SBA Distance Learning

I have been accepted into the SBA -  Society of Botanical Artists Distance Learning Diploma Course.  The program began the beginning of 2013 and will run for 27 months. I will be completeling the course entirely in Coloured Pencil.

The Course is open to students anywhere in the world and there are currently students from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, the Republic of Korea, South Africa, Brazil, Canada and the USA as well as Europe and the UK. 

For more information on the Society and the Distance Learning course, check out the SBA website.


Assignment #1 Drawing.  

Received my artwork and marks from my SBA tutor in England today.

I had completed this assignment before even being accepted into the SBA Distance Learning Diploma Course.  I read thru the sample assignment descriptions on the SBA website and decided to go along with the program, completing the assignments as best I could.

I tend to do well when I have instructions and a goal, so this kept me going with my artwork.

Once I was accepted into the program, they gladly accepted the first assignment, which I had brought with me to England on my last trip.

I really wasn't sure what to expect grade wise, so I was very happy when I received my marks in the mail today and received an 8.7 out of 10.

Tonal Values

Tutor's comments:  Excellent tonal strip with good even graduated of squares from light to dark. 

 Near Perfect!

Line Drawing

Tutor's Comments:  Beautiful piece well composed and positioned on the sheet.  However the line is too dark.  (I did not realize the weight of the lines were to be very thin, so it could be painted over at a later date)  All the structure and character is there as is your drawing ability.

Stippled Study of a Single Flower

 Tutors Comments:  Here you have produced a wonderful study showing the character of the subject.  Your ability to convey shape and form with this technique is extremely good and you have good constraint showing depth.

Note: Tutor's comments are a condensed version

All in all, I am very happy with my marks and the tutors comments. 

Looking forward to receiving the marks back from Assignment #2

Now it's back to work on Assignment #3 Leaves!

.

Assignment #2 Coloured Pencil

 Exercise 1 - Drawing an cylinder, 

Exercise 2 - Layering with a single colour

Exercise 3 - Blending two colors 

Study 1 - Produce a small composition of a leaf, fruit and single flower.

Citrus × meyeri 

Study 2 - Produce a small study of single flower and its foilage.

Tulipa 'Ronaldo'

Check back for my tutors comments!

Assignment #3 Leaves!

So for this assignment, we were to make a green color chart.  Now remember, I am completing this course solely in colored pencil so my color charts look much different than the water color students.  Much easier to mix my colors and each time I get the same results.  Don't know how the watercolor students duplicate their colors each time.

Composition pages

Composition is one of the hardest thing for me to get right.  I took all my leaves and starting laying them out on the paper, taking pictures of the different compositions.  

Too many leaves all lined up like soldiers

Mixed them up a bit.  That big leaf is too big.  The eye keeps going back to it.

This one is better, but forgot my Monocot leaf.

I did like this composition,, but when I tried to draw the Monocot, I realized I couldn't get it perfect.

Final Composition!

My instructions called for all different varieties of leaves.

Sketchbook pages

One of my sketchbook pages, not complete yet.  I get them started but haven't finished them up.  This assignment required one for each leaf, plus the green color chart and the composition pages.  I will have to go back at a later date and finish them up.  

Final assignment

Tutors Notes - Here is an abbreviated version of my tutors comments: 

You have chosen some very interesting leaves for this Assignment.  My only criticism is that your green leaves are all a similar shade.  A really bright, yellow/green leaf wold have added even more interest.
Some of your leaves are 'touchable', especially the Bougainvillea, but sadly one or two look a little flat.  Just a tiny bit more evidence of a light source would eradicate this.

A selection of leaves offers a wonderful challenge ass far as composition goes, as there are so man;y smaller shapes to fit comfortable together.  This is really well done, with some upright, some hanging down and the ones with the curves placed cleverly so the viewer is led gently through the work.

This has got to be the best example of near perfect labeling I have ever seen!  Please do it every time - you will make me so happy!!

Labeling on back of artwork

I could not be happier with my final mark of 9.49..... not sure how I am going to top this mark:) 

Now to keep working on Assignment #4 Flower Heads

Assignment #4 Flower Heads

This assignment called for seven flower heads, life size, each showing a maximum of 6cm of stem but no leaves.  We had to show different shapes, colors and sizes with each flower to its best advantage.

