Twelve months on from the SBA Diploma, Full Membership!

Since graduating in spring 2011 from the Society of Botanical Artists Diploma course,  I've not   really managed to get back into the swing of painting as well as I would have liked to, probably due to all the other distractions and disruptions in life and a bit of burn out!
However I did somehow manage to continue to produce work, most of which has been on vellum.  In February for this years SBA show at Westminster, 'Botanical Celebration'  I submitted another 5 and was fortunate enough to have all 5 paintings accepted for the third year running.  I didn't take the fast track membership because I had already started down the path and this was quicker for me.The exhibition starts next week on the 20th April. On the 12th March ( my birthday)  I received a letter from SBA informing me that I had been elected a full member of the SBA, which was just the news I needed to give me a good kick and get painting again!  I travel to London on the 2nd May to pick up my membership certificate/ Diploma.  It's not unusual for artists to suffer from these frustrating periods of nothingness and they usually coincide with the low points in life but they always pass.  

One of the 5 paintings exhibited at the SBA Show, 2012, Primula vulgaris, on vellum, sold at the opening along with two other pieces on vellum. It was highly commended for the Joyce Cumming award.

Very large membership certificate! See the 'now where am I going to put this!' expression!

Over the last few weeks I think (hope) some progress is being made and I've managed to produce several new leaf paintings on vellum. These paintings will be exhibited May 10 -13th at the Malvern Gardening Show as part of the RHS botanical exhibition. 

Here's work in progress on a decaying lime leaf painted on vellum which I collected from the grounds of Duff House in Banffshire.

Decaying Lime Leaf on vellum or Malvern RHS show

Decaying Lime Leaf 2 on vellum for Malvern RHS show

Flower number 3, The Crocus

Very quick painting of a crocus, not sure I'm very happy with it - looks a bit stiff, so I may rework it to give it more movement and shine. Movement in a composition is something that I've become more concerned with recently - I think that in botanical  painting it can get overlooked because of the focus on  technical accuracy.

Saturday's flower, Hellebore

I think this hellebore is White Spotted Lady.  It's never flowered before this year, which is odd because all the others in the garden have failed to show. I'd just about given up on it but perhaps it liked the hard frost we had this year. Next up the crocus.

More flowers 30 Day Challenge

It's about time I uploaded some of the flowers from my 30 day flower challenge, so here we go with a Iris reticulata hybrid, I think it's  'Katharine Hodgkin', which is quite a pale version. 
Also I have lots of the regular dark blue I. reticulata in the garden too, which I painted it for my SBA Diploma portfolio ( image below)  That was over a year ago and it seems like a distant memory now. It's good to paint it again and this one has to be my favourite iris. 

I spent about  40 minutes on this one, it's not the greatest painting but has a nice delicate quality.

'Katherine Hodgkin' 40 minute watercolour study

 

Botanical Illustration of Iris reticulata from the SBA Diploma portfolio. I think I sold this one, can't remember where though. It's a very dark purple so plenty violet diox and soem Indanthrene blue too

New Flower Challenge and an Etsy shop launched!

I didn't quite make the finish with the leaf challenge but it doesn't mean I can't try again! I did quite a lot some of which I was pleased with and others not so!
So thought I'd have another go but this time with flowers!  Maybe one week at a time so that it's not too overwhelming. Here's number 1. Tulip

A very pink tulip! Some Permanaenent rose and Quin magenta for this one. I tend to avoid the Opera rose, which is bright but transient, so can fade. I try to work only with ASTM rating I and II paints. ASTM is the standard for paint testing

NEW SHOP!

 I've also created an Etsy shop to sell some of my smaller works and sketches produced as part of the challenges http://www.etsy.com/shop/diannesutherlandart

It seems like a good way for an arist to sell more affordable art works, such as small originals, prints and cards. The only problem is that it's very large and difficult to find things and theres a good chance of buying more than I sell!   

Final leaves for the 30/30 Leaf Challenge

Ornamental cherry from outside my daughter's house in Stoke on Trent

Picked up at a motorway service station in Glasgow on the trip home following my grandson's first visit to Scotland.

