Botanical Illustration In Watercolour

Billy Showell is a well-respected botanical watercolour artist, and her exceptional eye for detail and ability to re-create the form, texture, colour and patterning of a wide range of plants have earned her a formidable reputation worldwide. Her compositions are given a contemporary, sometimes playful twist, while retaining all the beauty and accuracy of traditional botanical paintings. In this inspiring and indispensable guide for botanical artists, she reveals the materials, methods and techniques she uses to attain her stunningly beautiful portraits of flowers, fruit and vegetables. There is expert guidance on tools and materials, working from life, observation, and drawing and painting techniques, as well as detailed sections on pattern, texture, and colour and colour mixing. With numerous step-by-step studies, close-up photographs and examples of Billy's exquisite paintings, this book is not only packed full of invaluable advice and information but also a visually stunning showcase for the work of this amazing artist.

Award-winning artist Harriet de Winton shows you how to create contemporary watercolour artworks to treasure and share. Through more than 30 step-by-step projects, discover how to paint individual flowers and foliage, as well as beautiful botanical compositions. Use your new skills to make art for your wall, unique cards, invitations, or simply paint for pleasure.

Capture the fascinating beauty of plants. How can an artist create a botanical portrait that is both accurate and aesthetically pleasing? This is the essence of an art form whose charm and universal appeal have made it popular for centuries. Botanical Illustration in Watercolor is the first authoritative, comprehensive book to focus specifically on the materials and techniques of painting plants in watercolor. This book is full of essential advice not found in any other watercolor books, such as: • What a botanical illustration must include to meet the requirements of scientific accuracy. • How to prop up a heavy woody branch at the desired angle. • How to keep ferns and delicate flowers from wilting before the picture is finished. • How to mix the specific colors of paint most often needed for depicting plants. • How to plan the design of a drawing that involves heavy foliage or multiple stems.

This is the story of one woman's journey from amateur painter to botanical artist, told through the sketchbooks and paintings she produced for the Distance Learning Diploma Course run by the Society of Botanical Artists. Packed with advice and tips, this book will serve as a guide and inspiration to anyone wanting to embark on life as a botanical artist. This book is both a showcase of Mary Ann Scott's work and a record of her achievements, including first-hand accounts of the joys and challenges she faced as she progressed. It contains work from every assignment she undertook, from her first attempts at drawing a tulip to the triumphant paintings she made for her diploma portfolio. Along the way are delicate floral compositions, juicy fruit and vegetables, botanical dissections, and her adventures out in the field. Margaret Stevens's comments on each assignments are also included, giving an insight into the assessment process and an all-round view of Mary Ann's successes and (very rare) failures. The book ends with a glorious selection of Mary Ann's ongoing work as a botanical artist.

Colour mixing is a key skill for the botanical artist. In this practical guide, Jackie Isard explains how to observe and use colour accurately. She shows artists how to make informed choices when selecting pigments, as well as how to learn about colour mixing and its application. Detailed instruction and advice are given on understanding colour and pigments. The author explains how to 'see' colour and tricky mixes, from greens and reds to the difficult botanical greys. Includes advanced colour application techniques - colour enhancement, shadow colours and colour temperature transition. Finally, step-by-step guides illustrate how to paint with layers, how to use underlaying colours to enhance, and colour and fine detailing.

"First published in hardback in Great Britain 2009" -- Colophon.

A practical guide to using gouache in botanical painting, by a leading botanical painter. Gouache is an opaque water-based medium, often called body colour, that produces crisp and vibrant paintings, and is becoming increasingly popular in botanical painting. Leading botanical painter, Simon Williams, specializes in painting in gouache and this is his first book. Botanical Painting in Gouache is full of practical advice on all aspects of using the exciting medium of gouache and contains many step-by-step demonstration paintings. In addition to the sumptuous flower paintings there are also sections on painting butterflies, birds and exotic and unusual plants from the rainforest.