Opening day of the Palmengarten/ SBA botanical art exhibition.

October 24, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Quickly rushing over the first part of the day except to say that Ian Coulson and Robin Dickeson quickly took over doing the finishing touches to all of the SBA pictures. They took on cleaning and polishing the glass for every single picture, straightened up the pictures, hid tags and hanging wires etc. additionally they hung all the framed information that told visitors about the SBA.

What did the rest do? We did all the other bits and pieces necessary to make sure the exhibition was ready for this evenings opening.

The opening went perfectly and a lot of people came to it. I won’t go into guest lists or speeches, but the emphasis definitely was on ‘what is botanical art and how is it done?’

I was really pleased to see other SBA members supporting the opening and even a botanical artist I had met at the Hunt Institute of Botanical Documentation in Pittsburgh, USA last year. This world is small!

Photos, including ones of the first pictures sold today.

Second hanging day at Palmengarten Botanical Gardens, Frankfurt

October 22, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

I’m afraid that I don’t have a single picture to brighten up this blog today. I have been very busy as we have had many more botanical art pictures to hang than in the two previous times we (the SBA) exhibited with Palmengarten.

When the hanging team arrived at Palmengarten this morning, our men mentioned in yesterday’s blog, got stuck in with hanging more pictures. They have been absolutely amazing, even though it is not them who are SBA members but us ( the women mentioned yesterday). They are extremely supportive and what we would do without them I don’t know.

We spent the rest of the day hanging pictures, reorganising a few, straightening and labelling them. Tomorrow will be spent cleaning the glass so that they are fully presentable in all their glory.

I think this evening will be spent easing backs and feet for all of us. How we will do this is anyone’s guess, but our hotel is not far from the student area of the city, so please use your imagination.

To brighten up the page a little I will include another picture of the Bears britches painting.

First hanging day Palmengarten

October 21, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

I think that this evening we all look rather tired, but first of all the British hanging contingent want to thank the SBA member who treated us to a drink. We are all very grateful and overwhelmed by her very unexpected generosity.

But many will wonder how the day has gone. Here are a few of the pictures taken. Susan Christopher Coulson headed up the decision making hanging party, with Sandra Wall Armitage.

The rest of us were ‘hanging dogsbodies’. Our husbands, Ian, Ken and Robin; Sue Henon and a DLDC (distance learning course) student, Miriam Pampas; Jonas & Peter (both from Palmengarten); Pam Henderson (SBA); Renate Tessmar-Leonardy (friend of Palmengarten and lover of Camellias) and her husband (lover of Fuchsias) and of course Karin Wittstock from Palmengarten who was involved with the Palmengarten/ SBA initiative from the word go.

We have not quite finished placing all the pictures yet, but had to stop today for fear of falling off ladders!

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Delivery of botanical art pictures to Palmengarten

October 20, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Today has been an extremely busy day for all concerned.

Robin and I drove the van to Palmengarten, entering by a now familiar back gate. The rest of the British hanging team for today walked from our hotel and met us at the Palm House where the exhibition is to take place.

Luckily we were able to park the van directly outside the Palm House and we were welcomed by the able bodied German contingent. Now the work really began. Everyone helped to offload the van, checking each package off the list as they went.

Once the main bulk of the pictures were unloaded, two husbands from the group took the van to Dieburg about 3/4 hour outside Frankfurt. They collected the remaining pictures that had been sent directly to Sue Henon, our SBA member living in Germany, and returned to Frankfurt with these.

In the meantime, the rest of us busily unpacked the pictures, making a huge mound of packing materials to dispose of.

We have started placing the pictures, but more about this tomorrow.

Botanical artworks from the UK to Frankfurt

October 19, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

I had a little bit of a problem sorting photos out for yesterday’s blog, but some will recognise Jackie Gethin as the collector of half the picture collection. She and her husband also kindly gave us abed for the night in Kent as well as a lovely supper. After the van had been packed (to the hilt), we had a lovely evening playing Scrabble with a difference.

We got off just before 05:00 this morning, had our first cup of coffee on the Channel shuttle and ate breakfast in Verne, Belgium four hours after having got up. The temperature had been warm at 04:00 in the morning when we got up, but with the clear blue skies ( and some strong gusts of wind), it peaked at 26 degrees this afternoon. Today is 18 October! Fantastic.

We have taken some photos on the way to give you a glimpse of the journey the SBA members pictures have taken. My husband Robin drove, and I sat shotgun with my knitting ( my daughter will be pleased to note).

Difficult to get the photos in the right order at this time of night. A long day!

The Rhine

The driver and companion stretching legs by the Rhine.

We eventually arrived in Frankfurt at about 18:00 and met some more of the ‘hanging team’, Susan Christopher Coulson and her husband, plus Sandra Armitage.

More hopefully tomorrow.

Botanical art trip to Palmengarten, Frankfurt

October 19, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

It’s now Saturday at 23:00 and we are due to get up at 04:00 to drive to the Channel tunnel train leaving around 06:00. There is no wifi at the moment, so can’t even connect to get the pictures taken earlier today. However, as soon as a connection is made I will get this blog off. It’s amazing how dependent we have become on modern technology!