The flowers I picked from top left to bottom right are:

Hibiscus rosa-sinensis

Fuchsia 'Royal Velvet'

Cymbidium

Eschschotzia californica, 'California Poppy'

Nigella damascene, 'Love-in-a-mist'

Calceolaria integrifolia, 'Pocketbook plant'

Cosmos bipinnatus 'Sonata Pink'

Each one of these flower heads were quite the challenge.  

First I had to find flowers in all different colors, shapes and sizes.

I had about 15 picked and then started narrowing them down to the final 7

Then took photographs of each one, printed them out, cut them out and started playing with the composition.

The comment from my tutor in regards to composition was to be aware that there is a tendency, when placing subjects on an Assignment requiring seven items. to place one in each corner and three in the center.  Be aware of this and take care.  Your Hibiscus is so strong the viewer would find it difficult to move the eye over the remainder of the page.  

Wouldn't that always be the case though, no matter where I put the Hybiscus?  It's always going to stand out the most.  Not sure what I would do different.  Only received a 9.0 on Composition.

Next it started with the Orchid since I had a hard time finding a green one and I didn't want it to die on me.  So this was one of my hardest flowers to draw.  The column was so hard to differentiate from the rest of the flower behind it, because there was so much bright white on the middle of the flower.  Got marked down for that one. Tutor commented got lost trying to follow the detail in the centre of the Cymbidium.

Then I worked my way around the page picking the flowers that were blooming at the time.

My Hybiscus got the highest praise from the tutor. My tutor commented Your Hibiscus is stunning and shows such a wonderful deep throat.

Received a lot of constructive notes from my tutor, but all in all, I am OK with my mark of 9.1

Step by Step coloring of my California Poppy

Coloring in the Shadows
Note: The blue on the stem is masking fluid

Adding in a bit more shading

Adding a bit of coloring

Bit more color

Skipped a few steps
Added a few shades of orange
Colored in the stem

Tutors comment Be careful when drawing stamens that you do not make them all look exactly the same and not too fat

My tutor had received my package damaged in the post and had to be taped up by the postal people.  Fortunately, I received it back with only a few creases in the corner.

Final Mark 9.17

Glad to have it back and move on to my next assignment.

Assignment #5
Alstroemeria 

I always have a vase of Alstroemeria in my kitchen.  One of the reasons why I love this flower is because it is so long lasting.  Sometimes the same bunch lasts three weeks and the variety of colors is wonderful.

As I was deciding on the composition, I was struggling with too many flowers and not enough steams.  One of the notes in the directions for this assignment was to remember the value of odd numbers and triangular shapes.  I then scaled down the number of flowers and finalized on this composition,

It was a bit too simple for my tutor, she wrote:  

Composition is the area where you could have gained more marks had you added a few extra stems.  Three is the bare minimum for this assignment so adding a few buds, half open flowers and one facing away would have been lovely.  However, as I said, what you have done has been drawn beautifully.

That being said, it's time to step it up on the next assignment.    

I received my highest marks for Technique, my tutor noted:

Your pencil technique is always very good with lovely blending and smooth gradations of colour from shade to light.  The veins have also been done really well so if you used an embossing tool then it doesn't show  -- which is great!

The instructions for this assignment were:

You are required to produce a composition comprising a group of one single variety of flower with leaves.  This does not mean a spray such as a single stem of spray, but an arrangement of individual stems.  Take inspiration from any painting of an individual flower variety im the textbooks.  

Carefully choose your flowers and use your sketchbook to plan the layout.  Remember the value of odd numbers and triangular shapes.  Both make good composition relatively straight-forward whereas even numbers result in square or rectangular shapes which are for less pleasing to the eye.  Do not show all the flowers facing the front.  If you place some in profile, semi-profile or show a back view this will add to the sense of a three-dimensional composition. 

I am very happy with my mark of 9.22

Now it's on to my Fruit assignment

(my essay is already completed, just need to tweak it a bit and post it to the UK)

Assignment #6

Essay

This assignment is different than any of the other assignments given throughout the course.

We were given two options for this essay and I chose the second one as follows:

Write an essay of not less than 1200 words, but not more than 1500 words.

Explain the attraction which botanical painting holds for you.  Name a well-known botanical artist from the past, before 1950, and one piece of work which you particularly admire.  Compare this with work by a contemporary (living) botanical artist whom you equally admire.  Would you say it is easier or more difficult for a botanical painter to forge a career today?  Give your reasons and name your sources of reference material.

I went at this assignment in a backward fashion.  My most admired contemporary botanical artist is Ann Swan of the UK.  One of my favorite painting of hers is her portrait of an Artichoke.

