Jean Emmons

This week we owe thanks to multi award winning artist Jean Emmons, for providing us with a wonderful insight into her working practice.

Jean initially trained in abstraction and colour and came to botanical painting through her love of gardening and career in horticultural book and magazine illustration. She found plants to be the perfect subjects for studying light on form and embraces the challenge of their reflective and iridescent qualities.

Read on and enjoy! 

 Dahlia ‘Sonic Bloom’ watercolor on Kelmscott vellum

I live on an island near Seattle. The air here is often moisture soaked. While the constant rain makes people moody, the light is beautiful. Local painters and photographers call it “oyster light.” It’s like looking through a lens made from an opal, subtle pinks, grays, lilacs. Lots of low contrast, soft, neutral colors. Things glow from within. 

 View from the studio in winter 

Every week, I volunteer at our island no-kill pet shelter. Often, I am fostering some old or sick cats in my studio. The cats always help out and, with great dignity, humor and resilience, remind me of what’s important.

  From left: Lito in the art critic chair, Nori in her office, Crommie managing the inbox

Gardening gets me outside, even in the rain, wind and cold. I particularly enjoy growing oddly-colored plants: coffee-colored irises, smokey dahlias, gray-green poppies. Also, lots of carnivorous plants in big pots on my back deck. I admire them for their fantastic patterns and their resilience. They aren’t hard to grow as long as they have nutrient-poor soil. Though, sometimes the raccoons, who are looking for worms, pull them out of their pots. 

    Iris ‘Coffee Trader,’ Pacific Treefrog in Sarracenia, Papaver ‘Black Peony’

I enjoy painting from life, as I see a lot more than a photo can give me. I usually grow my subjects observing them in all stages of life. Plants are such a perfect vehicle for watching changing light on form. Light moving through translucent layers of tissue.  

When I was art school in the 70s, there was a rift between abstraction and realism. Things seem better now, as an artist needs to understand both. The best realistic work succeeds on an abstract level. Good structural underpinnings.

 

With botanical art, the focus is on the plant, not so much the artist. And, botanical art touches on so many vital issues.  Loss of plant diversity, loss of pollinators. Plants that are native in our area today, might not be in a few years.

 

 Darlingtonia californica (detail) watercolor on vellum stretched over a board

Pacific Northwest Mushrooms (detail) watercolor on vellum stretched over a board

 

People are interested in my color choices. I work with color intuitively, not in a conscious or deliberate way. The key is that I am always trying to see in black and white. When I reach for paint, I’m not reaching for a specific color, I’m reaching for a certain black and white value. One of the great ironies about color is that if you can visualize your subject in black and white, you will become a great colorist.

Underpainting for Dahlia ‘Black Jack’ on Kelmscott vellum. Looking for a full range of black and white values.

These past 10 years I have enjoyed painting on Kelmscott vellum. It is such a forgiving surface, as long as you never use too much water. I can paint something one color, then completely sand it off and paint it another color. Constantly change the composition. 

 I decided to sand off the leaf on the left with 400 and 1200 grit sandpaper and repaint it (on the right)

I love to use multiple layers, underpainting in unusual colors. The challenge for me is to pull it all back together after I’ve created chaos. Sometimes 60 layers or more of translucent washes and drybrush are needed. Many of these layers end up covered up. Yet, I hope the layers lend richness to my paintings that I hope people can sense, even if they can’t always see it.

There have been some bright spots in this difficult time. More time means I can paint 100 layers, instead of the usual 60. I lose myself for hours, painting the tiny folds and flares of irises and poppies. As I move my head a fraction, the color shifts and I see more. I am never done.

 Iris ‘Full Tilt Boogie’ in progress watercolor and gouache

 

Botanical art is a small but very international genre. Thanks to Zoom and close-up cameras, we’ve been able to observe each other’s working methods in studios from Paris to Tokyo. It’s brought our tribe of botanical artists closer together.

 

All artists today need so many skills that have nothing to do with making art. Writing, photography, public speaking, digital skills. And, being a good teacher requires even more skills.

 

In a way, I think the most important skill for a botanical artist is to be 

well-organized. Scheduling time for the work, organizing a studio, setting up a palette, having everything ready to go. I think a lot about the French culinary term, “Mise en Place” because our time is so limited, the genre so labor intensive, and our subjects so ephemeral. 

