Drawing and Painting Botanicals (For Artists)

Drawing and Painting Botanicals for Artists offers artists at all skill levels a comprehensive survey of drawing and painting mediums and techniques, along with guidance for creating accurate, detailed, and beautiful botanical artworks.

Originally developed in the 18th century as a visual supplement to botanical nomenclature, botanical illustration and art uniquely fuse art and science by documenting the parts, details, and life cycles of plant species. In Drawing and Painting Botanicals for Artists, eminent botanical artist and veteran workshop instructor Karen Kluglein reveals her secrets for rendering leaves, flowers, berries, and branches both accurately and beautifully. The book begins with a brief history of the art form, followed by guidance on developing observational skills for this genre, key botanical terms and concepts, and the differences among botanical illustration, botanical art, and flower painting. The chapters that follow offer detailed guidance and demonstrations for drawing and painting botanicals in a variety of mediums:

• Drawing: explore loose gestural drawing, precise measuring and rendering, and working from photographs with graphite, coloured pencil, finepoint markers, pen and ink, and silverpoint.
• Painting: master colour mixing, washes, layering, gradations, values, and adding details in watercolour, gouache, and acrylic, plus guidance on adding "personality" to your work and knowing when a painting is done.

Drawing and Painting Botanicals for Artists shows artists at all skill levels how to translate careful observations into stunning works of art. The 'For Artists' series expertly guides and instructs artists at all skill levels who want to develop their classical drawing and painting skills and create realistic and representational art.

About the Author

Karen Kluglein began her career as an illustrator after graduating from the School of Visual Arts in 1980, with Dannon, Ragu, Pillsbury, Nabisco, The Atlantic Monthly, IBM, and Calvin Klein among her varied list of clients. After attending an American Society of Botanical Artists exhibit in the 1990s, Karen knew that her experience painting detailed food illustrations (such as berries and herbs) and her style were a great fit for the genre. In addition to teaching in-person workshops at the New York Botanical Garden and on eastern Long Island, and selling original art, prints, and instructional downloads and DVDs on her website, Karen also licenses her work, which can be seen on Celestial Seasonings packaging and on paper goods by Caspari Inc. Karen has won Best in Show and Best Painting in Show at the International Exhibition, and the Dianne Bouchier Award For Excellence in Botanical Art in 2010. She lives on Long Island, in East Hampton, New York.