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August 1 - 3, 2008
Renaissance Hotel
Seattle, WA
By Suzanne Kuuskmae
The evening before classes began the Hospitality Room was a gathering spot for picking up art supplies donated by several vendors as well as an impromtu demonstration by Ester Roi of her Icarus Drawing Board which features two working zones: a warm zone and a cool zone. You can learn more about this technique at: www.icarusart.net or by calling Ester at (949) 481-4010.
I had signed up for both classes and the first one was with Carlynne Hershberger entitled, “The Unconventional Portrait. We first created a colored background using colored pencils and mineral spirits. All of this was totally new to me because as a botanical artist, I am always working on a white background and the only portrait I am doing is an exact portrayal of plants and flowers. I did a portrait of my granddaughter complete with various symbols of activities that are very important to her at her age of 11. I finished it at home and am happy with the result. Also, I prepared several other sheets of paper with various colors in the background and am working on a huge hydrangea flower; quite a bit off track from my usual work but most rewarding.
The second class was with John Smolko entitled, “The Scribble – Colored Pencils and the Expressive Line.” In this class we did a very large letter imposed on a circular background of scribbled colors going from light in the center to darker tones toward the outside. After laying down the various fields, then one mixes in the adjacent color to make for a smooth transition. In the afternoon we were free to use the scribble line technique on a painting of our choice. My painting was one of water lilies, which I am working on to finish at home. This is a technique I think would be helpful to work further with as it encourages the artist to add lots of colors, which allows for a most pleasing effect. I know that John has recently retired from teaching and would love to come to Los Angeles to give a week long class. Maybe that will be my project for 2009, planning a class with John Smolko.
The hotel was quite comfortable and the delicious luncheons supplied on the days of the classes was salads and sandwich fixings. The dining room, which was at the top of the hotel, gave us a fantastic view of the surrounding area while we enjoyed eating and talking with our fellow artists. Seattle certainly has quite a bit to offer, and my husband and I did a harbor tour, went to the top of the Space Needle, visited Pike Market, and had an interesting dinner down at Pioneer Square. I cannot report on the banquet because I was not able to attend due to a prior commitment with friends who live outside Seattle.
The art exhibition was spectacular where it was hung at the World Trade Center. The art work displayed showed a good cross section of subjects and did justice to the talented members of CPSA. The convention was a rewarding experience!
Jenny Phillips in the Getty Garden
This past June, July, and August, BAGSC participated in a variety of educational outreach programs held in conjunction with the Maria Sibylla Merian exhibit, titled “Maria Sibylla Merian & Daughters, Women of Art and Science” at the J. Paul Getty Museum, featuring activities that introduced the public to botanical art, entomology, botany, natural history, and Suriname.
Tania Norris was instrumental in bringing Jenny Phillips to the Getty to explore flower and insect drawings by Merian and her daughters in a Getty “Point of View” lecture. Jenny also demonstrated and lectured in an “Artist at Work” presentation, celebrating the beginning of summer with a one-day demonstration about the art and practice of botanical painting.
Tania provided the voice over for the GettyGuide Audio Tour of the exhibit, as well as the voice-over for the slide show on the web site at www.getty.edu.
Tania was also instrumental in connecting BAGSC with the Getty. BAGSC’s participation began in June when Deborah Shaw and Tania Marien introduced Getty Gallery Teachers to the techniques of botanical illustration and to plant morphology. They also taught a two-week course in June (repeated in July) to the public, designed to introduce participants to botanical illustration, and to provide an experience similar to what Merian must have experienced upon traveling to Suriname and observing unfamiliar plants. The Getty arranged for this class to be taught in conjunction with The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Jim Folsom, director of the botanical gardens at the Huntington Library, lead tours of the Huntington’s conservatory and greenhouses and introduced participants to how plants work.
Veronica at the BAGSC Family Festival table
BAGSC members participated in two Getty Family Festivals, where they conducted botanical art demonstrations in the Getty’s Central Garden and lead a host of children’s activities. Both festivals were well-attended. Children who visited the BAGSC area had the option of coloring engravings created by Merian, creating a natural history illustration with leaf rubbings, stamping fruits and vegetables with tempera paint to create their own “paintings”, and drawing plants and insects freehand. At other Family Festival venues, children of all ages could make a hat out of ti leaves, assemble floral brooches, create their own butterflies, create picture frames, stamp and mail postcards, and listen to the music of Suriname.
During the entire month of July, BAGSC members demonstrated botanical drawing and painting twice each week in the Getty’s Central Garden.
BAGSC member Kathy Dunham also taught classes at the Getty. Kathy led the Getty’s Drawing Hour and demonstrated how to create a nature journal during three early-evening classes in July and August.
Sally Markel with Deb in the Getty Garden
And, in a true “Small World” moment, Sally Markel ran into Deborah Shaw during one of the botanical art demonstrations. Sally happened to be out visiting friends in Southern California, and came across BAGSC members doing the Getty “Artist at Work” demonstrations. Sally generously donated her pineapple illustration for use on the ASBA Annual Meeting & Conference web site registration.
