Selected Scottish artists for 'Flora Scotia' (Botanical Art Worldwide #5)

This is the list of 33 exhibiting artists from Scotland who have had 56 botanical drawings/paintings of plants native to Scotland selected for 'Flora Scotia' - Scotland's contribution to the Botanical Art Worldwide Exhibition in 2018 - taking place in 25 countries across the world.

The Flora Scotia exhibition is to be held at the John Hope Gateway space at Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh (RBGE)  between 31 March and 3 June 2018.

Celebrating the richness of native plants in Scotland and their importance in our lives, this exhibition displays the excellence and variety of styles of botanical artists working in Scotland today.

Mertensia maritima © Oyster plant Kathy Pickles

The exhibition has been organised by The Scottish Botanical Art Collective. This is an umbrella organisation formed to represent the interests of

• the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh,
• Edinburgh Society of Botanical Artists,
• Scottish Society of Botanical Artists,
• Botanical Images Scotia and
• independent artists.

My apologies to SBAC for forgetting to mention this in the original version of this post!

What's very interesting about this approach is that it has enabled independent botanical artists who are not members of or associated with organisations to submit botanical artwork which has met standards and been selected. Making this a truly open submission! I think it's a huge bonus of this exhibition for Scotland.

Selection and Statistics
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The selection was made by a Jury of Experts. These were: 

• Claire Banks - Botanical Illustrator working at the RBGE on various flora. Tutor for the RBGE Diploma Course. Awarded the Jill Smythies award for Botanical Illustration by The Linnean Society in 2015. 
• Dr Greg Kenicer - BSc Biological Sciences 1998, PhD Cell & Molecular Biology 2007, Senior Lecturer in Botany, RBGE.
• Lizzie Sanders GM - Botanical Illustrator with three RHS Gold Medals who works with plants at RBGE. Tutor for the RBGE Diploma Course. ​

Plants native to Scotland
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The organising committee arranged for two plant lists to be produced by RBGE botanists Greg Kenicer and Phil Lusby. These listed plants felt to be of particular importance to their various Scottish ecological niches. Artists were able to select plants from either of these two lists for submission to the exhibition.
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Selected artists and plants native to Scotland
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The names of the selected artists and their selected artworks are listed below.

• a link to the website of the selected artist is embedded in their name (if available)
• links to any relevant (i.e. botanical) social media sites are listed after the name
• the plants are listed with their correct botanical latin name first and their common name second

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Sheila Anderson Hardy (Instagram)
- Cirsium vulgare Spear Thistle
- Heracleum sphondylium, Cirsium Vulgare Hogweed, Thistle
Sheila graduated from the Glasgow School of Art and lives in the Scottish Borders. She exhibits extensively in Scotland and London and is currently showing her work in the 137th Open Annual Exhibition with the Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour RSW at The Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh 5th Feb - 8th March. She frequently works in ink on paper.

Claire Banks
- Polygonatum verticillatum Whorled Solomon’s Seal
Awarded the Jill Smythies award for Botanical Illustration by The Linnean Society in 2015. Works as a botanical illustrator for the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh and as a tutor for the botanical art diploma and certificate courses run by RBGE.  The RBGE Contemporary Botanical Art Collection includes a collection of 24 pen and ink drawings of Podocarpus spp. drawn between December 2013 and March 2014.

Marie Barbour (Facebook)
- Trifolium pratense Red Clover
​Has a studio in Glasgow's East End. Her subject is nature and she produces works on paper and oil paintings.

Polygonatum multiflorum Solomon’s Seal © Victoria Braithwaite

Victoria Braithwaite
- Polygonatum multiflorum Solomon’s Seal
Has work in the Shirley Sherwood Collection - which has been exhibited at Kew. Has also exhibited with both the Scottish Society of Botanical Artists and the Society of Botanical Artists and extensively within Scotland. She won the St Cuthbert's Mill Award at the SBA Exhibition in 2014 and twice won the wo-time recipient of the ‘People’s Choice’ award at exhibitions of the SSBA 

Geoffrey Brown 
- Corylus avellana Hazel
Member of the Edinburgh Society of Botanical Artists

Lyn Campbell
- Allium ursinum Bear’s Garlic
- Arum maculatum Lords & Ladies
- Iris pseudacorus Yellow Flag Iris
Lyn had a career as a physiotherapist before studying botanical art at RBGE. She graduated with a Diploma in Botanical Illustration in 2011 - and was graded Higher Merit. Since then she has exhibited at BISCOT and the RHS and been awarded medals at both shows - most recently a Silver Gilt for Trillums at BISCOT 2017. She has also exhibited her botanical art in Edinburgh (with SSBA) and Glasgow.

