Hello, as an Edinburgh based gardening artist with an animal obsession I have always use the word ‘nature’ to encompass my interest in plants and animals. But I am uneasy with the word ‘nature’ as it holds too much to be helpful as a description. Everything is ‘nature’. I have recently completed one unit of an illustration BA with the Open University and the Open Collage of the Arts. One result of going back to school is to make me think more sharply about the words I am using. So I am using the words Gardening Artist now.
I was reminded during the course of Elizabeth Blackadder (1931-1921) an Edinburgh based artist is well known for her flower painting. Her paintings happened to be on display at around the same time at the Dovecot Gallery in Edinburgh and so I was able to see them in the flesh. So, so different than seeing an image in a book. So much more detail to observe. Her cat etchings, by the way, are usually on display at the City Art Centre if you can fit in a visit. Her love of cats and flowers is something I am eternally grateful for. It legitimises my own. I am not going to give an art critique here, just flagging her up and below are links to books available to buy, though pinterest has many of her paintings. My own pinterest page Elizabeth Balckadder.
https://pallantbookshop.com/product/elizabeth-blackadder-judith-bumpus/
https://www.lundhumphries.com/products/the-art-of-elizabeth-blackadder
If you are living in or near Edinburgh or visiting there are gardens everywhere, personally I like best to come upon a basement stair bursting with pots of colour but of course a public garden has the benefit of labels. Here is a list of gardens to add to the To Visit List.
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attractions-g186525-Activities-c57-t58-Edinburgh_Scotland.html
Haddington gardens from my sketchbook
I love to sit in my car and sketch what I see out of window. If you stop and stare at people’s garden’s they get a bit suspicious. You should really keep walking but sketching lets you feast your eyes.
Elizabeth Cameron was my introduction to botanical art.
It was over a decade now that I stumbled upon a print of a red rose in a charity shop I was working in, I became determined to make botanical art. Before that I hadn’t been able to remember the name of any flowers or plants. Her story is interesting, a polymath, well worth reading up about her. Having studied at Art School she went on to develop the frozen fish industry from the north of Scotland and boil in the bag porridge. Her prints are available from her shop-link below ( at time if writing, November 2024, it is was closed due to a house fire). Which is run by her daughter now.
This is a great article about her rose book and her famous red rose painting.
https://botanicgarden.wales/2016/06/book-white-flowers-one-red-rose
I have not made much botanical art as it happens, having concentrated on animals for the last few years. I have been gardening though.
I work in the East Lothian area. Please do get in touch if you would like to book me for gardening work.
Garden as Art/ Art as Garden
2022 Wheelbarrow full of bee sculptures from twigs and bee friendly perennials grown from seed from my subscription to https://www.mudandbloom.com/
Kids plant crafting subscription boxes.
The wheelbarrow competition in which I came third. Very proud moment. The abundance of colour went on and on all summer.
“Flowers are restful to look at. They have neither emotions nor conflicts.” —Sigmund Freud
Till next time.