 

Lastly, an artist should not be deterred by the occasional rejection.  My advice to anyone new to botanical art, cultivate flexibility and a thick skin. 

 

During the Pandemic, I’ve worked at gaining some fun new digital skills. Also, I’ve been delving into gouache and egg tempera, as I’d like to have the option of using background color.

 

For more information see http://jeanemmons.com

Instagram: jeanemmonsbotanicalart

 

All images © Jean Emmons

Introducing the Botanical Art Society (Singapore)

We previously published a blog post about the Indonesian Society of Botanical Artists (IDSBA) and now we introduce another relatively new Society, who were inspired by IDSBA, the Botanical Art Society (Singapore) or BASS. Founded in 2019,  just ahead of the pandemic, this may not have seemed like the best time to start a society but his hasn't held them back at all, instead they embraced the technology to keep their members engaged and became active with Zoom Workshops as well as an active WhatsApp BASS chat group. 

Read this Q & A to find out about their journey and achievements to date as well as their second major exhibition, a collaboration with IDSBA, the Thai Botanical Artists and the Philippine Botanical Art Society. The exhibition titled Flora of South East Asia is scheduled for November this year and is open worldwide, you just have to join one of the four Societies.

Sketching at Singapore Botanic Gardens.  Front: Angela Lee; Back: Janessa Sanio, Sharon Kong

Why and when did you decide form a society for botanical art in Singapore? Was it difficult?

We were incorporated as a formal Society in June, 2019, after a few Singapore-based artists (some who had completed the SBA Distance Learning Diploma Course) got to know each other.

Did you discover that many more people were interested in botanical art in Singapore than you expected? or did you already know that the interest and need for a society already existed? 

We had a core group of people interested in botanical art, which was initially quite small.  But as we get more publicity and the awareness of our group grows, we are attracting more and more members.  Many are very new to botanical art. 

You also welcome artists from further afield? Can you tell us more about how to join

Although the majority of our members are from Singapore, we also have members from Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Vietnam, UK, US and Canada.  Information on joining can be found on our website: www.botanicalartsocietysingapore.com/membership

Roughly how many members do you have?  

We have about 100 members now. 

Are members actively involved in helping to run the society. 

We have a Management Team of four that activity plan activities and manage the Society.  We also have 5 Committee members and a group of members that help out when needed in running the activities. 

Did any other Societies, organisations or individuals inspire or encourage you to form BASS?

The IDSBA (Indonesian Society of Botanical Artists) has been an inspiration to us from the beginning.  We have a group of BASS members who are also members of IDSBA and vice versa.  They started a few years before us, and we always look to them for ideas, inspiration and advice.  Our Societies have also done joint Zoom painting days together, and we often open workshops for each other.

What are the aims or plans for the Society and what do you feel is most important to achieve? 

Our aim is to be an inclusive society, supporting botanical art enthusiasts and artists.

We also promote an interest in botanical art in our community, and want to help create better awareness about our native flora.

Do you have a structured annual plan for the BASS to help achieve your aims? 

 Every year we come up with a schedule of activities for our members.  These include sharing sessions by our members and workshops by members and outside teachers to help improve member’s knowledge about plants and botanical art and help improve their technical skills. 

We often run activities to get our member’s creating art – like twice-yearly postcard exchanges and casual zoom painting sessions.

We also plan community outreach events in coordination with local organizations like the Singapore Botanic Gardens and Hort Park, such as workshops and outdoor sketching sessions that are open to the public.

 

Sketching in Singapore Botanic Gardens:  Back: Loh Xiang Yun, Melissa Tang, Sunanda Widel, Madeleine Vinuya, Franck Ernult. Front: Carrie-Ann Lee, Kelly Bassett, MC Pang, Debbie Teo

One tool we have found to be important is our BASS Chat group.  It is an opt-in WhatsApp chat group amongst the members. It has really helped create a community and allows members to ask questions about plants and art and chat about anything botanical art-related.  Especially when our physical meet-ups are limited, this has been very nice.

 

BASS Members decorating a tree at Singapore Botanic Gardens with Member’s artwork printed on waterproof cards.  Ai Hwa Goh, Carrie-Ann Lee, Leok Yee Lau, Aarati Govinda Rao.

