List of Titles of Gold Medal Winning Exhibits at RHS Botanical Art Shows
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Exhibit titles are listed under one of the following categories:
I'm no Linnean, do feel free to suggest a better classification or a better category name. |
BELOW you will find the title of all gold-medal winning exhibits listed - in one or other of the categories - along with the year it was exhibited and the name of the artist.
It's very easy to draw some conclusions..... I intend to develop a seperate listing over time for exhibits not awarded a Gold Medal.
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The banner image is of three of the paintings in Annie Hughes gold medal winning exhibit
of Eucalyptus of Western Australia in 2017. Annie has won four RHS Gold Medals in total.
of Eucalyptus of Western Australia in 2017. Annie has won four RHS Gold Medals in total.
You can see more images of past botanical art exhibitions in ARCHIVE: RHS Botanical Art Shows 2007-2018.
This
See also The RHS Picture Panel - Approval to Submit - about the approval process
This
- provides an overview of the RHS Botanical Art Shows in recent years (2007-2018).
- Lists Best Painting and Best Exhibit winners and all RHS Gold Medal winners + exhibits
- Includes images of the shows and the botanical art and illustration which won prestigious awards.
See also The RHS Picture Panel - Approval to Submit - about the approval process
RHS Gold Medal winning exhibits - the names
Gold Medal Winning botanical artwork ALWAYS stands out. For those aspiring to win Gold it's worth reflecting on what it takes for your artwork to be "stand out". Often it's a clear and consistent theme which looks good on the display panels and doesn't look like anybody else's work.
Interviews with RHS Botanical Art Gold Medal Winners (2013)
Family or Genus names
Common British Corticolous Lichens 2018 by Christina Hart-Davies (UK)
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This is a popular category which seems to be favoured by those with
Gold medals are often won because the artists know their plants in great detail - and know how to reveal what it is that makes each plant distinctively different. This is the category that is perhaps closest to the work done by botanical illustrators who work for:
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Pandanus (2017) by Mariko Ikeda (Japan - Tochigi) - won Best Exhibit 2017
TREES
- Trees of Pinaceae in Watercolour - Kimiyo Maruyama (Japan)
- Lauraceae in Korea 2013 - Hye Woo Shin (Republic of Korea)
- Trees of Pinaceae in watercolour 2010 - Kimiyo Maruyama (Japan)
- Aesculus indica 'Sydney Pearce' 2010 - Masumi Yamanaka (Surrey)
- Aceraceaeacer 2010
Exhibits related to specific locations
Plants in Dokdu Island by Hye Woo Shin - won a Special Judges Award in 2018
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This is a very popular category.
It's very similar to a number of collections of botanical art made in the past by famous artists who:
The locations can be large or small or tiny - from entire countries, to regions, localities and specific habitat areas or natural growing environments (eg hedgerows and grass verges) |
A year in the Yorkshire Hedgerow (2018) by Bridget Gillespie (UK)
- The Classical Chrysanthemums in Japan 2018 - Hideo Horikoshi (Japan)
- Native Food Plants of Australia 2018 - Angela Lober (Australia)
- Rice of Italy - Cultivars Old and New 2018 - Angela Petrini (Italy)
- Trees from the Atlantic Rain Forest 2018 - Hiroe Sasaki (Brazil)
- Plants in Dokdo Island 2018 - Hye-Woo Shin (Korea) Special Judges Award
- Wild Roses in Japan 2018 Michie Yamada (Japan) Awarded Best Exhibit
- Passionflowers: a range of kinds of Passiflora cultivated in the UK 2018 - Caroline Jackson-Houlston (UK)
- Rocky Mountains: Plants and Fungi with Altitude 2017 Denver School of Botanical Art & Illustration (USA - Colorado)
- Eucalyptus of Western Australia 2017 - Annie Hughes
- Endemic Plants of Korea 2017 - Suyeon Kim (South Korea - Seoul)
- Wayside Tracks and Verge 2017 - Shirley Slocock (UK - Surrey)
- Native Hawaiian Flora 2017 - Lesley Randall (USA)
- Horn of Africa Aloes 2016 - Sarah Howard (UK)
- Grapes of Piedmont 2016 - Lidia Vanzetti
- Ericas of the Western Cape Fynbos 2016 - Margaret de Villers (South Africa)
- Traditional Root and Tuber Crops in Japan 2015 - Hideo Horikoshi (Japan)
