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Publié par	Search Press
Date de parution	31 juillet 2022
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781800930841
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	150 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0750€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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The Kew Book ofBotanical Illustration

Christabel King

SEARCH PRESS

About the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew The Royal Botanic Gardens Kew is a worldfamous scientiﬁc organization and home to two elegant gardens in the south east of England – Kew Gardens in South West London and Wakehurst Place in West Sussex, which also houses Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank. Kew Gardens is a recognized World Heritage Site, with stunning glasshouses and a rich history of royal heritage interwoven with the development of modernday plant science and sustainable development.

Kew’s chief botanical artist, and one of Kew’s elite band of practitioners, Christabel King has been working as an illustrator at Kew for over 40 years. In 1975 she began painting for their prestigiousCurtis’s Botanical Magazine(the longestrunning botanical magazine – ﬁrst edition 1787), after achieving a degree in botany and scientiﬁc illustration. She runs successful workshops and courses at Kew and is highly skilled and acclaimed for her work. Christabel lives in Twickenham, Middlesex, UK.

The Kew Book of Botanical Illustration

Foreword ï am so peased that Chrîstabe Kîng has produced a book about her orty years o expertîse în botanîca îustratîon. She îs one o the oremost botanîca îustrators o today. She îs aso a wonderu teacher who has traîned many other îustrators. When ï trave în Brazî, ï meet so many taented young artîsts who earned theîr skîs rom Chrîstabe. She has been generous wîth her tîme în order to share her knowedge and expertîse wîth other peope rom severa dîferent countrîes. Chrîstabe has traveed a ot to teach and to produce some o her paîntîngs and sketches rom îvîng materîa în the Ied. ï treasure a paîntîng oQuaeathat she dîd or me on her trîp to the Amazon regîon. Thîs specîes îs reated to the beautîu bue-lowered Erîsma cacaratumshown on page 102, where the bue îs so accuratey portrayed. ït îs great that many o the secrets o her success as an îustrator are reveaed here în a book that wî hep many buddîng botanîca artîsts. Her dua traînîng în both botany and art show here and în a o her work. ït îs quîte ascînatîng to read the many skîs and technîques that are needed to be a good îustrator o pants. You can use thîs book to earn to be an îustrator, but ît îs aso a voume that you can just sît back and enjoy. ït încudes many o her coour paîntîngs or the amousCurtîs’s Botanîca Magazîne, grouped under such înterestîng categorîes as endangered pants, economîc pants orchîds, and pants în hortîcuture. Pant overs wî want to browse în thîs book whether or not they are aspîrîng îustrators. ït îs Ine artîsts îke Chrîstabe Kîng that have enabed Curtîs to contînue pubîshîng contînuousy sînce 1787.

Professor Sîr Ghîean Prance FRS, VMH

Professor Sir Gillean Prance is a prominent Britis botanist and ecologist; former Director of te Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; former Director of te Institute of Economic Botany and Senior Vice President for Science at he New York Botanical Garden; and Director of Science at te Eden Project in Cornwall.

The Kew Book of Botanical Illustration CHRISTABEL KING

SEARCH PRESS

Fîrst pubîshed în paperback în Great Brîtaîn 2022 Search Press Lîmîted Wewood, North Farm Road, Tunbrîdge Wes, Kent TN2 3DR Pubîshed în hardback în Great Brîtaîn 2015 Reprînted 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019 Text and îustratîons copyrîght © Chrîstabe Kîng 2022 Photographs by Pau Lîtte copyrîght © Board o Trustees of the Roya Botanîc Gardens, Kew Desîgn copyrîght © Search Press Ltd. 2022

A rîghts reserved. No part o thîs book, text, photographs or îustratîons may be reproduced or transmîtted în any orm or by any means by prînt, photoprînt, mîcroIm, mîcroIche, photocopîer, înternet or în any way known or as yet unknown, or stored în a retrîeva system, wîthout wrîtten permîssîon obtaîned beorehand rom Search Press.

ïSBN HB: 978-1-84448-947-3

ïSBN PB: 978-1-80092-091-0

ebook ïSBN: 978-1-80093-084-1

The Pubîshers and author can accept no responsîbîîty or any consequences arîsîng rom the înormatîon, advîce or înstructîons gîven în thîs pubîcatîon. Suppîers ï you have any dîicuty obtaînîng any o the materîas and equîpment mentîoned în thîs book, pease vîsît the Search Press websîte: searchpress.com

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many tanks to Paul Little for potograpy, to Roger and Diana Polill for use of te picture ofDendrosenecîo adnîvaîs on page 101, wic will feature on te cover of teir book on East Afrîcan Pant Coectors, distributed by Kew Publising, and to Nicole Potulski for use of te picture of a piece of calk turf on page 96.