Ann Swan - Artichoke - Coloured Pencil

I then searched for an Artichoke that was painted pre 1950's.  With the Internet, this made the search much easier.  After looking at many pictures, I discovered Jacques-le-Moyne-de-Morgues, a French painter from the 1500's.  He was an artist who joined the French exhibition to colonize northern Florida, USA.  He was known as a cartographer and illustrator, painting landscapes of the continent.

Jacques-le-Moyne-de-Morgues

Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus

Here is my essay as submitted to my SBA tutor.

 

SBA Assignment #6

Essay

 Lori Vreeke

SBA DLDC10

 

“Explain the attraction which botanical painting holds for you.  Name a well-known botanical artist from the past, before 1950, and one piece of work which you particularly admire.  Compare this with work by a contemporary (living) botanical artist whom you equally admire.  Would you say it is easier or more difficult for a botanical painter to forge a career today?  Give your reasons and name your sources of reference material.”

 

            Found in almost any climate in all corners of the globe is the wonder of the plant. Millions of years of evolution has perfected the botanical world into an array of shapes and sizes with the sole purpose of species survival and reproduction. But this beauty has not gone unnoticed. These plants hold not only nutritional value to the human world, but their colors and flowers dance through our imaginations and trigger the curiosity that has brought humankind so far. A true love story in each leaf, one can hold, smell, and admire these plants and flowers anywhere in the world. Admiring these phenomena in their natural environments is not difficult, but rather taking the memory and a small piece of the beauty without interruption is a challenge in itself. For me, this challenge is met by sketching what I see in the plant, how it appeals to my senses, and the unspoken admiration for these great surviving beauties. One human invention allows us to duplicate what we see onto a two dimensional surface; the camera. But anyone can photograph their surroundings, and to capture the true essence of a specimen, botanical painting can be exact, can include the finest of details, and dissect parts of a plant to show the viewer its character and spirit. The artist can duplicate detail such as the tiny hairs of a stem, the gloss on a leaf, and the details of a stamen, bringing out the true botany of a plant. Mixing colors on a page to duplicate the colors that nature has invented is inspiring, and like Mother Nature’s act of creation, an artist can see a painting come to life as each color is put on the page. 

            Botanical art has become my therapy, and being able to sit in a quiet room and compose a picture is soothing to my soul. I am lucky enough to live in Southern California,USA, and with its mild weather, plants and flowers are able to thrive year round. Having easy accessibility to wooded areas, high altitude mountainous areas, and ocean climates all within a short drive, I am able to pick from a diverse array of plants to choose as my subject. Many of my specimens come from my own garden, natural habitats, and the local farms near to my home, and I most often enjoy selecting plants that are found in this warm ecosystem to use for my assignments, which in turn allows my tutors to see plants that are unfamiliar to them. Since being accepted into the SBA DLDC program, I have taken up gardening to familiarize myself with all stages in the growth of a plant. From the seedling's fight from soil to sunlight to the first opening of the leaves, from the progress in height and width to the flowering and pollination by the insects, from the first sprout of fruit to the plump nutritious food the plant produces, I am accompanied by the butterflies and humming birds in the admiration of this natural love story.

            There have been a countless number of artists who have come before me, all enjoying the diverse flora and fauna of the United States,  much of which was brought here by the early settlers to this New World, who also captured these images in sketches and paintings. The new settlers in America wanted the familiar foods and animals from their homeland, but when they brought these plants and animals from their homes to the New World, the landscape was changed forever, affecting indigenous animals and exposing Native American populations to new diseases. Some of these plants included bananas and rice from Asia, tea, lemons and oranges from China, sugar cane from New Guinea, cotton from Pakistan, coffee, millet and yams from Africa, and wheat, rye and oats from Europe. But of course, with the new additions, came the admirers. One of the earliest artists and cartographers, Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues^1,2,3 (1533 – 1588), a French artist who joined the French exhibition⁴ of Jean Riault and Rene Laudonnniere in an attempt to colonize northern Florida, is mostly known for his artistic depictions of landscape, flora, fauna and the natural inhabitants of the New World. During his expeditions, he made a name for himself as a cartographer and illustrator, painting landscapes of the continent they scaled. Much of Le Moyune’s life is undocumented, but it is thought he trained as an artist in his native town of Morgues in the Loire Valley, France.  There are no surviving works by the artist dating from before his departure for Florida in 1564. Up until 1922 little was known of Jacques Le Moyne de Morgues, when a discovery by a librarian of the Linnean Society found a group of fifty-nine watercolor paintings of plants, which made way to the definition of Le Moyne as an artistic personality.  The small volume had been purchased by the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1856 for its fine sixteenth century French binding, and this discovery prepared the way for subsequent attrition to the artist of other important groups of drawings and watercolors. His expedition resulted in the production of the Le Moyne/de Bry publication and maps of the coastal regions of Florida, and in 1586 Jacques le Moyne made plans to publish his own account, accompanied by his own artwork of the expedition’s experiences in Florida. Tragically, Le Moyne died within the year and was unable to finish the project^4.

