Surrounded by Carnivorous Plants - in Dublin !

Last Friday I made a flying visit to Dublin for the day.  Yes the day - a bit mad I know, but a really worthwhile trip.

The main purpose was to meet with many members of the newly formed Irish Society of Botanical Artists (ISBA website - http://irishbotanicalartists.com:8080/).  We are working on a lovely project, illustrating each of the 18 letters of the Irish alphabet with native wild plants.  We have each been assigned a letter and a plant, neither of which we had prior knowledge of, so that made it all the more exciting ! I am illustrating Restharrow, and also because I am a sucker for punishment, an additional plant - Teasel.

For more information about the project go to:  http://irishbotanicalartists.com:8080/an-irish-botanical-alphabet/

Images from the ISBA Botanical Alphabet support meeting

I had the morning spare, being let loose in the National Botanic Gardens Glasnevin and in the afternoon we had an 'alphabet support meeting', with the wonderful Brendan Sayers who is the Curator at the gardens and Susan Sex, who is the most amazing Botanical Artist.

Back to the morning - where to go ?  The wind was getting up and feeling a bit tired from my early morning flight I decided to venture into the warmth of the glass houses.  I went into the first one I came across and was faced with the most beautiful sight of several Sarracenias.  If you haven't seen these before they are carnivorous plants that originate from the southeastern USA.  These plants are also known as pitcher plants.

The pitchers themselves are modified leaves and insects are attracted to the pitchers because they mimic flowers.  They are often brightly coloured and have glands or nectaries located near the pitcher opening - which is a dangerous place for insects to be!

There I stood mesmerised by these plants and I started to sketch.  The first plant I drew was Sarracenia flava 'Maxima'  which had a large yellow-green flower, surrounded by pitchers.  I had taken my colour pencils with me to make colour notes, but I must admit I preferred to use my trusty watercolours.

© 2013  Sarah Morrish

The flowers are fascinating

 

© 2013  Sarah Morrish

 

 

© 2013  Sarah Morrish

© 2013  Sarah Morrish

After stretching my legs for a short walk around the gardens I returned back to the Sarracenias and drew a couple of the pitchers.  Unfortunately I didn't make a note of the plant name.  Both of the pitchers below were drawn life-size in my A4 Moleskin watercolour book.

© 2013  Sarah Morrish

 

© 2013  Sarah Morrish

Lunch was then 'calling', which was a very social affair meeting up with other members of the group, some of whom I had 'met' on Facebook, so it was lovely to meet them in person !

 A couple of the glasshouses at the Botanic Gardens

Hunting for Restharrow

As much as I adore illustrating the natural world indoors, every now and again you need to get out there in the field and see what's going on.  Lately, I have been working on several commissions and teaching preparation, so have been quite confined to the studio.

I bet you are all a bit bemused by the title of this blog post ?  Well, I was on the hunt for Restharrow, a plant that can be found growing on chalk grasslands and also near the coast.  I am involved with a project with the Irish Society of Botanical Artists http://irishbotanicalartists.com:8080/ , and this is the plant that I am illustrating.



© Sarah Morrish

This is Restharrow growing on the South Devon coast.

The only problem was that at this time of year the plant is not in flower and it is low-growing, so it is a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack !  Nevertheless, we started off very eager and determined when we got to Old Winchester Hill to start exploring for it.

Old Winchester Hill is a favourite site of mine, which is a National Nature Reserve (NNR) and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).  Botanically, it is a great place for seeing a wide range of classic chalk grassland plant species and also those that are less common.  In 2006, I spent several days here helping a friend with survey work to look for Round-headed Rampion, which is one of the rarer species.

For more information on Old Winchester Hill go to:
http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/designations/nnr/1006115.aspx




© Sarah Morrish

Looking over towards the ramparts of the Iron Age Hill Fort and Bronze Age burial mounds.

We had no luck finding Restharrow, but there were signs of other chalk grassland species starting to show. 

© Sarah Morrish

Leaves of Orchids starting to show.



© Sarah Morrish

The bowing flowers of an emerging cowslip.

 

© Sarah Morrish

A Violet species found on the banks of the hillfort.

As well as chalk grassland there are also areas of woodland, one area containing some ancient Yew trees. 

 

© Sarah Morrish

 There were many signs of Spring finally getting here.  The Blackthorn flowers becoming evident.  These come before the leaves and they must not be confused with Hawthorn, which blooms a bit later.  With Hawthorn, the leaves come before the flowers. 

 

© Sarah Morrish

The beautiful and delicate Blackthorn flower.

