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Archive for the ‘botanical art’ Category

How to Draw Plants in Color

Posted in botanical art, Learning Opportunities on July 25, 2011| 1 Comment »

Have you always wondered how to mix Nature’s colors using colored pencils? Take a look at this new class at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Gardens!

Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Gardens, Arcadia
www.arboretum.org
Courses in introductory botanical drawing, beginning and intermediate watercolor, colored pencil, sketching and Chinese brush painting are taught throughout the year. Go to the Events & Classes for more information. The Arboretum is located in Arcadia, CA. To register, contact Jill Berry or call (626) 821-4624.

Using Colored Pencils in Botanical Art

Session 1: Tuesdays, September 6, 13, 20, 27
Session 2: Tuesdays, October 4, 11, 18, 25
Hours: 10 AM – 2 PM (includes lunch break)

Students will learn colored pencil techniques, composition and color mixing from botanical artist Cristina Baltayian. All levels of experience are welcome. Cost: $225 (members per session); $245 (non-members per session).

Cristina Baltayian has a background in drawing (graphite, charcoal, pen and ink), two-dimensional design, watercolor, and colored pencils. Her work has been shown at Filoli, the Los Angeles Arboretum, and Chapman University. She is a member of the American Society of Botanical Artists and The Botanical Artists Guild of Southern California.

A supply list will be provided upon registration. You may bring your lunch or purchase it at the Peacock Café.

This information has been posted to Classes Near You > California.

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Draw Trees, Learn Pen and Ink at Atlanta Botanical Garden

Posted in botanical art, Learning Opportunities on July 20, 2011|

New at Class Near You > Georgia:

Atlanta Botanical Garden
www.atlantabotanicalgarden.org
An urban garden composed of 30 acres of outdoor gardens, an award-winning Children’s Garden, a conservatory home to collections of tropical and desert plants and many community programs and events, including a Botanical Drawing Program.

Drawing Trees – Tuesdays, August 23 – September 20, 2011;
10 a.m. – 1 p.m. OR 6-9 p.m. Learn to draw trees using pencil, pen, marker and charcoal. Focusing on trees native to Georgia, students will learn to draw the morphological features of trees from leaves to bark to roots, as well as the overall shapes of trees. Instructor: Carol Sutherland. Cost: $170 nonmembers, $160 members. Registration deadline: August 21, 2011. To register online and to download the supply list for this class, click here.
Fine Line Pen for Botanical Illustration – Tuesdays,
September 27 – October 25, 2011; 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. OR 6-9 p.m. Learn to create botanical illustrations in pen and ink. Ink illustrations of plants are common to scientific journals and textbooks. Develop your skills in this medium through various cross hatching and stippling exercises. Learn how to apply your skills to different botanical subjects. Instructor: Carol Sutherland. Cost: $170 nonmembers, $160 members. Registration deadline: September 25, 2011. To register online and to download the supply list for this class, click here.

Need that magnifying glass on the supply list?
See the Magnifier & Dissecting Kit Combo at ArtPlantae Books ($10).

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Fall Classes at The Illustrated Garden Include Drawing, Painting & Printmaking

Posted in botanical art, gardening, Learning Opportunities on July 20, 2011|

The Illustrated Garden, A Studio Blog
http://valwebb.wordpress.com
See Val Webb’s online tutorial, Botanical Drawing with Pencil and Watercolor. Connect with The Illustrated Garden on Facebook!