Jumping forward to the present day, one of the England’s current leading botanical artists, Ann Swan (1949) specializes in colored pencil and graphite. Swan studied art at Manchester College of Art and Design in 1967 for a year, specializing in textile design.  She was soon married and even lived in Uganda, where she continued to pursue oil painting. Later returning to England, Swan used her drawing talents to work on traffic design system drawings for Philips Company.  Swan’s life was forever altered when she became seriously ill in 1988, and began drawing the flowers that well-wishers would bring her.  She then received an Enterprise Grant, enabling her to get her very first limited edition prints issued and allowing her to concentrate on building a career in botanical art. In the years following.  Ann Swan’s work has been exhibited worldwide, including the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew, Hampton and RHS Chelsea Flower Show and the Hunt Institute in Pittsburgh, USA.  She also participates on the judging panel for both the RHS and SBA Botanical Art Exhibitions.  Her art hangs on some of the most famous walls of the world including the Shirley Sherwood Collection⁵, the RHS Lindley Library and many private homes like that of the Duke of Edinburgh.  She has been awarded numerous medals and awards in the Royal Historical Society (RHS), World Orchid Conference, the Society of Botanical Artists (SBA), and United Kingdom Coloured Pencil Society (UKCPS).  Her art has also been commissioned for ceramics by Jersey Pottery and The Southern Bulb Company of Texas.  Swan currently teaches⁶ her techniques in the countries of France, the UK, Spain⁷, Italy, Germany and the United States of America. She has even authored her own book, 'Botanical Painting with Coloured Pencils' which has been very well received both in the UK and United States.

Comparing  Ann Swan’s Artichoke^fig.1  painted in coloured pencil, with Jacques-le-Moyne-de-Morgue’s Artichoke^fig.2 painted in watercolour, they each have subtle differences in the tools they use to interpret this plant. Peculiarly, both artists are from the UK, but have shared an atypical relationship with this vegetable some 500 years apart. In the picture by Jacques-le-Moyne-de-Morgue, completed five centuries ago, the composition is stiff and hard. The character of the artichoke is strict and appears somewhat heavy. At the time, there was a limited color library, and the paint was made by hand from native and accessible plants. These challenges were overcome by the artist only to be met with the hurdles of limited advertising resources. On the other hand, Ann Swan’s artichoke seems to be dancing about the page, flowing and creating a whimsical and amusing character. Unlike the 1500’s, her paints and supplies are easily accessible and there is now a variety of colors and shades available. Using primarily graphite and colored pencil, Swan has had a lifetime with the advantage of studying past artists for technique and inspiration.

In the 1500’s painting was one of just a few art forms, and the consumer audience was also limited. In the technological age of today, however, resources, supplies, artist communities, and advertising and sales can be accessed by nearly anyone. Artwork can be posted on the World Wide Web for the public to view from all corners of the globe. In addition to these modern day benefits, photographs are one of the most common art media and are widely available to the public, such as a photograph taken, cropped, filtered, edited, and sent around the world in an instant, all from a cellular device. Though the convenience and accessibility of artwork today may support the possibility of making a living from the creation of art pieces, one must also consider the competition factor. Five hundred years ago, artists were hired not only to paint single paintings, but entire structures, telling stories of history and life.  Artists started their careers at a very early age as apprentices⁹, striving to become a master artist.  . Artists were considered a service business, unlike today artists did not create whatever they liked. Some artists were hired by wealthy families for a lifetime.  While there were advantages to making a living as an artist nearly five centuries ago, there are many different advantages for artists today. In the end, talent and beauty will ultimately speak for itself, and no matter what time period an art piece may be from, the journey and discovery that goes into the creation of an everlasting masterpiece is what holds true value.

Tutors Comments: (abbreviated)

An interesting choice of artists Lori..

Over the years I (the tutor) have lectured many times on this early botanical painter who underwent horrendous difficulties for the sake of discovery and his art. 