The exhibition is open at the Getty until the end of August. Information about the exhibition (and Tania’s voice over) can be found on the Getty web site. Once the exhibition is over, information can be found in the Getty web site archives. The exhibition catalog and other books about Maria Sibylla Merian can be found online in the Getty bookstore.
More photos will be published to the blog soon. Stay tuned!
By Margaret Best
I have painted medlars but never tasted one, however that is about to change.
In September 2006 a small group of artists went to England to paint with renowned botanical artist, Pandora Sellars. I visited her at her charming country home just before the class to discuss final arrangements and to seek suitable subject matter for myself. To my considerable pleasure I discovered she had some very old English medlar trees bearing an abundant crop of fruit in her wonderful garden. I had seen these fruits for the first time when I was looking at William Hooker’s original paintings in the Lindley Library in London in 2004 and discovered them again in southern Spain at the end of 2005.
For those readers who have no idea what the unusual and ancient fruit of a Mespilus germanica looks like, I have attached a section of my painting that resulted from this class. This painting was exhibited at the recent 12th International Botanical Art Exhibition at the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh and is now in the permanent collection.
I decided to reproduce this painting in a set of limited edition prints and when preparing an artist’s statement to accompany the print, I completed some quick research on the tree and fruit. I discovered that medlars are believed to have an ancient history of cultivation originating in Persia and introduced to the Greek and Roman civilizations in approximately 2 BC. The two known European varieties, the Nottingham (English) and Dutch are still grown today for their fruit that when fully ripe and crushed, is somewhat similar in texture to apple sauce. The first written record of this fruit was in 1270 made by a monk working in the garden of Westminster Abbey in London. A medlar is highly revered in France as it forms the basis of the famous and expensive preserve known as cotignac. Apparently it is wonderful when served with cheese and wine!
Shortly after Christmas, Lugene Bruno who is Assistant Curator of Art at Hunt Institute, contacted me to let me know that my painting was enjoyed by 2 ladies at the Pittsburgh chapter of the American Herb Society. These ladies gather the fruit each year from trees in a locally sponsored herb garden and make medlar jelly. Lugene is kindly sending me one of their precious jars of jelly so that finally I can experience the taste.
Deborah Shaw
Note: A longer version of this article with detailed instructions has also been posted as a permanent “page” as one of the links across the top of the blog. Please click on the “How to Blog” tab in the upper right.
It’s finally here. The BAGSC Blog now officially replaces our quarterly newsletter. The advantage of our blog is that it allows us to really be a community — our members can comment and discuss articles; contribute stories and reviews; and let other members know about “calls for entries”, galleries, openings, and learning opportunities.
A big thank you to Sasha McMullen for contributing the funds to secure our blog URL address; to Margaret Best for allowing us to use part of a new painting (that hasn’t even been exhibited yet) for the first header; and to Clara Josephs, Arillyn Moran-Lawrence, and Suzanne Kuuskmae for contributing our first articles. An additional thank you goes to all of you for your patience in the time it’s taken for me (Deborah Shaw) to get this out.
How to read the blog:
We already have quite a bit of content posted. Only ten articles show up in the main window at a time. After that, the information is automatically archived by date and by the categories on the left side. Click on each category name to see all of the articles in that category. You can also search by any keywords you remember. The articles will always be in the archives; you’ll be able to go back and find previous information. Please explore the categories to make sure you don’t miss anything. If you click on the images, they’ll open in a new window at a larger size. (They may take a little while if you have a slower connection.)
In the “How to Blog” tab in the upper right corner, you’ll find instructions on how to:
- Keep in touch
- Please comment
- Become a blogger yourself
- Another way to contribute
- Put your artwork in the header
To our members who aren’t connected to cyberspace:
No worries. We’ll periodically print out the blog and mail it to you.
Happy blogging to all!
This is the process I used for getting involved in the ASBA”Paradise Lost” project that will be due in 2008. It is not mandatory to participate but I found it a fascinating adventure into Hawaiian endangered species.
Arillyn Moran-Lawrence
The project began by contacting the Ho’omaluhia Botanical Gardens on the windward side of Oahu, near Kaneohe. I had visited that garden the year before and thought they could help me with my project. Ho’omaluhia did not have any endangered species so they referred me to a botanist at the Foster Gardens. I contacted that botanist and discussed the ASBA project with her. She assisted me by informing me about Koko Crater and Lili’uokalani Botanical Gardens. She also provided me with the name of a botanist at Lyon Arboretum, whom I contacted regarding meeting me to introduce me to endangered species in that arboretum. I previously had visited the Waimea Valley Audubon Arboretum, on the North Shore, so called the office and they put me in contact with a very helpful botanist. We kept in touch via email.