Creative Watercolor 101
Tuesdays, August 2 – September 6, 2011; 2-5 PM (six weeks).
No drawing required! Learn how to use washes, glazing and dry brush techniques to create skies, trees and textures found in nature. Create light and shadow with transparent watercolor and learn about “reverse painting.” Also learn how everyday household items can be used as innovative painting tools. No experienced necessary. Cost: $120, a supply list will be sent upon registration. Contact Val Webb if you plan to participate. Location: Val’s studio in Fairhope, AL.
Old and New: The Lost Art of Hand Lettering… and a New Way to Make “Vintage” Photo Transfers – Saturday, August 6, 2011;
10 AM – 3 PM. This is not calligraphy, but the “drawn letters” used by old-fashioned sign painters and type designers. Learn to adapt this method to label your botanical artwork or write beautifully in your sketchbook or art journal. Learn how to letter on curves, how to use perspective in your lettering, and how to design your own personal lettering style. After lunch in a nearby cafe, learn how to transfer photos. Val will show you how to transfer a vintage-looking image to paper, cloth or wood using butcher’s paper and acrylic medium. The original photo is not affected in any way, and the final product has a hauntingly ephemeral look that is quite beautiful. Plus, you will learn how to tint your transfer with watercolor for a more impressionistic result. This works especially well with old family photos and garden subjects. Embellish a journal or family album, make truly lovely greeting cards, frame them as keepsakes or gifts — the possibilities go on and on. Class size is limited. Early registration required. Cost: $60 includes art supplies and illustrated tutorial pages to take home. Contact Val Webb if you plan to participate. Location: Val’s studio cottage in Mobile, AL.
Color Mixing Workshop – Saturday,
August 13, 2011; 10 AM – 3 PM. Learn how to identify the colors you need and how to mix them efficiently without guesswork or waste. Experiment with “bouncing color” and learn how to mix the three types of color shadows. Pigments and paint labels will also be discussed. Cost: $60, includes, art supplies. Contact Val Webb if you plan to participate. Limit: 8
Make-Up or Finish-Up Day for Students in Weekly Classes. Saturday, August 20, 2011; 10 AM – 4 PM. Val’s studio cottage in Mobile, AL. Students making up a missed class or finishing a project on this day must notify Val in advance so she can bring the necessary materials.
Printmaking Workshop: Botanical Collagraph – Saturday, September 10, 2011; 10 AM – 4 PM. Use collected botanical material (herbs, wildflowers, seed heads and more) plus textured papers to create your own unique designs on printing plates, then ink and print them using a hand-operated etching press. Finished prints can be hand colored with watercolor and colored pencil if you wish. Wear an old shirt and be prepared for a day of creative fun. All supplies provided. Cost: $75.
Weekly Class: Draw and Paint the Kitchen Garden – This class is offered at both studios. Draw and paint seasonal culinary plants. Cooking and gardening subjects will also be drawn. No experience necessary.
Cost: $140, includes all supplies.
- Draw & Paint the Kitchen Garden (Mobile, AL) – Six-week daytime class begins Thursday September 15, 2011 and continues through October 20, 2011 (2-5 PM). Eight-week evening class begins Thursday, September 15, 2011 and continues through November 3, 2011 (6:30 – 8:30 PM).
- Draw & Paint the Kitchen Garden (Fairhope, AL) – Six-week class begins Tuesday September 20 2011 and continues through October 25, 2011 (2-5 PM).

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Learn About Explorers and Artists During the Hunt Institute’s 50th Anniversary

Posted in botanical art, Learning Opportunities, Special Announcements, Special Events on July 18, 2011|

The following tours and lectures will be offered during The Hunt’s 50th anniversary celebration. Learn more about this special event by reading, Botany and History Entwined: Rachel Hunt’s Legacy.

Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation
http://huntbot.andrew.cmu.edu
The Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, a research division of Carnegie Mellon University, specializes in the history of botany and all aspects of plant science and serves the international scientific community through research and documentation. To this end, the Institute acquires and maintains authoritative collections of books, plant images, manuscripts, portraits and data files, and provides publications and other modes of information service. The Institute meets the reference needs of botanists, biologists, historians, conservationists, librarians, bibliographers and the public at large, especially those concerned with any aspect of the North American flora.

USDA Botanist B.Y. Morrison and His Forward-thinking Secretary, May Blaine – Sunday, September 18, 2011; 2:00 PM. Archivist Angela Todd will present Morrison’s sketches and ink drawings of private and public gardens in Asia dating back to 1915 when he received a travel fellowship from Harvard. His lively drawings exist today because of the encouragement of his secretary, May Blaine. As women entered colleges and universities but did not rise to the ranks of scientists, those degreed women taught high school botany and worked as secretaries, lab assistants and wives. The women in the USDA secretarial pool all had post-secondary schooling, including Blaine. She was secretary to the head of the Department of Plant Exploration and Introduction from 1918 to 1955, serving eight different heads, including Morrison. Blaine not only sent her private correspondence with and short biographies of USDA explorers and botanists to Hunt Botanical Library but also convinced Morrison, who saw no need to preserve his legacy, to send his drawings, too.
Gallery Tour of the Reading Room’s Antique Furniture – During Carnegie Mellon’s Cèilidh Weekend, Curatorial Assistant Catherine Hammond will give a gallery tour on Saturday, October 29, 2011 (2:00 PM), and Publication and Marketing Manager Scarlett Townsend will give a tour on Sunday, October 30, 2011 (2:00 PM), of the antique furniture in the reading room which was designed to capture the essence of Rachel Hunt’s personal library. The herbals, the autograph letters and the Redouté paintings were important elements of her original collection, but equally important to her was the setting in which these items were enjoyed. She did not want her new library to look common or commercial. With the help of Harold LeBaron, her longtime interior decorator, and George H. M. Lawrence, our founding director, she chose items reflecting her tastes and personality.
Pierre-Joseph Redouté and His Collaboration with Botanists – Sunday, November 6, 2011; 2:00 PM. Curator of Art Lugene Bruno will discuss the work of Pierre-Joseph Redouté (1759–1840) who is considered to be the most famous flower painter of the 19th century. Redouté exhibited his floral bouquets in the Paris Salon and illustrated some of the most beautiful color-plate folios ever produced. What is less known is the work that Redouté created for many important botanists of his era. This talk will include his work for Charles Louis L’Heritier (1746–1800), who was the first to recognize that Redouté’s talent could be channeled into creating scientific illustrations that would compliment botanical texts, which helped to launch Redouté’s multi-faceted career. Prints by Redouté from a selection of publications will be on temporary display during the talk.
At the Center of the Network: Dutch Botanist Carolus Clusius (1526-1609) – Sunday, December 4, 2011; 2:00 PM. Librarian Charlotte Tancin will lead a discussion about botanist, traveler, writer, correspondent and exotic plant and animal enthusiast, Clusius, who used his vast personal network to gain and spread information, exchange seeds and plants, and advance knowledge of the natural world. His career touched all four subject areas of our 50th anniversary exhibition: herbals, gardens, botany and travel and exploration. His stature and legacy made him a major figure in the history of botany and plant introduction and thus a natural subject of interest for Rachel Hunt.