DEDICATION his book is dedicated to all tose wo enjoy botanical art and illustration.

Page 1: Tuîpacv.‘Baerîna’ See also page 123.

Page 3: Rhodohypoxîs baurîîvar.confecta Working drawing. See also page 23.

Opposite: Rosa chînensîs forma spontaneaPate 539, Vo. 22(4), 2005 his vigorous wild rose from Nort West Cina is probably one of te ancestors of modern garden roses. See also page 105.

Contents

Introductîon 6 Botanîca îustratîon 8 Materîas 10 Choosîng the subject 14 Choosîng the technîque 16 Your work space 18 Drawîng from îfe 20 Composîtîon 22 Lîght and shade 24 Sketchîng and drawîng 26 Magnîicatîon 30 Transferrîng the drawîng 34 Usîng a shadîng guîde 36 Watercoour 38 Gouache 42 Pen and înk 46 Correctîng mîstakes 48 Leaves 50 Fowers 60 Usîng a mîcroscope 78 Preservîng specîmens 80 Workîng from pressed specîmens 82 Cactî and succuents 84 Wîd lowers 92 Trave drawîngs 98 Curtîs’s Botanîca Magazîne 104 Trees 120 Advîce for begînners 123 Botanîca gossary 124 Artîstîc gossary 125 Index 126 Bîbîography 128

INTRODUCTION

I HAVE BEEN MAKING ILLUSTRATIONS FOR KEW GARDENS, or to give it its proper name, te Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, since 1975, but te callenge of writing a book about it made me tink about te diﬀerent perspectives on wat is called botanical illustration. We migt make a distinction between botanical illustrations, wic are made to accompany text, and botanical art, wic includes oter representations of plant subjects. However, if strictly interpreted, tis would disqualify tecniques more used for botanical art tan illustration, but wic would be of interest to include. So as well as te usual tecniques of line drawing and watercolour used for Kew publications, I ave included some tecniques and examples not intended for publication. Wen working on igly detailed illustrations, it is restful to take time oﬀ to work on someting diﬀerent. In any case, botanical art as a certain poetic element wic may be lacking in scientiﬁc botanical illustration, and it is tis wic is needed to capture te indeﬁnable quality of beauty. Most people know te Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew as a botanical garden were te public can see and enjoy plants from all over te world in cultivation. he seer number and variety of trees, srubs and erbaceous plants, growing outside and under glass, mean tat tere will always be some new plant not seen before to ﬁnd on a visit. But besides te well-known collections of living plants, tere is also a very large collection of pressed and dried plant specimens from all over te world in te Herbarium, wic is not generally open to te public. his is were work to increase knowledge of te world’s ﬂora is done. he pressed specimens lose teir colour but keep all teir botanical features, and most of te botanical illustrations made for Kew publications are line drawings made from tese. However, tere is one publication for wic coloured illustrations are used, wic isCurtîs’s Botanîca Magazîne. his is te longest running periodical of its type, aving been produced since 1787 to record and describe plants in cultivation in Britis gardens. here is a section about te Magazine later in te book, were te requirements of tese illustrations are described.

Many years ago I drew tis group of wild ﬂowers of te Burren, an interesting area of limestone pavement in County Clare, Ireland, wic is now witin a Special Area of Conservation. Plants may no longer be picked or collected tere. If you like drawing plants growing in soil, te solution is to establis an area for wild ﬂowers in your garden. A group like tis could be grown on a rock garden wit limestone cippings, or in a container so tat it could easily be brougt inside for drawing.

I ave ad te privilege of contributing illustrations since 1975 and ope to continue, as it gives plenty of opportunity to ave a close look at living plants, make full-colour illustrations and explore teir structure in dissections. he painting and drawing tecniques described in tis book were mostly learned during a course in Scientiﬁc Illustration at Middlesex Polytecnic (now University), but before tis I ad done a ﬁrst degree in Botany at University College, London, so my approac to drawing was inﬂuenced more by science tan art. Wen I began to make illustrations for publication, I learned from Kew botanists ow various conventions are used in scientiﬁc botanical illustration, to make drawings of ﬂoral dissections wic are clear and easy to interpret. he editor ofCurtîs’s Botanîca Magazînepatiently trained me to produce illustrations in te way tat previous artists ad done. Help was needed wile I learned ow a plant could be illustrated at natural size in te narrow page format of te Magazine and wat sould be included or left out. his is te diﬀerence between making a picture for pleasure and making a scientiﬁc illustration. Artists’ licence can only be used in certain respects, but it is better to avoid canging anyting if possible, because nature knows best. he publication of plant species new to science is a sougt-after opportunity for botanists and sometimes illustrators ave te interesting job of drawing tem. he more familiar species of wild ﬂowers and garden plants may ave been illustrated many times already but te world’s ﬂora remains new for eac person to discover and enjoy drawing. Time spent looking at plants reveals teir beauty and is usually a rewarding experience.