Eleanor Christopher 
- Tussilago farfara Coltsfoot
- Tussilago farfara Coltsfoot
Based in Edinburgh, Eleanor graduated with a Diploma in Botanical Illustration with Distinction from RBGE. She is a Member of ASBA and the Scottish Society of Botanical Artists (SSBA) and has exhibited at BISCOT.

Claire Dalby GM RWS RE 
- Hyacinthoides non-scripta Native Bluebell
- Lecanora gangaleoides, Tephromela atra, Porpidia albocaerulescens, Aspicilia leprosescens, Candelariella vitellina, Ochrolechia parella,Ramalina cuspidata Lichens
- Lobaria pulmonaria Tree Lungwort
Claire Dalby has the unusual distinction of being a Botanical Illustrator working in watercolour who has distinguished herself in a number of different ways both botanically and artistically. She has been awarded: the Jill Smythies Prize (1994) for excellence in botanical illustration by the Linnean Society of London and Gold Medals by both the RHS (1995) and the Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society (2006). She is also an elected member of the Royal Watercolour Society (and is a past Vice-President) and a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Painter-Printmakers.  She's also married to a botanist, makes regular expeditions to Shetland and illustrated her husbands' book on the Lichens of the Shetland Islands plus produced a wall chart of Tree Lichens for the British Lichen Society. She has exhibited widely and internationally and her work can be found in the collections of the Science Museum and Natural History Museums in South Kensington, the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge and the Hunt Institute of Botanical Documentation.  The section on this website devoted to Scientific Botanical Illustration includes a link to Biological Illustration: A Guide to Drawing for Reproduction by Claire Dalby and D. H. Dalby.

Anne Dana 
- Fucus vesiculosus Bladderwrack
Member of SSBA. She has shown her paintings at exhibitions at the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh, Society of Botanical Artists London, private galleries in Aberdour, Falkirk and Ullapool. She initially started botanical painting while working as an interior decorator.

Janette Dobson
- Geum rivale Water Avens
Studied for the Diploma in Botanical Illustration at RBGE. Member of the Edinburgh Society of Botanical Artists

Janet Dyer GM (RHS 2013) (BISCOT 2012)
- Fritillaria meleagris, Primula vulgaris, Veronic persica, Cardamine pratensis Fritillaria, Primrose, Speedwell, Cuckoo Flower
- Malus sylvestris Crab Apple
Based in Mid Lothian, Janet worked for many years as a plant illustrator, using line drawing, for botanists in Oxford and the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh. Subsequently she developed her skills in painting using colour and in 2011 graduated from the RBGE Diploma Course in Botanical Illustration with distinction and the award for best in year. In 2012 she won a Gold Medal at the Caledonian Society BISCOT show for her work on "Non native plant invaders". In 2013 she won an RHS Gold medal and the Best in Botanical painting section at the Great Malvern show. In 2015, she was awarded a Silver Gilt medal for ​Non-Native Plant Invaders 2 

crop of 'Dryopteris affinis Golden Shield Fern' © Marianne Hazlewood

Marianne Hazlewood
- Dryopteris affinis Golden Shield Fern
A recent graduate - with distinction - of the Diploma in Botanical Illustration at RBGE. She won  the Eve Bennett Award for Botanical Illustration in 2017. Marianne saw an exhibition of Rory McEwen's work in Edinburgh and subsequently started to study botanical illustration at the various classes offered at RBGE. She then exhibited at BISCOT and won a silver medal. Then she was invited to study for the Diploma.  This is a Podcast: Chatting with Marianne Hazlewood about Botanical Illustration. Member of the Edinburgh Society of Botanical Artists.

Morna Henderson
- Alopecurus pratensis, Trifolium pratense, Ranunculus acris Meadow Foxtail, Red Clover, Meadow Buttercup
- Poa pratensis, Plantago lanceolata, Lotus corniculatus Smooth Meadow Grass, Ribwort Plantain, Bird’s foot Trefoil
- Puccinellia marítima, Armeria maritima, Cochlearia officinalis Common Saltmarsh Grass, Sea Thrift, Common Scurvy Grass
Studied for the RBGE Diploma in Botanical Illustration.

