Artist focus: Katja Katholing-Bloss
Botanical artist painting in Bavaria, Germany
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 studio picks for plant art and beyond.
This month I am spotlighting the wonderful botanical artist Katja, a fabulous lady who I have admired for a long while online and then had the pleasure of meeting at this year’s Plantae Exhibition. She is also a Council Member of the Society of Botanical Artists. She lives in Franconia, a county in Bavaria, Germany. After 14 ½ years in the UK and Australia, she’s been back in Germany since 2015. She have been living and working in her home town of Hof since 2019. She teaches botanical art in her studio there.
“It really all began in 2008 with a spontaneous trip to the ‘Botanica’ exhibition at Sydney’s Botanical Gardens, where I came across unbelievably realistic and detailed sketches and paintings of plants by botanical illustrators and artists. As a child I always really enjoyed painting and loved experimenting with colours. This love, which had laid dormant and neglected for so long, was sparked back into life by all of those photograph-like realistic paintings I viewed at the exhibition that day. It was clear to me that I wanted to pick up my pencils and brushes and try again. When I took part in a workshop concentrating on drawing and painting insects and was immediately hooked. Several years later what started as a calling became an occupation. Born and raised in a place called Hof an der Saale, in the northern-most part of Bavaria, I grew up always surrounded by flowers. My mother’s florist shop was an early formative inspiration that remains strong to this day. I spend my early career working in industry, initially in Germany and then over a decade in England and Australia. I returned to Germany in 2015, first to Bayreuth and since 2019 I’ve been living in my home town, Hof. I received my initial training as a botanical artist in England where I studied under the late Stuart Lafford and, after completing additional advanced study, was appointed as a botanical art teacher at the Hereford College of Technology. I am currently a board member of the Society of Botanical Artists (SBA, England), the American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA), on the advisory board of the German Society of Botanical Artists (VBKD) as well as several Art Association in Germany. On numerous occasions I have exhibited my work in England and Germany and hold the distinction of being the only German artist to have exhibited at the SBA’s Annual Exhibition ‘Plantae’ at the Mall Galleries in London in May 2019. My works are held by private collectors in many countries including England, Australia, Italy, Spain, USA and Dubai. As a freelance artist and tutor of botanical art I offer various workshops and individual tutoring in my studio in Hof and also offer workshops in Dornbirn in Austria. I consider it my overarching mission to raise the level of awareness of this unique art form amongst the German public, and to encourage observers of this wonderful world of plants to develop a keen appreciation of all its glorious detail. That’s my passion and goal and one which I sincerely hope inspires you too!”
1) Favourite paintbrush? My favourite brush is my own set, which I have developed with a German brush manufacturer. It is vegan and contains four brushes that behave like sable brushes.
2) Favourite paint? During my time in England and when I first started painting, I used both Winsor & Newton and Schmincke colours. Over the years I have ended up with Sennelier colours and love them for their creaminess, which comes from the honey content in them.
3) Favourite watercolour paper? That's a difficult question! My favourite paper and I'm sure many other artists' favourite paper too was the old Fabriano. I'm always trying out different papers and currently use Arches and Clairefontaine paper, my favourite being the 640gsm hot pressed.
4) Favourite botanical artists? There are so many artists that I admire for a variety of things. It's difficult to pin them down. Rory McEwan, Arthur Harry Church, Barbara Regina Dietzsch or Pandora Sellers were incredibly good, brave and innovative in their time. I admire Susannah Blaxill for her use of subtle colours and Billy Showell for their innovative compositions.
5) Favourite plant to paint? Do I have one? I don't think so! There are a few that I don't like so much and that's probably why I avoid drawing them.
6) Favourite studio drink? Tea in the winter, water in the summer.
7) Favourite studio music/pods? When I teach, I have classical music playing in the background. However, when I'm working alone, I prefer it to be quiet so that I'm not distracted by anything.