My husband and I made plans for the trip to Hawaii in late March/April when the plants would hopefully be flowering. I emailed the botanists regarding my arrival date and worked out a schedule so that I could cover the 4 different botanical areas on the island of Oahu during my week long visit. I would be covering the rain forests, the dry land area and the city environment.
I began an in-depth study of the Hawaiian Endangered Plant Species on the internet. I read about the plants in many books but especially used the book Remains of a Rainbow. I also began sketching plants of interest. I tried to be well informed about the plants that I wanted to see. I found that the task of focusing on a small number of plants overwhelming as Hawaii has more endangered plants than any other state and more and more became of interest.
Most of the arboretums and gardens did not have lists of endangered species that they had in their collection. However, with the help of my books I was able to find species listed in the various gardens and on which islands they were located. This process was most critical as I only had 7 days to study, photograph, sketch and paint the plants.
I carried with me in a backpack, a small ultralight umbrella, insect spray, a W&N traveling watercolor set, water, one very versatile Aquabee 808 sketch book and colored pencils. I had a digital camera in a carrying case around my waist and my helpful husband by my side. I had a small 11″ x 13″ expandable plastic portfolio with cut hot press paper, a note pad, a light plastic ruler and pencils and pens. As a plein air painter of 15 years I thought I was traveling light, organized and well prepared but I wasn’t. The umbrella was very useful as rain is always available. However, sitting perched on a slope, on an uncomfortable volcanic rock, juggling an umbrella, a sketchbook and cameras was not an easy task. Adding rain to the mix really made life difficult. A small portable chair was not an option as the terrain would not have been secure. Not all sites were difficult but some were a challenge in that you had to deal with long walks and carrying a lot of gear would have been a struggle. In most cases you could not have used a wheeled case. I also found the most interesting species at the top of a long uphill walk. The camera became my best friend as did the colored pencils and sketchbook. My husband helped me with noting measurements. Having two people doing this job is perfect especially when your feet are on uneven ground and you are wrapped around rocks and trees and can’t manage writing anything. I also suggest that someone is with you at all times if you are in a remote area. I was so fascinated with a healthy specimen on a lose hillside that I fell down the hill when I turned to leave. The earth was soft and no damage was done but it is best not to investigate some areas alone.
The botanist at the Waimea Audubon Arboretum, showed me around this beautiful and fascinating garden and introduced me to many endangered species in their collection. We traveled in a golf cart but hiked over difficult terrain to remote species. Everything moved along very quickly. I did not have time to make notes so I photographed the plant ID tags. That way I would remember the plants and where they were located. Some were in very difficult locations and you had to climb and watch your feet for fear of stepping on some endangered plants. The botanist spent about 2 hours with me. He helped me over difficult terrain, to photograph plants and kept me from falling down slopes, as well as educating me. I was most impressed with him and his tour. After lunch I returned to study and photograph specific plants of interest, to measure, to sketch and observe.
I met with the botanist at the Lyon Arboretum, in the Manoa Valley, the next day. The Lyon is a gorgeous rain forest arboretum and is stunningly beautiful and interesting. This garden contains a Hawaiian section, an economic section, a fern valley, gingers and palms and a host of other treasures. I was fascinated by one lone endangered Pritchcardia remota Palm that stood in a marvelous setting. We spent about 2 hours covering an area of mainly native and endangered species. I was also shown the greenhouse and saw some endangered plants of interest and was allowed to photograph them. I was very appreciative of the time that they gave to me as well as the education that I received. Leaving the botanist my husband and I walked up into the valley to the Hawaiian section and I found a Hibiscus clayii. What a thrilling find! After photographing and measuring and sketching this treasure we returned to our hotel where I made notes on the day’s plants and worked on sketches.
Two days later we visited the Koko Crater Botanical Garden. We were on our own in this garden. There was a map to guide you to the Hawaiian Section which was at the highest point in the crater, of course. It was hot and dry in this garden so you needed to be prepared with water and a cell phone as it was not well populated. Because it was virtually empty I would suggest that you not go alone. The Hawaiian section was worth the long walk as I found some very healthy endangered plants and some wonderful endangered palm trees. I was able to photograph, make notes and take measurements. Painting was not an option because I knew that the long up and down walk would be tiring and carrying the gear would be draining. There were some benches in the area and a picnic would have been fun but that was knowledge after the fact. A very nice garden.
Lil’uokalani Botanical Garden is set Honolulu. It is a small but charming botanical garden. The botanist at Foster Gardens helped me by providing me with a map of the species in this garden. I was on my own with the help of my husband who carried things for me and helped me with measurements. I found endangered Hibiscus, Abutilon and Gardenia. I photographed, sketched and measured the focus of my interest.
I returned to all of the gardens for a second visit during the remaining days and I continued to study, sketch and photograph. My only regret is that I did not have a notebook computer with me. It would have been very helpful to have one in the car and at the hotel at the end of the day.
I gave thank you gifts to the botanists who personally helped me and spent so much valuable time educating me.
