Of late, Societies / Groups of Botanical Artists and Art Galleries have developed 
ONLINE / VIRTUAL (i.e. digital) Exhibitions of Botanical Art and Illustration.
This section covers these exhibitions - past and present
​
THIS PAGE details:
  • CURRENT Exhibitions - which can be seen online
  • UPCOMING Online Exhibitions (if notified + how to notify)​
VIEW THE ARCHIVE (2018-2022)
PAST Exhibitions by year, organisation and topic
Indicates whether exhibitions are 
STILL ACCESSIBLE ONLINE
ALSO ON THIS PAGE:  ADVICE & TIPS for organisations planning future online exhibitions - this  provides
  • information and advice about the practical and aspects and rules associated with selling botanical art online - and then getting it safely to the buyer. ​
  • I'm very happy to add in links to advice sheets or other information about how to make life simple for those creating online exhibitions. Do please contact me or use the form at the bottom of the page.
​ABOUT ONLINE BOTANICAL ART EXHIBITIONS
  • Some only exist online - while others complement exhibitions in art galleries and other exhibition spaces.
  • Some are online during specific dates - while others remain online for much longer periods.
  • Some are on dedicated art gallery sites 
  • Some are are videos. The really nice thing about making an exhibition into a YouTube Video is
    • it makes it accessible to all - for all time
    • it can remain online after the event it is associated with finishes
    • it can include a contact email for any interested prospective purchasers!
  • Most involve selling artwork online
  • Most are currently for societies of botanical artists - but in principle there's nothing to stop an individual artist from  having an online exhibition.....
The next development will be downloadable Online Catalogues 
- which are, of course, much more sustainable than the printed version
​- even if we all like the printed versions better - and also cut out the mailing costs!
​
Banner Image: from page 1 of ABA's Winter Online Exhibition 'Beauty in the Detail'.
Images are (left to right): Ladies First - ©Laurence Hill | Calendula Seed - ©Sarah Morrish | White Mulberry Leaf - ©Sarah Gardner

CURRENT ONLINE Exhibitions of Botanical Art & Illustration
​

Online Exhibitions in 2023
​

Association of Botanical Artists

Winter Online Exhibition 2022-23
Beauty in the Detail 

Venue: ONLINE ONLY
Dates: December 2022 - May 2023
Artwork: 53 artworks

This exhibition goes small with a focus on the botanical detail(s) of the illustrated plants.

Artists were invited to submit work that was either:
  • a drawing of a small section of a large plant or
  • magnifying a part or all of, a small plant

This is ABA's 9th Online Exhibition of artwork by its international members.
ABA Online: Beauty in the Detail
First six images on page 1 of ABA's Winter Online Exhibition 'Beauty in the Detail'.

Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh
​

RBGE Diploma in Botanical Illustration 
Graduate Show 2022

Venue: ONLINE Only
Dates: December 2022 - no finish date

This is the Online Show of work by the Graduates of the RBGE Diploma in Botanical Illustration. In the final year of the Diploma, students create a collection of five paintings and supporting work on a selected botanical theme or plant group. Traditional observational skills are crafted, the plant’s botany is studied and most importantly the context of plants in their changing environments is recognised and reflected throughout the course and in the collections and themes selected.
Picture
Images from four of the Graduates of the RBGE diploma in 2022

The Fourth New York Botanical Garden Triennial 
​

Abundant Future: Cultivating Diversity in Garden, Farm, and Field
Dates: November 21, 2020 - April 25, 2021​

​This exhibition celebrates the astonishing diversity and fascinating history of cultivated plants grown for clothing, healing, and most of all, for food. The subjects of these works were discovered on international travels, picked up at the farmer’s market, even plucked from artists’ own gardens.
This was the first Online Exhibition for the Triennial.
I think it created a great standard - and should remain online throughout the three years.

It would be nice if it could also move to an archive page in due course.

Botanical Art Society (Singapore), 
Indonesian Society of Botanical Artists, 
Thai Botanical Artists & 
​Philippine Botanical Art Society
​

Flora of South East Asia
Exhibition dates: 15 November 2022 - 15 February 2023
Venue: Singapore Botanical Gardens

All the artwork is being exhibited online simultaneously with the exhibition of the actual artwork in Singapore Botanical Gardens.

READ my blog posts
It's unclear at the moment whether the online exhibition will remain online for a longer period 

UPCOMING Online Exhibitions ​of Botanical Art & Illustration
​

Let me know if your organisation has plans for an online exhibition - see the form BELOW
​

How to tell me about an Online Exhibition you have planned
​

Use the form to let me know about:
  • the name of your organisation
  • the name of your online exhibition
  • URL of the exhibition (if available)
  • dates of the online exhibition
  • whether it will remain online for a longer period
  • purpose and scope of the exhibition e.g. Does it have a specific topic? 
  • If open entry - please also provide details of the Call for Entries and associated URL
  • name of primary contact for the exhibition - please make sure the email provided relates to this individual or the organisation's own email address

    NOTIFY: Upcoming Online Exhibition

PAST Online Exhibitions ​of Botanical Art & Illustration
​

These can now be found on the NEW ARCHIVE PAGE
When planning an online exhibition, it's useful to review
what others have done in the past and whether or not the online exhibition has remained online
- and if so, what's the best way of doing this.​

TIPS for those planning future online exhibitions
​

Creating great Images for Online Galleries

It's vital that the Call for Entries provide explicit and easy to understand information about what sort and size of digital image is required. Most are getting better at this - but there is still scope for improvement!

