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art journal series: botanicals

May 16, 2018 6 Comments

What keeps me going? My own curiosity and interests. I’ve had the idea of studying botanical drawing for years. When I was still in New York, I discovered that the NY Botanical Garden offered a certificate program in botanical art & illustration. But, the timing was not right probably because of my work schedule, the trials and tribulations of trying to make a baby, taking classes at Parsons for a fine art certificate program, and who knows what else.

Fast forward to 2017… I was new to Durham and I wanted to explore the educational opportunities here. I researched courses and workshops in the area and bumped into a Certificate in Botanical Art & Illustration program offered at the North Carolina Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill. I downloaded the brochure and the handbook and proceeded to map out my course of study for the next 3 years. The new enrollment period did not start for a few months. Thank goodness for that because I had time to ponder, “what the heck am I going to do with a certificate in botanical art?!” Realistically speaking, I wasn’t planning to pursue botanical drawing seriously… Needless to say, I did not enroll.

But, that downloaded brochure and handbook live on my desktop, reminding me that I would love to learn more about flowers while developing my drawing skills. So, I decided to embark on an “independent study” of botanical art. A study very loosely based on the course descriptions in that brochure/handbook I mentioned.

I have a few books on botanical drawings and prints. I have the internet. There are two botanical gardens near me, one with a library that is open to the public. I can do this!

Here’s my plan so far…

Step one: Review courses for year 1 (drawing, botany, plant taxonomy, watercolor).

Step two: Gather my materials (books, a journal, pencils, watercolor, eraser)

Step three: Start reading and sketching!

Are there things you’d like to study or learn? How could you begin your learning? What resources are available? Start making a plan and go for it!

All Posts, My Journals, series

Theresa

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Leslie says

    May 18, 2018 at 5:04 pm

    I wish you well on this new learning journey! Sounds interesting. I am always studying new languages and listen to cds in the car.

    Reply
    • Theresa says

      May 18, 2018 at 7:35 pm

      Thank you, Leslie!

      Reply
  2. Rebecca Lately says

    May 21, 2018 at 12:36 pm

    I hope you will update us on your progress! I love botanical illustrations. I have a small collection of 1800’s botanical prints passed down from my grandma that I’ve hung around my house. I wish I had the time to pursue a botanical illustration course!

    Reply
    • Theresa says

      May 21, 2018 at 4:20 pm

      Thanks for commenting, Rebecca! Yes, I will be documenting this little learning journey here on the blog. I would love to see those old botanical prints, lucky girl 🙂

      Reply
  3. Victoria says

    June 21, 2018 at 11:30 am

    It’s great to hear you starting this journey. I also wanted to share an amazing (and free!) class that I took on edx last summer. It’s not open right now, but I think it may run again. It was wonderful, highly recommend it!

    https://www.edx.org/course/drawing-nature-science-culture-natural-newcastlex-nhi101x-1

    Reply
    • Theresa says

      June 21, 2018 at 2:58 pm

      Thanks for the encouragement and info, Victoria. I will check it out!

      Reply

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I’m Theresa, a teacher & learner with an artist’s soul. Welcome to “a little of everything I love”: teaching & learning (mostly learning), art, travel, and home.
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