Sarah Howard GM
- Prunus spinosa Sloe, Blackthorn
BA degree in African History and Social Anthropology. Illustrator the Flora of Ethiopia and Eritrea (1997-2000). Awarded a Distinction on completing the RBGE botanical illustration diploma course (2014). Awarded an RHS Gold Medal for a series of Horn of Africa Aloes at the Royal Horticultural Society London show (2016), and a prize for botanical accuracy (Iceni Botanical Artists Exhibition 2017). Exhibited at the 13th Exhibition of Botanical Art at the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation at the Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh. Member of the SSBA and ASBA and was an active member of Iceni Botanical Artists between 2013 and 2017.

Jan Kerr
- Quercus robur Pedunculate Oak
Graduated from the RBGE Dilpoma Course in 2017.

Crataegus monogyna Hawthorn © Charlotte Long

Charlotte Long
- Crataegus monogyna Hawthorn
An architect by profession, she studied botanical illustration via the Certificate in Botanical Illustration course at RBGE which she completed in 2014. She graduated from the Diploma Course with Distinction in 2016 and also won the Eve Bennett Award for Botanical Illustration. 

Nicola Macartney (Facebook)
- Sorbus aucuparia Rowan
- Amanita muscaria Fly Agaric
- Castanea sativa Sweet chestnut
Began studying botanical illustration
 at RBGE in 2008, completed the Foundation Course in 2010 and the RBGE Diploma in 2012. Member of the Edinburgh Society of Botanical Artists, since 2012 and the Scottish Society of Botanical Artists, since 2016. ​Awarded 'Best Painting' at the SSBA ‘The Colours of Nature' exhibition. 

Jan Miller
- Geranium robertianum Herb Robert
Jan is secretary of the Edinburgh Society of Botanical Artists.

Kathy Munro (Facebook Page)
- Fraxinus excelsior Ash
Kathy Munro is Secretary of the Scottish Society of Botanical Artists. Kathy Munro won the award for the "Best Painting in the George Forrest category at  "Enchanted Forrest", the first major SSBA exhibition.  Kathy started with beginners evening classes at RBGE, progressed through Intermediate day classes, then completed the Diploma Course and continues to develop her botanical art knowledge and skills with Fiona Strickland and Robert McNeill.

Gloria Newlan
- Taraxacum officinalis Dandelion
- Urtica dioica Stinging Nettle
Studied for her Diploma Course in Botanical Illustration at RBGE

Mary O’Neil
​- Silene viscaria Sticky catchfly, Sticky Nellie

Jacqui Pestell MBE
- Digitalis purpurea Foxglove
 Director of Botanical Illustration at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Awarded an MBE for her contribution to Botanical Art in Scotland. She developed and is the Course Director for the very successful RBGE Diploma and RBGE Certificate Courses  in Botanical Illustration.

Dactylorhiza purpurella Northern Marsh Orchid © Kathy Pickles

Kathy Pickles GM (Facebook)
- Dactylorhiza purpurella Northern Marsh Orchid
- Mertensia maritima Oyster plant
Born and brought up in London, Kathy now lives and works on Orkney, having moved there in 1981. Her interest in painting flowers was stimulated by the environment on Orkney. She has exhibited at the RHS - and won an RHS Gold Medal each time - in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 2015 (Fritillaria and Helleborus) and 2017 (Clematis), making a total of SEVEN RHS Gold Medals! Her botanical artwork is in the collections of The Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew and Edinburgh, the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation in Pittsburgh and the Shirley Sherwood Collection. In 1996 Kathy designed the 1997 Chelsea Flower Show Plate celebrating the Golden Wedding Anniversary of Her Majesty the Queen and Prince Philip. She has also produced over 150 mug designs for Dunoon ceramics.

Jocelyn Anne Rabbitts
- Dryopteris dilatata Broad Buckler Fern
Lives and works on Uist, in the Outer Hebrides. She draws botanical and natural history specimens preferring those which are less than perfect.

Sarah Roberts GM
- Hippophae rhamnoides Sea Buckthorn
- Lathyrus linifolius Bitter Vetch
- Myrica gale Bog Myrtle
Sarah won a Gold Medal at BISCOT 2016 for "Six plants that nodulate with nitrogen-fixing bacteria". She also likes to illustrate lichens and does fun things with bacteria, slime and mould. She has also done a bioart residency in north west Finland with Ars Bioarctica. Now a Course Tutor RBGE.

