RHS Watercolour Botanical Art A Practical Guide to the Art & Science of Botanical Illustration

A practical, must-have handbook for botanical artists that can be returned to time and time again, in association with the RHS and created with the input of its team of botany experts.

Unlike botanical art books that focus only on painting techniques, and botany books that do not take account of the artist's method, Watercolour Botanical Art balances both botany information and the painting practice used to depict it.

The intended reader is any artist who wishes to be more informed about botany; who needs to tackle the challenges of painting complex and particular botanical structures; who wants to learn what to look out for; and discover variations and morphological parts that are not obvious.

Part One focuses on botanical forms and considerations. Each entry in the directory of morphological terms will include:
Diagrams and text describing the plant morphology
Artists' Considerations: a checklist to follow when examining a plant
Paintings from celebrated botanical artists

Part Two focuses on practical considerations for artists describing painting techniques in step-by-step detail. This section also includes practical tips for working outdoors, visiting plant collections, and collecting or photographing plant specimens for study.

After working as a book researcher, archivist and journalist, Sarah Howard moved to Ethiopia with her husband where life began as a botanical illustrator. Now living in Scotland, and after training at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, she has taken part in numerous exhibitions, liaised with artists for international exhibitions, been an active member of botanical painting associations, and has had work selected for prestigious institutions or commissioned for private and public collections. Sarah holds a Diploma in Botanical Illustration (Distinction), Royal Botanical Garden Edinburgh, 2014.