The major problem for many organising online exhibition is that many artists lack knowledge about how to create a great digital image - where the white paper is white!

Artists - with appropriate advice and training - can do this for themselves. Alternatively they need to employ professional photographers or good quality scanners.

Critical information that artists need:
  • type of file (normally jpeg)
  • maximum file size
  • minimum resolution (150 dpi often used)
REFERENCE:

For information about image creation and management see the following sites:
Think about the OPTIONS
  • Viewing only or selling too?
  • Permanent record or temporary exhibit?
  • One or more sizes for images?
  • ​Large or small?

Form follows function. What is the PURPOSE of your online exhibition?

When mounting an online exhibition, you need to be aware of
  • alternative platforms for displaying work
  • options for different sized images eg thumbnail galleries and images for pages about an individual artwork
  • the work involved and the cost implications of mounting such an exhibition and keeping it online
A good place to start is through looking at those exhibitions created in the pas but still available online.
REFERENCE:
What might be the best platform for your online exhibition?

You need to think about whether you are creating:
  • a viewing or a selling platform
  • a permanent record or a temporary online exhibit
You need to calculate the TOTAL SIZE of ALL the image files for all the exhibitions  (i.e. do you have access to a site and bandwidth which can store and display these)
  • how best to create the online exhibition 
  • how many people need to be involved in creating the online exhibition

OPTIONS for creating an online exhibition e.g.
  • slideshow on organisational website (permanent ot temporary) - you need to think about the space you need to do this
  • gallery of images (thumbnail and larger) on
    • an independent website - typically temporary only 
    • organisation's own website - easier to do if exhibitions are very small
  • video - public or private. If you create a slideshow on YouTube then the record is permanent and always available to view - for free.
REFERENCE:
To sell artwork online you need to make it both easy - and legal!

I find there's a lot of ignorance about all the things you need to know about to comply with all relevant legislation and regulations.

It's not unusual to make all sales a contract between the artist and purchaser with the host website acting as an "introduction agency". 

It's absolutely imperative that those organising an exhibition and selling artwork ONLINE understand what is involved in relation to:
  • law and regulations in the host country 
  • law and regulations in the country of a purchaser e.g. is there a local sales tax which is applicable to all purchases made online - in which case it is imperative that all sale prices make clear that they exclude all local taxes due in the country of the purchaser.
  • how to ship artwork internationally
(NOTE: Post Brexit a lot of artists have stopped selling art into Europe because of the complexities associated with different rules in different countries - and significant import taxes!)
REFERENCE:
My other website - about Art Business Info. for Artists provides dedicated pages of information and advice about:
I RECOMMEND taking a look at the 2021 Exhibition by the Scottish Society of Botanical Artists - which is still online - for how to provide a link for individual artworks direct to the artist.
To frame or not to frame
​
Artists might want to consider supplying/selling original work matted to a standard size and NOT FRAMED​

WHY SUPPLY UNFRAMED?
  • The frame is part of what a buyer would pay for (in some instances) but the frame is not on view 
  • The choice of frame is also a very individual choice -(e.g. I detest black frames for botanical artwork and would move on rather than buy an artwork in a black frame. By way of contrast, other people of course love black frames!) 
  • Framed artwork increases costs for the buyer i.e. they have to pay commission on the frame as well as the artwork
  • Framed artwork can increase the cost of shipping (i.e. frames increase both size and weight) ​
​
My personal choice would always be to
  • buy matted artwork
  • properly packaged (to professional standards)
  • use the money I save on not buying frames from the artist to buy more artwork!
REFERENCE:
For more about framing art, see 
​EITHER my Making A Mark blog
OR My ​Art Business Info. for Artists website section about
Shipping - Domestic and International

Information about shipping on the online website is always helpful. It needs to be
  • easy to access and
  • totally transparent about process and costs

Participating artists will be doing the shipping and need a lot of support and help to promote a smooth transmission from their studio to the buyer.

A society that contracts with a reliable shipper who provides a quality packing service can probably achieve more cost efficient and effective methods of shipping - domestically and internationally - than an individual artist who might not be used to selling online - and then packing and shipping - with all relevant documentation.
​(e.g. Do you know what an EORI number is?)
REFERENCE:
For more information see these pages on my companion website 'Art Business Info for Artists'
IMPORTANT NOTE re. ART BUSINESS INFO FOR ARTISTS
Content and the law change all the time. It's impossible to keep up with if, like me, you're not working on the topic full time. 
I research topics carefully. However, I am totally unable to warrant that ANY and/or ALL information is 
  • complete and/or
  • professional and/or 
  • wholly accurate and/or 
  • totally up to date - and all links lead to the most current information.​
Hence all information I provide comes without any LIABILITY whatsoever to you for any choices you make. 
EXHIBITIONS