 One thing that I thought was stunning, was the buds of the Ash tree bursting open.  The black buds always look so tightly closed and it is amazing what comes out of them when they start to open.

 

 

© Sarah Morrish



Well, the hunt for Restharrow continues and I will resume the challenge as we hopefully move closer to the summer months.  Perhaps I will explore some coastal sites in my quest ?

 



Fabulous Feathers !

This is a busy time of year with exhibition preparations and teaching commitments, but I must admit I am very excited about visiting the Society of Botanical Artists Exhibition in London tomorrow.  Several of my friends are exhibiting and I have also got a picture on display this year.

Then on Friday more botanical delights, with a trip to the RHS Orchid Show and to see the botanical art on display there too.  It's going to be botanical art overload - but I love it !

On to feathers.  This is a subject I really enjoy illustrating and I have several commissions on the go involving feathers.  Also, this coming Saturday I am teaching a workshop for the Hants & IOW Wildlife Trust on 'Fabulous Feathers'.  The workshop is full and there will be a wonderful array of feathers for everyone to illustrate.

I thought that you may enjoy seeing about the process I take in illustrating the majority of feathers.

Firstly a brief guide to the different parts of a feather.

1. Decide on a suitable composition. Feathers are very easy to position and can be laid flat on your working surface.
2. Use a 2H pencil and draw the central shaft. Pay attention to the length and thickness of the shaft from top to bottom.
3. Draw a feint outline of the vanes and draw the sections where any barbs have separated.
4. Draw any patterns that occur on the vanes of the feather.
5. Be aware that the pattern may be symmetrical, such as in the Jay’s feathers (right).

 6. It is always good practice to experiment with mixing the correct colours to represent the colours found in the feather.
When mixing washes try not to use more than 3 colours of paint. Remember if you need a lighter shade of the mixed wash just add water.
It is very useful when painting a variety of natural objects, to become familiar with creating a range of ‘neutral’ colour mixes. When we say ‘neutral’ we are referring to a range of greys that have different hues.
 




7. The first wash that you will apply is likely to be quite pale and a neutral mix. With this you will start to define the shape of the vanes, particularly the side where the barbs may be separated and lighter in colour.
Remember to use the white of the paper to your advantage.
The size of the brush you use can vary dependant on the size of the feather. The advantage of using a good quality brush (even a size 7) is that it should retain a good point and enable fine lines to be painted.
Alternatively, I like to use ‘spotter’ brushes. These have shorter hairs but hold a good amount of paint.
8. Once the initial wash is painted the areas of colour can be defined more, gradually adding deeper washes of colour. The marks that you are aiming to create with the brush should be fine, hair-like lines.

9. Dependant on the feather that you are depicting, there may be a final stage where different painting techniques are required.
With the Jay’s feathers, white gouache was applied to give an impression of the individual barbs.

Other feathers that I have illustrated:

Barn Owl feather

 

Peacock feather - slightly stylised 

Sunshine in the snow - yellow flowers and more !

The Daffodils have been soldiering on in the recent snow and frosts.  They had just started to bloom before the colder weather arrived, but despite this they still bring a bit of sunshine in the snow.

In my last blog post I know that I said I would write about the courses and workshops that I teach.  The students have been completing some wonderful and inspiring work which I hope to show you soon.

In the meantime I have been creating my latest tutorial video, which yes you guessed it, is on painting yellow flowers !  The students in my Monday botanical art class have been studying bulbous plants, so this coming week we are going to be painting daffodils.

As from this January I have been attempting to produce 2 video tutorials a term to support the students in their learning.  I hope to carry this on, especially as the botanical art classes will be increasing this coming September.

Enjoy !

The link above is to the latest tutorial and the one below is the previous tutorial - Creating highlights.

Painting, painting, painting !

Where has the time gone ?  Hard to believe that it is a month since my last blog posting !

You will be glad to know that I have been painting away on several pieces.  Firstly, I was working on a large painting of a Sacred Lotus since before Christmas.  It has been a number of years since I have painted such a large botanical piece, there were challenges along the way and the majority were overcome.

The intention has been to submit it as a non-member for the Society of Botanical Artists Exhibition, which will take place in April at the Westminster Central Hall in London.  So, with a well wrapped painting, my husband and I made our way up to London for the submission on the 18th February.  It was a very well organised process and everyone was so happy, friendly and helpful. 