- Plants of the Mediterranean Dry Regions 2015 - Giuliana Sordi (Italy)
- Australian Eucalyptus Mallees 2015 - Halina Steele (Australia)
- Arisaemas for the sheltered garden or greenhouse 2015 - Ros Franklin (UK)
- Aristolochias of British Botanic Gardens 2014 - Laura Silburn (UK)
- Parasitic Plants in Situ with the Host Plant 2014 - Lynda de Wet (South Africa)
- Ophrys (Bee Orchids) of Menorca 2014 - Louise Lane (UK)
- Ferns of Sardinia 2013 - Giuliana Sordi (Italy)
- Cape Ericas (Heather) 2013 - Margaret de Villers (South Africa)
- Plants from the woods & forests of Chile 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015 - Gulnur Eksi (Turkey)
- Plants from the woods & forests of Chile 2014 - Işık Güner (Turkey / Scotland)
- Heterotrophic Plants in Korea 2014 - Hye Woo Shin (Korea) - Best Exhibit 2014
- American Prairie Plants 2012 - Heeyoung Kim (USA)
- Native Ferns of the Peak District 2012 - Louise Lane (UK)
- Common mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest, United States 2011 - Jean Emmons (USA)
- Chilean plants 2010 - Işık Güner (Istanbul, Turkey)
- Scotland Fritillaries 2010 - Margaret Walty (Dumfriesshire)
- Ten walks in Virginia (2007) - Lara Call Gastinger (USA)
Ten Walks in Virginia (2007) by Lara Gastinger (USA)
Habit/Life Cycle/Growth names
The Tip of the Branch 2016 by Roger Reynolds (UK)
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A category for those who are prepared to wait and document over time - across the seasons and years!
Many artists that focus on the life cycle require 2-3 years to capture all the data for all the plants. It takes longer if the weather decides to be uneasonal! |
Medicinal plant exhibits
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Rather fewer exhibits than one might expect linked to
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Common and Generic Names
Varieties of Hardy Geranium 2013 - Laura Silburn (UK)
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FLOWERING PLANTS
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Acute observers will note that the word "orchid" is repeated on a regular basis!
This may date back to when the botanical art show was held in London at the same time as the Orchid Show. Or it may just be because people like painting orchids - and they last longer than other flowers! "Roses" is another popular theme. |
Citrus 2013 by Annie Hughes (Australia)
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FRUIT
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Very few exhibits of fruit and vegetables - expressed simply by their common name.
Those that win Gold tend to be stunning! |
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OTHERS - Fungi etc.
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Very few exhibits with very plain names related to trees or fungi
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'Theme' names related to botanical history
The Citrus of the Medici Family 2016 by Simonetta Occhipinti (Italy)
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Some theme names are 'spot on' botanically - but the history behind them is probably only known to a very few. Be prepared to explain the theme title again and again during the course of the exhibition!
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Unspecific 'Theme' Names
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Theme names like novel titles may be intriguing - but on the whole more explicit ones work better
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Unspecific / Media related names
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The exhibition is about botanical art - not which media you did it in.
This type of name is more typically chosen by first timers who have never visited the show or looked at any of my write-ups of past shows. |
Mixed Plant Names
Exhibits which are just a collection of paintings of different plants are very unlikely to do well - UNLESS there is a clear explicit theme underpinning the choice - and that theme needs to be in the exhibit title.
They also result in very long titles which can make for a major challenge when creating the title for your stand!
They also result in very long titles which can make for a major challenge when creating the title for your stand!
List of Titles of Exhibits by other artists - by category of medal
This will follow in due course.