First thing this morning we were rushing around finding all sorts of extra equipment for hanging the SBA members pictures once we get that far. It was incredibly warm and felt like summer as I rushed thinly fled from house to shed (some call it a studio- but it’s a shed) and back again. Our journey to Kent was uneventful apart from the usual hold-up with road works.

Another SBA member had been the delivery point for most of the other half of exhibits and kindly offered us supper and a bed for the night once she had also helped with the reorganising and loading of her store of pictures.

She like I were amazed at the empty spaces we had once the collection was loaded onto the van. The van was packed fully. I’m glad that there weren’t more pictures.

Hopefully I can access the pictures I took today- tomorrow.

And the Bears Britches

Day before the journey to Frankfurt’s Palmengarten

October 18, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

My last blog mentioned that the botanical art exhibition at Palmengarten is now less than a week away. Each day that comes I think that I might get a little painting in before we go – but no such luck. I will show you a couple more pictures from the pen and ink drawing of Bear’s britches progression though.

I thought I had all the paperwork for Palmengarten clear in relevant folders etc, but then the cat jumped up onto the keyboard and knocked my tea all over the paperwork and the printing paper. That took a couple of hours to reprint it all as well as clear up the mess.

But today, my husband Robin got up early, gave me a cup of tea in bed and then took the train to Portsmouth to collect a van for our trip to Frankfurt. It is quite a large van, but he thinks we will be comfortable enough during the long journey, although it doesn’t seem to have all the mod cons one might expect/ wish for.

So we checked all the paintings etc against the spreadsheet I had done and loaded everything onto the van. Robin fastened everything securely and one of the cats, Fudge, inspected the lot to see that we had done it properly. His black and white brother (guess what his name is) inspected the suddenly empty spare bedrooms. They will be having a strict cat-sitter for the duration!

A good night’s sleep tonight and tomorrow we will be on our way to Kent to pick up the other half of paintings.

The bear’s britches (Acanthus)

SBA to Frankfurt Botanical gardens, Palmengarten

October 14, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

There has been little time to do the pen & ink drawing of the Bears Britches as I have been organising the co-ordinated exhibition between Palmengarten and the Society of Botanical Artists; or at least everything from the UK side of things. Additionally I have had to keep on top of marking assignments as the botanical art tutor for the London Art College.

So, the Bears britches has been done at stolen moments of time.

Last weekend however, The London Art College had their annual meeting of tutors just outside Bristol. It was a very nice break away from everything that had to be done, and being able to talk with the other tutors at the college. A very welcome recharge of batteries before the final Palmengarten onslaught.

The exhibition at Palmengarten starts with the official opening and private view next Thursday evening, 23 October. There will be 205 exhibits from SBA members around the world, from as far flung places as New Zealand, Japan the USA, France and of course the UK.

This is the third time that The Palmengarten Gardens and the SBA has liaised in this way. The first time was in 2010, then 2012 and now the largest exhibition will be this year. The exhibition will be open to the public from Friday 24 October until 23 November 2014 and I think will be well worth a visit.

Some of you may well have picked up from earlier blogs that I have been working on this, together with Sue another SBA member in Germany. It is thanks to her that the exhibition is happening in the first place, so our members have a lot to thank her for.

I intend to write a blog as the actual preparation is happening. I have received half of the exhibits in our home over the last few weeks. The remaining half have been collected in Kent. My husband Robin is collecting a van on Friday and with this we will make our way to Germany, collecting the rest of the pictures on the way, arriving on Sunday evening.

I will be glad once we are on our way as setting up is the fun bit – other people are then involved and the load will be shared rather than mostly on the shoulders of Sue and I.

The first couple of pictures are from our guest room. It will be lovely to have it cleared for a short while!

Now a couple pictures from the progression of the Bears britches.

Botanical art workshop at Goodnestone Park Gardens, Kent

September 24, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

On Monday and Tuesday this week I lead a workshop at Goodnestone Park Gardens in Kent. I have a couple of workshops there per year for Fieldbreaks.

The subject was Hedgerow produce and most of the students were using coloured pencil. One of them had neither used coloured pencil nor watercolour previously, so this was an experience. She did very well, although it felt a bit scary for her.

They are very good at Goodnestone and allow us to pick what we want from the gardens to use as botanical subjects. Some of the subjects we can find there can be quite exciting. But funnily enough, at a workshop I often find that other than new students who have not yet grasped that the ‘prettiest’ is not always the easiest to do, people generally choose very simple subjects. I think that this is because they are more intent on improving technique or learning something new to add to their repertoire of techniques.

Here are the results. I am very pleased with them and I am sure you will think them very good too.

Tree Peoni seed capsule. Coloured pencil.

Tree Peoni seed capsule pair. Coloured pencil.

Portugese Laurel berries. Coloured pencil — Portugese Laurel berries.
Coloured pencil

Lily seed capsule - Coloured pencil — Lily seed capsule – Coloured pencil

Rose hips - Watercolour — Rose hips – Watercolour

Rose leaf - watercolour — Rose leaf – watercolour

This morning I had an ordinary weekly class and since then I have been working on the pen & ink Bears Britches.

I have only done a small portion of it so far and this is only establishing the flowers and fruits. Once I have established all the elements in the picture I will create tone and then…….. But you will have to wait for that.

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