Secret Garden: A celebration of Botanical Beauty
Secret Garden: A Celebration of Botanical Beauty
According to the Royal Horticultural Society, Edinburgh, Botanical Illustration is a genre of art that endeavours to faithfully depict and represent the form, colour, character and detail of a plant, identifiable to species or cultivar level. The best botanical illustration successfully combines scientific accuracy with visual appeal and must portray a plant with the precision and level of detail for it to be recognised and distinguished, from another species.
To achieve this, artists typically have to undertake a careful study of their painting subjects, often in the field, in order to reach a level of understanding of the plant subject needed to accomplish the abovementioned characteristics of a botanical illustration. The study goes beyond just a visual understanding of the form and physical character of the plant, and can include research into its flowering, fruiting and growth habits.
Why do botanical artists enjoy this genre of art making? The answer would likely include personal connections and affinity with the beauty as well as the wonder of the botanical world. Indeed, each one of the exhibiting artists today have their own unique stories to tell about their love for plants and painting. We liken the curation of this exhibition to the planning of a garden scheme, and invite you to step into our secret garden, a cosy and wonderful green space to quietly enjoy and marvel at the beauty of plants.
As artists living in the tropics we are blessed with access to an abundance of plant biodiversity. Hence, we hope to showcase this abundant diversity through the variety of plant species and cultivars depicted in our 14 paintings.
— David H.H. Toh, Vice President of The Botanical Art Society (Singapore)
Secret Garden: A Celebration of Botanical Beauty
According to the Royal Horticultural Society, Edinburgh, Botanical Illustration is a genre of art that endeavours to faithfully depict and represent the form, colour, character and detail of a plant, identifiable to species or cultivar level. The best botanical illustration successfully combines scientific accuracy with visual appeal and must portray a plant with the precision and level of detail for it to be recognised and distinguished, from another species.
To achieve this, artists typically have to undertake a careful study of their painting subjects, often in the field, in order to reach a level of understanding of the plant subject needed to accomplish the abovementioned characteristics of a botanical illustration. The study goes beyond just a visual understanding of the form and physical character of the plant, and can include research into its flowering, fruiting and growth habits.
Why do botanical artists enjoy this genre of art making? The answer would likely include personal connections and affinity with the beauty as well as the wonder of the botanical world. Indeed, each one of the exhibiting artists today have their own unique stories to tell about their love for plants and painting. We liken the curation of this exhibition to the planning of a garden scheme, and invite you to step into our secret garden, a cosy and wonderful green space to quietly enjoy and marvel at the beauty of plants.
As artists living in the tropics we are blessed with access to an abundance of plant biodiversity. Hence, we hope to showcase this abundant diversity through the variety of plant species and cultivars depicted in our 14 paintings.
— David H.H. Toh, Vice President of The Botanical Art Society (Singapore)