Artist focus: Deborah Lambkin
Irish botanical artist painting in London
Welcome to Behind the Brush… I’m so happy you’re here. Artist Focus is my mid-month feature where I invite botanical artists from all over the world to share their favourite seven studio picks for plant art and beyond.
I really don’t know where to start with all of artist Deborah Lambkin’s accomplishments. She has been a professional botanical illustrator since graduating from the National College of Art and Design, Ireland in 1991. She works freelance for the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, the Eric Young Orchid Foundation, and The Royal Horticultural Society where she has also held the position of Orchid Artist since 2005 and in that time has painted more than 500 orchid portraits. In 2014 she joined the RHS Picture Advisory Panel, which includes judging at the yearly RHS Botanical Art shows. In 2021 Deborah was awarded the Jill Smythies Award for excellence in scientific botanical illustration by the Linnean Society of London, and in 2020 she received the Margaret Flockton Award First Prize from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, for her illustration of a new species of Gastrodia orchid, a gold medal from The RHS in 1999 and two Silver medals in 1998 and 1997. Deborah is a Fellow of Linnean Society of London too. She is also a Founder member of the Irish Society of Botanical Artists.
I could go on and on… oh and did I mention that she is the loveliest person and a mother, too?! It’s an honour to feature Deborah and her seven studio favourites here:
Favourite paintbrush:
I use Winsor & Newton Series 7 Miniature Kolinsky Sable and ProArte Prolene brushes. I am very hard on brushes, I use them a lot and probably don’t treat them as well as I should, the very small ones just don’t last very long, so I need to buy new ones regularly.Â
Favourite paint:
I use W&N watercolour paint, mainly because I am most familiar with them and they are the most easily available to me. I love Quinacridone Magenta, I just love the colour and it handles very smoothly.
Favourite paper:
Paper is a difficult subject these days! I have gone from Fabriano Artistico heaviest weight, extra-white sheets (until they changed their paper making technique), through Arches (too cream, too expensive), through Saunders Waterford (too soft, seems hard to find near me), through Fabriano no.5 (not 100% Cotton) and finally back to Fabriano Artistico again. I’m not particularly happy with it and would like to find a perfect paper sometime.
Favourite botanical artist:
I have been inspired by the work of so many wonderful botanical artists, it is hard to pick one. Probably Celia Rosser, who I was so inspired by early in my career. I recently read a book about her (Banksia Lady by Carolyn Landon), which I related to so much and loved. I am sorry that I have never met her in person.
Favourite plant:
I have a garden full of plants and an indoors full of houseplants and I love a different one every day. After 20 years specialising in painting orchids I have learned a lot about them and how best to represent them in paint, pen and pencil. I just love plants full stop!
Favourite studio drink:
I have had the unfortunate experience where someone handed me a cup of tea and passed it to me directly over my work and yes, drip, drip, drip… I learned a lesson that day: No drinks allowed anywhere near my desk. I don’t think I could even start to think about painting in the morning without first having a coffee.
Favourite Studio music, pods:
I listen to Radio, Audiobooks and podcasts while I paint, only while I paint, I can’t concentrate on listening to anything while I am designing or drawing. It’s a great way to catch up with long books that you have always been meaning to read.
Happy plant painting, and if there’s an artist you would like to know more about please let me know!