In your comparison with Ann Swan, you state both are from the UK, which is clearly wrong.  (I don't know how I could have made that error, I knew he was French and even wrote that.  Note to future students, check and double check your writing.  Silly mistake I made)

You also say that Le Moynes was working in watercolor, which would not be around for some 200 to 300 years.  (This I took directly out of a book when 59 watercolor paintings of plants was discovered by a librarian of the Linnean Society. Hmmmm, who is wrong?  The book or my tutor?)

It is worth considering that Ann Swan was the first artist in the UK to achieve recognition for her coloured pencil work as she pioneered it in the days when the color range was much smaller and not as light fast as it is today.

You could say they are both pioneers in their own way.

Well, I'm happy with my score of 4.2 out of 5.0  and looking forward to my next assignment.....

Fruit Study

Assignment #7

Composition - Fruit Study

Carissa macrocarpa  (Natal Plum)

A shrub native to South Africa, where it is commonly called the Large Num-Num. In Zulu, as well as in the Bantu tribes of Uganda, it is called amatungulu. In Afrikaans the fruit is called Noem-Noem.  C. macrocarpa deals well with salt-laden winds, making it a good choice for coastal areas. It is commonly found in the coastal bush of the Eastern Cape and Natal.  It produces shiny, deep green leaves and snowy white flowers whose perfumed scent intensifies at night. Like other Carissa species, C. macrocarpa is a spiny, evergreen shrub containing latex. They bloom for months at a time. The ornamental plump, round, crimson fruit appears in summer and fall (autumn) at the same time as the blooms. In moderate, coastal areas the fruits appear through the year. The fruit can be eaten out of hand or made into pies, jams, jellies, and sauces.  Some claim that other than the fruit, the plant is poisonous.  However this claim is a myth, possibly based on similarities to other plants with milky sap.  The California Poison Control System rates the plant as mildly toxic.

When starting an assignment, I always try to pick my material based on something everyone else isn't going to pick, something colorful, and something I am growing or easily accessible.  What I really wanted to pick was a big pile of walnuts.  Unfortunately, when I was going to go pick them from a local walnut grove, there had been large winds the week before, which stripped the trees of their fruit. 
So, while on my weekly walks, I always pass a home that has a long hedge of Natal Plums growing.  They always seem to be fruiting, and have always caught my eye, wondering what they were.
I then brought some home, contacted the homeowner to see if she knew what they were called, and started sketching.  Unfortunately the homeowner and the local nursery did not know what they were.  I then posted a picture of the fruit on the facebook page Botany Today, asked if anyone knew what it was called and within minutes, I had my answer.
I then started in on my sketchbook work, it was just before the winter holidays, so I figured I would use my tine to draw a holiday greeting card for friends and family.

Many hours later, here is the outcome .............................

On to my assignment..................................

Condensed notes from my tutor:

An unusual subject, and new to me, so I thank you for showing me something I've not seen before.

This piece is so neat and accurate.

Tone on your leaves is lovely and the fruit shows up so well in front of them.  You lost a few points because of the dissected fruit, as it looks flat.  Had you shown just a small portion of the skin as well as the centre of the fruit you could have overcome this. 

I don't dislike your composition but you could have made it more interesting by adding a couple of other images, maybe a completely different fruit.  (Hmmmmm really, a different fruit, I would never have done this)

A small note at the end of her assessment.  Your work reflects you, small and neat, that's fine, but large subjects or more of the smaller ones is required.  I don't want to see the paper crammed full of stuff if had these had been eating apples it would have been perfect.  In other words, these are very small so either choose larger subjects or do more if they're small.  Also, when cutting a subject in half be careful if you choose to draw it straight-on.  Unless it has something visible to show its form then tip it slightly to show the shape (I like this tip and will definitely remember it)

  

Happy with my marks and will take what my tutor noted in her assessment and learn from it for the next assignment.

mark 9.26

Thanks for visiting my blog....

On to the Vegetable Assignment...............

Assignment #8

Composition - Vegetable Study

The first question you ask is "Why use a Tomato, it's a Fruit"

and yes, you are correct.  The SBA allows us to use a tomato as a fruit or vegetable since it is used as a vegetable in salads.  So, no points lost there!

Solanum lycopersicum

Heirloom Tomato

'Claurina', 'Montenegro', 'Tomawah'

Purchase my three tomatoes at Whole Foods.  Figured out the composition and started drawing as much as I could without having the stems.  The stems and leaves are taken off the fruit before they are shipped to the stores.

