A unique and exciting approach to botanical illustration, this beginner guide demonstrates everything you need to know about capturing beautiful botanical specimens on paper.

Each exercise guides the reader through a different aspect of botanical illustration, breaking the whole process down into simple, easy-to-follow stages. Whether you are a beginner looking for advice on composition and how to plot out your initial drawings, an experienced artist looking to develop your skills at colour mixing and working with unusual colours, or an old hand looking to capture more challenging and complex textures and shapes, there is something for botanical artists of all levels.

Acclaimed artists Rosie Martin and Meriel Thurstan ran the popular botanical painting course at the Eden Project and have filled this fantastically illustrated guide with practical and inspirational worksheets, colour swatches, sketches and stunning finished paintings.

About The Author

Meriel Thurstan discovered botanical illustration while working at the Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall. She later became a pivotal member of the Friends team at the Eden Project, organising and running talks, visits and courses. She holds a Silver Lindley medal from the RHS for her watercolours of fungi and a Bronze medal for an exhibit of different coloured potatoes. Meriel founded the South West Society of Botanical Artists in 2006, which aims to promote and encourage botanical art to the highest standard. Her own botanical paintings hang in England, France and Australia. She lives in Somerset. ||

Rosie Martin holds a Gold Medal from the RHS for her botanical watercolour painting. She is an elected member of the Society of Botanical Artists and teaches a variety of art-based subjects, including botanical illustration in both. She has worked in fashion, ballet and theatre; her clients have included David Bowie, Anthony Caro, Karl Lagerfeld and Jean Muir, for whom she produced textiles and interior design prints.