The Norwegian Botanical art workshop holiday about to start

June 28, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

I am in Norway, in my daughters house, in the lovely town of Tønsberg. I have at last got this far.

I have been chasing my tail for over a week and you can be allowed to feel really sorry for my husband who has borne the brunt of it. Every day , I thought today I would paint – but no. What has happened?

Apart from putting everything together and packing for this workshop, I have marked assignments and spent hours on preparation for the Palmengarten exhibition in Germany.

But worst of all, one of our cats – in fact my daughter’s cat on permanent loan to us, suddenly became seriously ill and nearly died. We have spent a lot of time at the vets and he was hospitalised and on drips to give him some fluids. But, we were allowed to bring him home on Wednesday and we can safely say he has definitely used up one of his nine lives. We now have a lovely cat sitter looking after the animals whilst we are away.

We travelled to Norway yesterday and tomorrow will be trying to find some suitable plants in preparation for everyone’s arrival tomorrow afternoon. I will also be meeting a lady from the Botany Society who has taken a trip up into the mountains to get some special Norwegian Flora for us.

Today was rather cloudy and colder than it has been. In fact my daughter tells me today was the coldest day since March! I have been going on about the beautiful warm weather they have had here. But my tall, strawberry blond daughter is beautifully brown- so it must be true.

Hopefully I will get a few minutes each day to keep you updated about the workshop holiday.

Photos from the small picture of a dead rose head in watercolour. Try as I might I didn’t get a chance to finish it before I left. The other picture is showing a little bit of the chaos in sorting for the Norwegian workshop.

Culmination of the botanical art Rose workshop

June 19, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Three lovely days with lovely people. And what’s more there was improvement and each grew in confidence about their abilities. Some used watercolour and others coloured pencil.

One person hadn’t been on one of the workshops before and in fact hadn’t used the medium for a number of years, or even done any botanical painting. I was impressed about how quickly the technique was picked up and the result was very good.

The roses didn’t always behave as intended. We had some cloud and a lot of sun. And, blow me down but the flowers opened up and followed the sun! We drowned them in a bucket of water each night, but there was one sort that didn’t even benefit too much from that. One rose was picked on the first day and we noticed that there was only one tight bud left that was unlikely to open up until the end of the week!

That night the one rose disintegrated entirely! The student painting it felt a little despondent, but we looked up the garden and there, in front of us was an absolutely splendid open bud. The petals were rich and velvety and we couldn’t believe our eyes. The flower lasted that day and long enough for her to complete it. Luckily, there were plenty of leaves available.

Pictures from the workshop:

_MG_6241 — A good start and the perfume was heavenly

A hard earned picture using two roses. What a result!

Rose Deep Secret - and very tired. Goodnight! — Rose Deep Secret – and very tired. Goodnight!

Botanical art workshop starting tomorrow

June 16, 2014April 3, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Tomorrow morning I will be having another botanical art workshop. The subject is roses.

People often think it is very difficult to paint beautiful roses, but think about how the petals are attached in the flower head. Use that knowledge to create a proper line drawing and tonal drawing, then add the colour.

I am glad to say that as the weather has been a little cooler the last few days – and cloudy, there are still quite a few roses of differing levels of difficulty ready to be plucked to have their portraits drawn. It will be interesting to see which roses the students will choose. Watch this space to see the progression of some of the work.

Today I have spent most of the day on work in relation to the SBA exhibition in Palmengarten, Frankfurt in October. There is a lot of preparation in organising the collection and exhibiting of work from across the whole of the UK, Ireland, USA, New Zealand, France, Germany and Japan at Palmengarten. But it will be a fantastic exhibition with so many SBA members taking part.

I had hoped, to finish the Irises painting in coloured pencil yesterday, but think I have completed it today. I don’t feel the colours come out so well from a photograph, but will be better and easier to show online once I get time to match them on Photoshop.

Final day at Stansted and more

June 9, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

I am so tired. Happy, but tired.

Today we had fantastic weather and loads of visitors. For me there continued to be a constant stream of botanical art interested people. So many to explain to about botanical art and illustration.

I wrote this on Sunday and then fell asleep! It was an interesting and rewarding three days which might even have benefits in relation to future work. I also managed to get a little done on the Irises picture in coloured pencil.

This week has been catching up on paperwork, gardening and more painting as I couldn’t bend any more. But now at least we can see the flowers for the weeds and overgrown Forget-me- nots.

Next week I have a three-day workshop called ‘How difficult can Roses be?’. The roses in the garden are now in full bloom smelling beautifully and ready to be painted. Luckily we have all sorts which will allow people of varying abilities and experience to get a good result.

But it is now only two weeks until my husband and I travel to Norway in preparation for the workshop there.

The irises so far.

2nd day at Stansted Park Garden Show

June 8, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

And the heavens opened!

We knew that today(well yesterday now), the weather had been forecast as very bad – although the forecast was changeable. We knew that during the night there might be downpours and several times during the day.

We woke up to a wet nose wanting food ( one of the cats). We noticed it was wet outside, but nothing undue. We were about to leave the house to get to Stansted House when the heavens opened and it poured.

Keep calm and collected as there is nothing that can be done about nature other than dress for the occasion. I donned a sweater, long raincoat and long wellies – as well as my jeans of course. We got to Stansted just as the rain was stopping ( about 1/2 hr after we left.home). We were greeted by a man singing wishful and happy, sunny songs.

By 11:00 the sun was breaking through and the sky rapidly became blue with the odd puffy white cloud. That was the weather state for the rest of the day. Beautiful!