One lovely surprise was to meet up with a Botanical Artist firend Shevaun Docherty, who I had 'met' on a Facebook botanical artist's forum/group.  We had never met in person before and it was great to get a brief glimpse of her artwork before it was submitted and I look forward to seeing her work in the exhibition.  If you would like to see an example of her work go to: http://makingamark.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/13th-may-2012-whos-made-mark-this-week.html

My self-confidence can struggle at times, especially with my artwork, so I wasn't holding out much hope of the painting being accepted.  Over 1,000 paintings were submitted by members and non-members and approximately 600- 700 are hung after the assessment.  The suspense of the following week was difficult, but I kept myself busy with more painting and teaching.

This last Wednesday the envelope dropped through the door and I recognised my writing on the address.  In what seemed like an age I opened the envelope and slowly unfolded the form, to discover that my painting had been accepted !  Needless, to say I was absolutely thrilled and the weeks of hard work had paid off.  Here it is:  (apologies for the grey background, the painting is actually on Fabriano Artistico HP Natural White).

 

 

Alongside painting this I have also returned back to using acrylics.  I am really enjoying using this medium, particularly on the natural linen canvas and boards.

 

I am getting together a few pieces of 'marine themed' artwork to display at Emsworth Museum in conjunction with the Hants & IOW Wildlife Trust, and will also be creating a couple of new pieces.

 

One of which is completed and is a small 10cm x 10cm study of a crab's leg:

 

 

 

 

The other larger piece that I am working on is going to be called 'Shoreline Window' and is of a

close-up view of seaweed, shells and stones.  As the painting develops you will see the variety of colours that will be added.  At the moment I am painting the areas of seaweed:

 

 

For information about the exhibition see below:

 

 

 

My next blog posting will be about the courses and workshops that I teach.  All of the students have been producing some wonderful work, which I look forward to showing you.

 

Happy painting !



To plan or not to plan - that is the question !

With all pieces of artwork that I complete, I am always planning what goes where and how I am going to portray the subject matter, but in some cases the planning is more formal than others.

I love the spontaneity of finding some inspiring subjects and just getting on and painting them.  This often happens when they are bits and pieces that I have found in a hedgerow, along the shore or from the garden.  I lay out the objects on the paper to help me with the composition but other times I draw and paint each object one by one and the painting just evolves - sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

When I was a student on the RBGE Certificate in Botanical Illustration course last year, there was a great deal of planning going on when it came to our final assessment piece.  Pieces of tracing paper flying here and there, using a lightbox to decide on the final composition and then the big tracing exercise !  I do find that when you use this method of creating your composition, you have to be careful that the clarity of your drawing does not suffer in the tracing process.
Never the less, many of the exercises I completed on the course, I still use when planning a picture, especially if it is a very large painting.

The most recent painting I have been working on is of a Sacred Lotus.  (I have given myself the deadline of the end of this week to finish the picture, so I had better get a move on !)  I decided with this one that I would trace the main flower onto the paper, but the rest I drew straight onto the watercolour paper.  I did do some initial colour tests to see that the mixes I had in mind were suitable for the subject.

The painting is coming along and the next stage is to put in the stems and finish the other elements of the painting.

Back to the spontaneity !  Whilst trudging through the snow the week before last, we stopped off at the greengrocers and they were selling three stems of Amaryllis with some Willow.  They just seemed to glow in the grey and white atmosphere outside.

Knowing full well that I had no time to start a painting of them, an inspirational urge made me buy them !!
So upon returning home I decided to draw one of the flower heads and do some colour tests on cartridge paper.  I also took plenty of photographs and measurements, so that if I do decide to do a painting of them, I have all of the information I need.  I expect that I won't create a composition until this time next year, when I can buy the flowers at their prime again !

 

 

Thank you for following my blog and thanks also to David Crompton, a fellow Society of Floral Painters member, who on Saturday gave me some lovely feedback at our AGM.  If you would like to see some of his delightful artwork go to:

 

http://www.thesfp.org/gallery_watercolour.html

Happy painting !

Thank you and something for you !

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that follows my blog, as today the pageviews have exceeded 5,000 !

The Botanical Art Course that I teach at Peter Symonds ACE in Winchester starts next Monday and already I see that the course is full.  I am really looking forward to seeing returning students and meeting new ones.

Through out my teaching I am always looking for new ways to share my knowledge.  The weekly sessions are just two hours long, so it doesn't always give enough time for students to absorb and familiarise themselves with what they are seeing, doing and learning.  Therefore I have come up with an additional way for students to re-cap on what they have learnt.

Twice a term I will post a video on You Tube of demonstrations that have been covered in class.  Students will also be able to buy a DVD with the demonstrations on too.

So as a way of saying thank you to all of my 'followers', here is the first demonstration - Creating highlights using watercolours - Aubergine / Eggplant exercise.

Happy painting !  Sarah