This information has been added to Classes Near You > Pennsylvania.

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Cornell University Announces Plans for Distance Learning Certificate in Botanical Illustration

Posted in botanical art, distance learning, gardening, Learning Opportunities on July 18, 2011|

The Department of Horticulture at Cornell University is expanding their schedule of online courses to include an advanced techniques course in botanical illustration. Cornell’s objective is to offer a certificate program comprised of Botanical Illustration I: Basic Drawing Techniques, Botanical Illustration II: Working with Watercolor and the third course in advanced techniques.

Botanical Illustration I & II will be taught again in January 2012. If you are interested in taking these classes and would like to be notified when registration opens in December 2011, please notify the distance learning program or watch for announcements on this site.

Cornell University Department of Horticulture
http://hort.cals.cornell.edu/
Two six-week botanical illustration classes are taught online through this department. A course syllabus for each class is available online. Click on the links below for complete details.

Botanical Illustration I: Basic Drawing Techniques
Coming January 2012. Students will work in pencil and pen-and-ink. Topics include: observing nature, drawing, composition, perspective, shading. Cost: $500. Limit: 15 students. View the syllabus for this course. Register
Botanical Illustration II: Working with Watercolor
Coming January 2012. In this introductory course about color, students are encouraged to continue their discovery of plants. Emphasis will be on simpler subjects such as a single-stem flower, fruit, and vegetables. Limit: 15 students. View syllabus & register

View Cornell University’s horticulture distance learning courses

This information has been posted to Classes Near You > New York.

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Botany and History Entwined: Rachel Hunt’s Legacy

Posted in botanical art, botany, Special Announcements, Special Events on July 15, 2011|

Bouquet of flowers, watercolor on vellum by Pierre-Joseph Redouté (1759–1840). This bouquet was painted by Pierre-Joseph Redouté in his final year and was acquired by Rachel Hunt in the last year of her life, capping a history of collecting Redouté items one at a time over decades, including portraits and handwritten letters. © Hunt Institute

In celebration of their 50th anniversary, the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation will present rare gems from the original collection of founder, Rachel McMasters Miller Hunt (1882–1963). Hunt’s early love of nature and books grew into a lifelong pursuit of rare or historical works about plants, gardens and botany. She became fascinated by the people associated with these books and also collected their portraits, letters, manuscripts and original artworks.

Dedicated in 1961, the Rachel McMasters Miller Hunt Botanical Library was envisioned as a research center focusing on the history of botany and the history of botanical publication and as a repository where her collections would be preserved, curated, augmented and made accessible to researchers. By 1971 the organization had so diversified that it was renamed Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation with four programmatic departments of Archives, Art, Bibliography and the Library. In the last fifty years Rachel Hunt’s original collection has been substantially augmented in all four departments. In accordance with the Hunts’ original vision of a living collection with public availability, the Institute maintains a regular exhibition and publication program and accessibility for research on a variety of scientific and cultural subjects related to the plant sciences.

Beginning with Rachel Hunt’s early interest in books, bookbinding and collecting, the materials on display in this exhibition are divided by subject and reflect her interests in the history of the herbal, the development of gardens and garden plants, the foundation of botany as a science and the botanical discoveries made through travel and exploration. The exhibition concludes with the foundation of the Hunt Botanical Library, its evolution to Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation and descriptions of key aspects of the four departments. A color-illustrated catalogue will accompany the exhibition.

Inset, Rachel Hunt standing at her garden gate at Elmhurt. Rachel Hunt purchased this early gardening manual at the first book sale that she attended. © Hunt Institute

Botany and History Entwined
Rachel Hunt’s Legacy
September 16 – December 15, 2011
Hunt Library,Carnegie Mellon University (5th floor)

Hours: Monday–Friday, 9 a.m.–noon and 1–5 p.m.; Sunday, 1–4 p.m. (except 20 and 24–27 November).

Admission: Free

(Note: Hours of operation are occasionally subject to change, please call or email before your visit to confirm their hours. For further information, contact the Hunt Institute at 412-268-2434.)

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Go Back in Time to Learn About Artist and Explorer Marianne North

Posted in botanical art, Learning Opportunities on July 12, 2011|

The Royal Botanic Garden at Kew has created a travelling workshop that transports participants to the 1800s so they can learn about artist and explorer, Marianne North. This travelling trunk show enables participants to try botanical painting, eat tropical fruit and spices, read Marianne’s diary and view items from Victorian times.

This unique opportunity will be available through September 15, 2011. Readers in UK will find information about how to schedule this workshop at Marianne’s Travelling Trunk Workshop.