Lathyrus linifolius Bitter Vetch © Sarah Roberts

Linda Russell
- Pinguicula vulgaris Common Butterwort
- Populus tremula Aspen
Graduated (2017) with an RBGE Diploma in Botanical Illustration (Distinction). Awards during course include: Botanical Artist Award winner in the First year for "most progress" and RBGE Alumni Graduate of 2017. Member of ESBA

Lizzie Sanders GM
- Sutherland Kale
Trained at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art, Dundee and worked as a graphic designer in Italy and New York before returning to live in Scotland. She now devotes all her time to botanical illustration and tutoring the Diploma Course in Botanical Illustration at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh. Awarded the Diane Bouchier Award for Excellence by ASBA (2004). Work on individual commissions for UK clients. Represented in the USA by Susan Frei Nathan Fine Works on Paper.

Alexa Scott Plummer
- Crepis mollis Northern Hawksbeard
- Potentilla rupestris Rock Cinquefoil
Lives in the Borders and one of the original Diploma Course 'guinea pigs' (according to Janet Watson)

Fran Thomas
- Sphagnum Moss
- Armeria maritima Thrift
- Coprinus comatus Shaggy Inkcap
- Rumex aquaticus Scottish Dock
Fran has a track record of awards for painting native Scottish plants. I first met Fran Thomas at the RHS Botanical Art Show in 2014 when she was awarded a Silver Gilt Medal for Native Scottish marginal pond plants. and again in 2015 when she won another Silver Gilt for Plants of the Coast and Islands of the Firth of Forth. In 2017 she won a Gold Medal at BISCOT 2017 and the Mary Mendum Medal for the Best Exhibit - for her watercolour paintings of "Native plants of the coasts and islands of the Firth of Forth".

Ulex europaeus Gorse © Sharon Tingey

Sharon Tingey GM (Facebook | Instagram)
​- Alnus glutinosa Alder
- Ulex europaeus Gorse
A botanical and natural history illustrator who is also a tutor on the RBGE Diploma Course. Won an RHS Gold Medal in 2014 for her display of Helianthus. Prior to this she had won a Gold Medal at BISCOT.  My 2014 interview with her is in this post and this post has an interview done in 2011

Margaret Walty GM (Facebook)
- Lichen
Lives in the South of Scotland and paints botanical, wildlife and nature subjects. You can see her image for Flora Scotia on her Facebook Page. Won a Gold Medal at BISCOT 2010 for paintings of Old and Species Roses

Fiona Ward
- Asplenium scolopendrium Hart’s Tongue Fern
Member of the SSBA

Janet Watson
- Cirsium vulgare Spear Thistle
- Ficaria verna Lesser Celandine
- Mimulus guttatus 4x Shetland Monkeyflower
Member of the Edinburgh Society of Botanical Artists


​You can also FIND OUT MORE on this website about

• contemporary Botanical Artists in the UK
• Botanical Art Exhibitions in Scotland.

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More about related Flora Scotia matters
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The Flora Scotia will also have

• an accompanying book, Scottish Plant Lore – an Illustrated Flora. Generously supported by the Friends of RBGE, this book celebrates the blend between botanical art and ethnobotany.
• events - including a Coffee Morning and Talk about Flora Scotia - Greg Kenicer will introduce us to the art, the plants and the lore of the Scottish plants in the exhibition and provide a preview of the book before its launch later in the month.

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Botanical Art Worldwide:
​Selected Artists - Other Countries
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​You can read the equivalent posts about other countries contributing to the Botanical Worldwide Art Exhibition below

• USA - Selected artists for America's Flora (Botanical Art Worldwide #1)
• Brazil - Selected artists for Brazil's Botanical Art Worldwide Exhibition (BAW#2)
• New Zealand - Selected New Zealand artists for ‘Ngāi Tipu Taketake - Indigenous Flora’ (Botanical Art Worldwide #3)
• UK - Selected UK artists for 'In Ruskin's Footsteps' (Botanical Art Worldwide #4)

Do please contact me if you'd like this sort of blog post listing for the selected artists for the Botanical Art Worldwide Exhibition in your country. 

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Botanical Art Worldwide - more information
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​For more about the Botanical Art Worldwide initiative you should view

• EITHER the dedicated Official Website https://www.botanicalartworldwide.infowhich has comprehensive information about the purpose of the exhibition and exhibitions in other countries
• OR the official Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/botanicalartworldwide/
  
• OR the World Wide Exhibition of Botanical Art 2018 page - on this website - which has brief details about all the exhibitions on ONE page