From Trentham Gardens, Staffordshire, my hometown

No blogging for weeks now and never did get round to finishing the challenge - I think I managed  just 17! too many other things to do in October but here are the last few leaves that I managed to complete....maybe next year I'll complete the 30! or maybe 30 flowers instead.

30/30 Leaf Challenge, week 2

I'm a bit behind with posting the leaf challenge images but will try to catch up. Here are the leaves from week two.

Red oak from Trentham Estate Sept 2011, graphite

Mahonia, from my garden. A gift a gardener  friend at the Cruickshank Botanic Garden, Aberdeen. Watercolour.

Wych Elm, from Aden Country Park Aberdeenshire October 2011, watercolour. Collected by my husband from outside the North East Folklore Archive

Oak  leaf from Trentham Gardens, Staffordshire, Sept 2011, Graphite.

Rhododendron leaf from Aden Country Park, Aberdeenshire,  October 2011. Collected by my husband from outside the North East Folklore Archive. Watercolour

A worse for wear Lime leaf, not sure what type. Collected from Aden Country Park, Aberdeenshire, October 2011.  

Week one - 30/30 Leaf Study Challenge.

Here's a selection of leaves painted for the first week of the 30 day leaf challenge. There's no doubt that some leaves are definitely easier to paint than others! I found it difficult to paint them in such a short amount of time too and only allowed about 1- 2 hrs each but some have taken a little longer. I'd normally spend longer than this on my work but it's good practice to set a time limit.Not sure I'll manage 30 paintings or drawings in 30 days but we'll see!

Bit of a cheat because I completed the first two, including this Oak from Duff House before October.

   

Another one completed before the start but thought I'd incliude it all the same. It's from a Herb Robert plant that arrived in the garden without invitation and gets everywhere! but it's lovely ground cover and gives this fantatic colour.  

Hydrangea leaf from my mother. The large hydrangea grows by the front door of my paerents house. Collected Sept 11

Norway maple collected from Trentham Estate, Staffordshire,  Sept 11

Copper beech collected from Duff House grounds in Banff  2010. I worked there for a couple of years until Jan 11 during which time I collected and painted many leaves.

Oxalis, I found this growing in the compost heap at the Cruickshank Botanic Garden at Aberdeen University during my studentship as a gardener in 2005.

Beech, collected from Trentham Estate, Staffordshire, September 2011

Botanical Artists, 30 Day Leaf Challenge

On October the 1st I started a challenge - to paint 30 leaves in 30 days! The task was set by botanical artist and illustrator Mindy Lighthipe via the Facebook Botanical Artists Group.  It all started when Mindy was invited to be the guest artist for the new Botanical Artists blog. Mindy wrote about her previous experience of a similar task and invited other artists to join her in a  new 30/30 challenge- so I decided to give it a go!


I have chosen to paint leaves given to me by friends and family or from places that I have some personal connection with.

Last week I visited my home town in Staffordshire and collected leaves from a number of locations including the Trentham Gardens  estate- it was the first time I had visited the beautiful gardens since I was a child.

Here's the first leaf. It's from an enormous Acer cappadocium at Trentham Gardens which the estate manager estimates dates back to the1840's.

I'll be posting my leaves at the end of each week for the remainder of the challenge.

Botanical miniatures - jewellery

I've been painting a few botanical miniatures for my daughter's online jewellery shop, pollypoppit. Great fun and so intricate, reminds me of my days painting tiny floral china patterns for Royal Albert! The paintings range from 13 x 18mm up to 30 x 40 mm. I painted them on HP watercolour paper which is then mounted behind a magnifying clear glass cabochon. The first few have now been mounted in sterling silver or natural brass surrounds.  I might try a vellum version because it picks up the detail so well. Here's a few pictures of work in progress and  a couple of finished items.

A selection of the miniature paintings

First attempt - Parrot tulip in brass 25mm round

Tulip mounted in sterling silver 18 x 25mm

Iris mounted in sterling silver 18 x25 mm

work in progress, meconopsis  30 x 40mm in sterling silver

Fritillaria meleagris ( Snakeshead lily) in natural brass surround 18 x 25mm