Tiny white blooms...February.

snowdrop | logo | private view | kew

studio:

My garden may be sleeping but it’s snowdrop season and I indulge in my annual admiration of this gorgeous little bloom. The ‘Heralding Spring’ Event celebrates this flower at The Chelsea Physic Garden in London and I always look forward to it. I have painted a Galanthus nivalis on Pergamena calfskin (see above) for a special Birthday commission for a Welsh lady called Eirlys, Welsh for snowdrop. I love this little flower, it marks the start of Spring blooms, and perhaps it’s because it reminds me of the month when my youngest daughter was born. Did you know that there are about 20 known species of snowdrops?

I am thrilled to see my illustrations on all the seasonal menus for London’s Trinity Restaurant for a second year running. This Michelin star restaurant is voted in the top ten restaurants in London by Hardens and Zagat and has been included in the top 100 restaurants in the UK. Chef Patron Adam Byatt’s enthusiasm for seasonality and the great outdoors fits seamlessly with the work of a botanical illustrator. Thank you Adam for your support!

makeover:

I have taken advantage of a quiet growing season to give my website a makeover. I realized that it is now 8 years old and in computer years that’s 800! Check it out and let me know what you think! I feel it is easier to navigate now, thanks to the fine advice of my friend Erin. I knew what I wanted to sell from my website but it needed a fresh pair of expert eyes to point out the missing links.

logo:

I have had a fantastic new gold logo using my April birthday flower sweetpea illustration. Skillfully designed by the fab-u-lous graphic US designer Gary Wong who was so intuitive in listening to my brief and creating an arresting image that gives a great first impression of my work:

private view:

I had the pleasure of attending a Private View at The Gallery at Green & Stone, London where my Sweet Pea is hanging for the next couple of weeks. In partnership with St.Cuthbert’s Mill, Works on Paper 2024 is a four-week art exhibition hosted in the heart of Chelsea, that celebrates the innovative works of emerging artists who have harnessed the versatile medium of paper to craft exceptional and thought-provoking pieces. This exhibition serves as a testament to the enduring power of paper as a canvas for artistic expression. Up to 120 emerging and established artists are exhibiting on the Gallery walls for four weeks. The watercolour is for sale, see the online catalogue here.

kew:

One of the hats I wear as a botanical illustrator is volunteering for the Association of Botanical Artists. I sit on their Committee and head up their Education Team. We review books and materials for the botanical artist community. Check ABA out on all their platforms! I was lucky to join their Tour around The Centre for Economic Botany at Kew Gardens. The Collection is an extraordinary range of artefacts, all derived from plants – and 500 items that are from fungi.  

Toys, paper, instruments, and fuel are just some of the items in the collection that tell stories about how daily lives are lived, how human moments are celebrated and how communities are built and defended. They add around 2,000 specimens every year collected through global partnerships. This collection represents all plant uses and most parts of the world – but it has a particular emphasis on regions affected by British colonialism or trade in the period 1847 to 1930.  This visit is in preparation for The BAWW Show in 2025.

I also popped into The Shirley Sherwood Gallery at Kew to view The Young Botanical Artist Competition. An impressive showcase of the winners of a new generation of botanical artists across the globe.

materials:

A shoutout to the creamy smooth US Pergamena calfskin I painted the snowdrop on. This is a wonderful tannery owned by the Meyer family in New York specialising in high end leather and parchment products for 470 years. Their customer service is so personal (shoutout to Liv!) and they ship to the UK for my English readers. My New Year’s Resolution (again) is to get to grips with this painting surface and try UK Kelmscott vellum next.

podcast:

Chelsea Physic Garden, London, UK are celebrating their 350th Anniversary, and have commissioned a three-part mini series, a great listen wherever you get your pods. They discuss some of the epoch-changing plants that have changed our world which can be found in the garden. Also unlocking the Garden’s collections from the origins in 1673, to the reopening of their historic greenhouses in 2023, the controversial history of the Garden’s benefactor Sir Hans Sloane whose statue stands in the middle of the garden, and how the Garden is protecting nature from climate change.

Spread the word about this new community and happy painting plants this month!

Happy painting,

Emma x