Claregalway Botanical Art Expo, held in conjunction with the Galway Garden Festival at Claregalway Castle.
Susan Sex GM - One of Ireland's foremost botanical artists - based in Dublin. in 1996, she had a solo exhibition in the National Botanic Gardens which sold out. She has won three RHS gold medals (2000, 2001, 2002) for her paintings of orchids. Awarded the Jill Smythies Award for excellence in botanical illustration by the Linnean Society in 2010.
Mary Dillon - Founding Chairperson of the Irish Society of Botanical Artists 2014. Exhibits and teaches botanical art internationally. Awarded Gold Medal and Best in Show in Botanical and Floral Art at Bloom, Dublin, 2016, and a Gold at Bloom, 2017. Exhibited at the 16th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration at the Hunt Institute of Botanical Documentation in Pittsburgh, PA.
Siobhan Larkin - Won Gold Medals and "Best in Show" (Botanical Art) at both the 3rd (2015) and the 4th (2016) and 7th (2019) Botanical Art Exhibitions at Bloom in the Park in Dublin. Exhibited at the 15th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration at the Hunt Institute of Botanical Documentation in Pittsburgh, PA.
Margareta Pertl - An Austrian born artist living in Ireland for part of the year. Since 1998, she has illustrated orchids from the collections of the National Botanical Gardens, Glasnevin, and the Botanical Gardens of the University of Vienna.

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Deborah Lambkin, Shevaun Doherty, Madeline Hutchins (great great grandniece of Ellen Hutchins), Susan Sex and John Parnell, Professor of Systematic Botany at Trinity College Dublin

The group of contemporary artists participating in the exhibition also found out last night that they are all invited to exhibit in a group show at the Olivier Cornet Gallery in Dublin in July-August 2020!

Yanny Petters, Bee Orchid, Ophrys apifera, 2014, Verre Eglomisé (Back painting on glass), Private Collection

Shevaun Doherty with her watercolour painting on vellum of Golden Eye Lichen, Teloschistes chrysophthalmus.

Thanks to various of the botanical artists participating in the show and the Olivier Cornet Gallery for details and photos.

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Exhibition: Hedgerow: Stories from a linear world by Yanny Petters

31/10/2019

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HEDGEROW, stories from a linear world is a new solo exhibition of new work by Yanny Petters. Yanny is a well known botanical artist in Ireland and also a Gallery Artist at The Olivier Cornet Gallery in Dublin

“Since childhood I have loved and observed hedgerows. Whenever we kids went rambling along the lanes of our neighbourhood, to pick flowers or blackberries or just wandering to each other’s houses, we wondered at the secrets within these linear worlds...”
Hedgerow, stories from a linear world by Yanny Petters

Her work raises awareness of the wild plants of Ireland - revealing them as an evolved species living in symbiotic harmony in ancient habitats rather just a bunch of weeds.

The exhibition comprises drawings and paintings of the Hedgerow, an iconic element of the Irish countryside. These are:

a series of Verre Eglomisé paintings of hedgerow silhouettes in Gold leaf and pigment
a series of seasonal paintings in watercolour on Arches Paper (see top image)
a series of black pencil drawings of the linear nature of the hedgerow

The Black pencil drawings and the 'Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter in a Hedgerow' series are also available as Archival pigment ink prints on watercolor paper, in a limited edition of 10 each only.

Gallery: Olivier Cornet Gallery, 3 Great Denmark Street, (beside Belvedere College, off Parnell Square) Dublin 1.
Dates: 13 October - 17th November 2019
Hours: Tuesday to Friday: 11am to 6pm (till 8pm on Thursdays); Saturday and Sunday: 12 noon to 5pm. Closed on Mondays (or viewing by appointment only)

Visit the exhibition's page the gallery website for images and more information

Below is what the gallery looked like as they got ready for the opening of the exhibition.

All is ready at the @OC_Gallery for the opening of Yanny Petters’ solo exhibition at 3 pm today. Do join us pic.twitter.com/dvf4blllbG
— OlivierCornetGallery (@OC_Gallery) October 13, 2019

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Yanny Petters, 'Elder, stile, gorse and the sheep gap', black pencil on conservation board (80x120cm). Available as an archival pigment ink print on w/c paper, in a limited edition of 10 each only (40x60cm), Unframed: 175 euro, Framed: 295 euro. @OC_Gallery is open till 5pm today pic.twitter.com/JEbnODfFVI
— OlivierCornetGallery (@OC_Gallery) October 28, 2019

About the hedgerow in Ireland

Increasing concerns about both a changing climate and the need to protect biodiversity means that hedgerows need to cherished for the health of our future generations.

The hedgerow goes back a long way in history. It both divides and holds together the rich habitat that remains after our forests were cleared. Land boundaries can be traced back to Neolithic times and the circa-12th-century Townland boundaries are the country’s longest standing land divisions.

Hedgerows also serve as windbreaks, to shelter our livestock, reduce soil erosion, aid drainage and provide homes for beneficial predators who protect our food crops from pests.

At a time when farming practices are changing in scale, many of these valuable hedgerow habitats are being removed and scrubbed out of existence. New hedges can be planted but ONLY the ancient hedgerows can support up to 3000 organisms from flowers and trees, birds and animals to insects and microscopic creatures.

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