Irîs boudowîîPlate 577 fromCurtîs’s Botanîca MagazîneVol. 24(1) 2007.

Botanîca îustratîon

Knowedge about pants and theîr uses îs as od as the human race. Anîmas know by înstînct how to Ind theîr ood and what to eat î they ee î, but humanîty eventuay demanded more than înstînctîve knowedge to împrove îe, and when wrîtîng came înto use, tradîtîona knowedge coud be transmîtted as wrîtten records. One o the earîest texts about pants îs the Ebers Papyrus on ancîent Egyptîan herba medîcîne. Dated to about 1500BC, ît îs saîd to contaîn materîa rom as ong ago as 3000BCbecause o reerences to earîer dynastîes în Egyptîan hîstory. The herbaîsts o the tîme woud probaby have grown up wîth knowedge o the vernacuar pant names o the oca tradîtîon, but dîd not use îustratîons. The îdea o provîdîng an îustratîon to carîy the îdentîty o a pant îs attrîbuted to a Greek caed Krateuas (120–60BC), who was court doctor to the Persîan kîng Mîthrîdates o Pontus. He produced a serîes o paînted îustratîons or hîs treatîseRhîzotomîkonwîth the name and medîca propertîes o each pant wrîtten under the îmage o the pant. These îustratîons were eventuay încorporated în the amous herba o Dîoscorîdes caedDe Materîa Medîcawhîch was the standard textbook o herba medîcîne or a thousand years and was copîed over and over agaîn. An îustratîon wîth a name was a useu aîd to Indîng and îdentîyîng a pant and passîng on the tradîtîona ore assocîated wîth ît. However, an îustratîon o one pant does not record the range o varîatîon, perhaps o lower coour or shape and sîze o eaves. The combînatîon o an îustratîon and a verba descrîptîon provîdes more înormatîon and thîs îs what îs used today în scîentîIc botanîca îterature. An îustratîon normay încudes a îe-sîze habît drawîng (a drawîng o a representatîve portîon o a pant), oten made rom a pressed herbarîum specîmen, together wîth enarged detaîs o the lowers, ruîts and any other eatures whîch are împortant în dîstînguîshîng ît rom sîmîar specîes. The accompanyîng descrîptîon gîves measurements and numbers o parts, aso geographîca dîstrîbutîon and other names by whîch the pant may have been known, together wîth reerences to where ît had prevîousy been pubîshed. ït îs înterestîng that as ong ago as cassîca tîmes, împortance was put on statîng sources o înormatîon and authors whose works were beîng quoted. Some o the eary phîosophers such as Thaes and Theophrastus made theîr own Irst-hand observatîons and even carrîed out experîments. The oundatîons o the present-day approach to scîentîIc înormatîon based on careu observatîon and experîment were aready there. However, ît took untî the Renaîssance or botany to become a subject or study în îts own rîght, apart rom îts medîca and agrîcutura aspects. The rîva method o recordîng pants îs photography. Thîs deîghtuy easy way o makîng a record o a pant îs now taken or granted. ït îs ast and convenîent or gatherîng îustratîons or books, whîch can then be produced quîcky. Wîth dîgîta photography, everythîng seems possîbe under amost any condîtîons, and one wonders î there îs any need to contînue makîng îustratîons by hand. The answer to thîs îs deInîtey ‘yes’, because athough sotware makes amost anythîng possîbe or împrovîng and edîtîng a photograph, a îne drawîng can stî be made quîte quîcky, îs cearer în seectîng whîch detaîs to show and can be încuded în the text at ess cost. Where coour îs not necessary, a îne drawîng îs cheaper and more efectîve. Cooured îustratîons such as those made orCurtîs’s Botanîca Magazînemîght seem to be a uxury, but î there îs an enthusîastîc audîence or them, eîther as works o art or as useu îustratîons, peope wî contînue to produce them. One hopes that thîs ong tradîtîon, wîth îts înks to the begînnîngs o scîentîIc enquîry în cassîca tîmes, wî contînue to promote peope’s înterest în botany and the ascînatîng word o pants around them.

Lavandua maîreî var. maîreîandL. maîreî var. antîatantîca Artwork for Plate 24 fromhe Genus Lavanduaby Tim Upson and Susyn Andrews (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 2004).