We had a lot of very interested visitors to the stand and discussions ranged from the type of coloured pencil I was using, to the potential for taking part in a new project. Some exciting conversations!

A picture taken during today:

One more day to go. Do come and enjoy the atmosphere.

First day at Stansted Park Garden Show

June 6, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

What a lovely day. The weather was super- the sun shone all day, it was warm but not hot and there was a slight breeze.

The stand we have is just inside the Art and design marquis, so we had the benefit of fresh air coming in. I can imagine it might not have been so pleasant on a cooler day, but lovely just now.

As soon as the gates opened to the show, people streamed in and there seemed to be a constant flow of interested visitors during the whole day.

I had decided to demonstrate botanical art using coloured pencil. This worked out well and was obviously the right choice as it attracted quite a few people to the stand. I had loads of questions and this also meant that they looked a little more closely at the pictures than they might have done. I also found out that Irises are in fact a flower that is much appreciated.

This evening has been spent with stocking up again and now a very slightly earlier night than usual.

Stansted Park Garden Show – the night prior to setting up.

June 5, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

It is 12:57 in the morning. My husband Robin has put his foot down. It’s time for bed.

This morning I had my last weekly botanical art class until the students return in the Autumn. This year they were positively dismayed at the idea of not having a weekly class again until then. I felt guilty.

After everyone had gone I caught up on emails about the Autumn botanical art exhibition being arranged between the SBA and Palmengarten in Frankfurt. Apparently the forms I had taken so long to do so that they could be filled out online, didn’t quite work! I had to sort that out and resend them – having tested them thoroughly this time. At least I’ll know how to do it another time.

At last I could get on with packing things to take to Stansted. Of course, I thought that I had a handle on everything and that it would go smoothly. How many small things (and not so small) one can forget! I have a list for tomorrow morning as I wasn’t allowed to do it tonight.

At the last moment we ordered a new hanging system with the hope that it will arrive early. My husband also went out and bought two folding tables rather than taking good ones. Last but not least he also bought some plastic sheeting to put over the stand at night in case there are any horrendous downpours that find leaky points in the marquis.

Robin has got the stand itself into the car already and all that remains to pack in the car is this lot – plus some, and not forgetting my easel and a chair, and another table, and……………

As you see one of the cats has started wondering if we are moving!

Don’t forget, the Garden Show is Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Stansted Park Garden Show – stand AD25

June 3, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

You are all invited to come to Stansted Park Garden Show. This a yearly show situated near Chichester. For those who love their gardens, this is the place.

I have a stand in the Art and Design Marquee – and I’m terrified! Not that there is anything to be terrified about.

I believe that I am the only botanical artist there although there will be a plenty of general art and design. But there will be plants and lots of them.

Summer still does not seem to have reached us yet. Chilly and cloudy with the occasional sun burst. But I am told from several sources in Norway that they have summer proper! I can’t wait for the workshop there in four weeks time.

In the meantime, I have again spent most of the day on the organisation, information, form design etc. for the SBA exhibition at Palmengarten. I think that so far I must have spent a week solid on this. The emails come in fast and furious following sending out an email to all members asking if they intend to submit. The response so far has been really good and today I got the instructions and forms finished off and sent to those thinking about exhibiting.

I managed to start painting at 17:00. Not much of the day left. My husband had got some more Irises for me to work on the Coloured pencil picture, so I did a little on that. By the way, I intend to work on the irises in coloured pencil and the Mandeville in watercolour, at the Stansted show. But it will be different days spent on each. I haven’t decided which days yet.

This is how far I have got with the Irises. I’m afraid the lighting was not very good for the photo, but it’s better than nothing.

Tomorrow will be the last weekly botanical art class until September. After which I will be packing things together to take to Stansted for setting up on Thursday.

Demonstration at Society of Floral Painters in Chichester

June 2, 2014April 4, 2015 | Gaynor's Flora

Following a lot of preparation on composing and drawing a new botanical art picture, I spent the day starting the watercolour painting as a demonstration for the SFP.

The day dawned sunny and warm; the first nice day for a while. Watching the weather forecast as I write this, it reverts to cooler and wetter weather for a few days! Has spending the day inside demonstrating botanical art been worth it?

I am told that the SFP exhibition at the Oxmarket in Chichester, has attracted a lot of visitors. Visitors who I spoke with today, found the exhibition to be very interesting and many were amazed at the variety of floral painting; from very loosely painted Irises in oil, through the tighter botanical art, to strict botanical illustration. There is something there for everyone.

From previous experience, I knew that even though warm outside it can be cool sitting and demonstrating. I was well prepared. We didn’t have huge numbers of visitors and I am told that Sundays do not seem to attract the crowds. However there were quite a few people interested in my demonstration and I was able to talk a little of what I was doing.

The following is pictures from today finishing off with what I have done so far. The plant is a Mandeville, or Dipladenia.

Tomorrow I will be catching up:
– with London Art College assignment marking;
– preparation for the exhibition in Palmengarten Botanical gardens in Frankfurt, Germany. A joint exercise between Palmengarten and the SBA. My husband and I receive botanical art from across the UK and take it over to Frankfurt in October for the exhibition;
– preparation for the Garden Show at Stansted House (http://www.thegardenshowonline.com/gardenshow_stansted/) this coming FRiday, Saturday and Sunday. We have a stand there for the first time. Do come and support us. I intend to demonstrate some more.

GAYNOR'S FLORA

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