Once I got as much drawn as I could I went on a tour of Houwelings Tomatoes. 

One of the largest growers of Heirloom Tomatoes. 

The Mastery Under Glass is located only 20 minutes from my home.

All the tomatoes are grown hydroponically in huge glass greenhouses.  This place is amazing!

You have to suit up in clean suits to enter the facility.

Me and Kyle, our tour director.

Aren't we cute!

Once home with my stems, leaves and tons of photographs, I quickly started my stems. 

Carefully placing them and completing my assignment.

The finished product and yes these Toms are huge!

My tutor commented that "I think you took me quite literally when I mentioned about small subjects in your last assignment.  I am amused!  These are so big - and I've no doubt tasted delicious.

Condensed tutor comments:

Wow!  Big Tomatoes

These tomatoes look touchable - excellent.

Your composition is fine Lori.  The three tomatoes work together really well - but have to admit it would have been lovely to see inside one of them - just because I am interested and, therefore, I expect others would be too.  It would have added even more interest but I can imagine they are very complicated inside and maybe time wasn't on your side. 

Final Mark 9.35

As always, I was nervous about my marks.  One because I only had three subjects and the composition was pretty standard.  Yes, I would have loved to drawn the inside, but time is of the essence and I never seem to have enough.  I am learning with each assignment and am looking forward to our next assignment 'Botanical Illustration'

Assignment #8 Vegetable Study

 

The first question you ask is "Why use a Tomato, it's a Fruit"

and yes, you are correct.  The SBA allows us to use a tomato as a fruit or vegetable since it is used as a vegetable in salads.  So, no points lost there!

 

Solanum lycopersicum

Heirloom Tomato

'Claurina', 'Montenegro', 'Tomawah'

 

 

Purchase my three tomatoes at Whole Foods.  Figured out the composition and started drawing as much as I could without having the stems.  The stems and leaves are taken off the fruit before they are shipped to the stores.

 

 

 

Once I got as much drawn as I could I went on a tour of Houwelings Tomatoes. 

One of the largest growers of Heirloom Tomatoes. 

The Mastery Under Glass is located only 20 minutes from my home.

 

 

All the tomatoes are grown hydroponically in huge glass greenhouses.  This place is amazing!

 

 

You have to suit up in clean suits to enter the facility.

Me and Kyle, our tour director.

Aren't we cute!

 

 

Once home with my stems, leaves and tons of photographs, I quickly started my stems. 

Carefully placing them and completing my assignment.

 

 

The finished product and yes these Toms are huge!

 

My tutor commented that "I think you took me quite literally when I mentioned about small subjects in your last assignment.  I am amused!  These are so big - and I've no doubt tasted delicious.

 

Condensed tutor comments:

Wow!  Big Tomatoes

These tomatoes look touchable - excellent.

Your composition is fine Lori.  The three tomatoes work together really well - but have to admit it would have been lovely to see inside one of them - just because I am interested and, therefore, I expect others would be too.  It would have added even more interest but I can imagine they are very complicated inside and maybe time wasn't on your side. 

 

 

Final Mark 9.35

 

As always, I was nervous about my marks.  One because I only had three subjects and the composition was pretty standard.  Yes, I would have loved to drawn the inside, but time is of the essence and I never seem to have enough.  I am learning with each assignment and am looking forward to our next assignment 'Botanical Illustration'

Botanical Illustration Assignment #9

Strelitzia reginae

 

The assignment called for an accurate depiction of size, form and colour, showing a single species with foliage with a dissection shown.

 

I am lucky enough to have dozens of Strelitzia reginae growing in my garden, which bloom year round in sunny Southern California.  This allowed me to cut new flowers at all stages of growth throughout the 2 months of drawing. 

And yes, it did take me 2 full months, though I am slow :)

The dissection was a new adventure for me, with each one I picked having different number of Sepals and Petals.

 

 

Took one of the birds completely apart and layed it all out and numbered each layer.

There are really a lot of layers inside each beak.

 

 

One of my sketchbook pages, practicing with colours and techniques.

 

 

Discection of Strelitzia sexual organs

 

 

 

Completed Assignment!

 

 

Tutors comments abbreviated:

Good tones in the leaf and on the stems.  I would have liked to see a little more depth in the orange petals but it's nothing major.  You can take a bit of artistic license to accentuate the darker areas in order to make the areas in the foreground look closer.

 

Love the composition.  It's perfect for the plant!

 

Final Mark

 

9.75

 

REALLY happy with my marks, love these birds!