 

Please tell us about some of the important things the Society has achieved to date, exhibitions, events, publications, sponsorship, media coverage etc. 

Our first exhibition, Past & Present, Plants of Singapore Botanic Gardens was held at the end of 2020. It showed our member’s art in the SBG Library along with special outdoor displays of their artworks next to historical illustrations of the same species.  https://www.botanicalartsocietysingapore.com/exhibitions/past-exhibitions

Poster from the first BASS exhibition November 2020

 

The Straits Times published an article and video about the Society in 2021 which was very well received and helped us gain a lot more awareness.  You can access them here: https://www.straitstimes.com/multimedia/photos/botanical-art-where-science-and-craft-meet

 

We ran a special project in 2021 “Tropical Fruit” where we invited our members to create artwork which we used to print a 2022 Calendar, decorate a holiday tree at Singapore Botanic Gardens, and for an online exhibition: https://www.botanicalartsocietysingapore.com/exhibitions/tropical-fruits

 

 

2022 Calendar made with Member’s artwork.  Artists clockwise from top left: Angelina Chong, Kelly Bassett, Sharifah Osman, Sharmini Markandu, Angelina Cheong, Sharifah Osman, Aarati Govinda Rao, Sharmini Markandu, Centre: Sunanda Verma Widel.

 

We know you have a joint exhibition planned, The Flora of Southeast Asia, this is in collaboration with the Indonesian Society of Botanical Artists and Thai Botanical Artists. How did this collaboration come about? 

For our next exhibition, we decided to go big!  We approached the Singapore Botanic Gardens with the idea to hold a multi-country exhibition and they were quickly onboard.  We wanted to limit it to flora native to Southeast Asia and therefore invited the Indonesian Society Botanical Artists, Thai Botanical Artists and Philippine Botanical Art Society to join the exhibition.  We have worked together to set the Call for Entries and judging criteria; and each Society is helping in different areas (for example producing graphic artwork, catalogue, the online exhibition etc).

We want to draw attention to the importance of the region’s native flora and also the high standard of botanical art that is being developed here.

The exhibition is open to artists worldwide, you just have to join one of the four Societies.

 Call for entries deadline is 15^th April, 2022 and the Exhibition will be held 15 November, 2022- 15 February, 2023.

 

Call for entries poster for the forthcoming exhibition at the Singapore Botanic Gardens,  November 2022

This exhibition is being held at Singapore Botanic Gardens, this is a new venue at the site? Please tell us a little more about it?

Flora of Southeast Asia (FSEA) will be held at the Botanical Art Gallery at Singapore Botanic Gardens. It is housed within a refurbished, conserved building built in 1906 called Inverturret.  Original features like the wooden staircase, shutters and hand-blown glass windows have been beautifully preserved. 

The building is in what we call the ‘Black & White’ style.  This type of building was built by the British from the 19^thcentury and were often homes to high-ranking officials.  It combines Tudor style with tropical Malay features such as being elevated off the ground with pillars for air circulation; wide verandas to reduce light and heat, and high steeped roofs to control rain and give more ventilation. 

The Gallery is the first permanent display for botanical art in Singapore and visitors can see a selection of the collection of more than 2,000 botanical paintings, sketches, line drawings and even original printing blocks.  

Along with the permanent collection, temporary exhibitions happen year round. FSEA will open on 15 November, 2022. 

Sadly Covid 19 has caused much disruption to exhibitions and events all over the world. Can you tell us how have kept members engaged in botanical art during this difficult time? 

Being in Singapore, we have had quite strict regulations all along.  We quickly pivoted to Zoom back in 2019 and just learned along the way what works and what doesn’t.  We have held, and still do hold, many sessions and workshops on Zoom.  While not ideal, it has allowed many more participants per workshop and also has allowed us to bring in teachers from all over the world.  We have had been privileged to welcome Eunike Nugroho from Indonesia, Dianne Emery from Australia and Lara Call Gastinger from the US. And we have many of our own artists hosting informational sharing sessions, art Jams and workshops as well.

To find out more about BASS: 

Website: www.botanicalartsocietysingapore.com

Facebook: Botanical Art Society (Singapore)

Instagram: @botanicalart_singapore

Email: botanicalartsg@gmail.com

Images from the beautiful Singapore Botanic Gardens.