Pamela Taylor Botanical Artist
Synergy 2020
Solo Exhibition at The Old Court, Windsor
Trees, flowers and buildings require very different approaches from the artist. As a botanical artist I usually depict flowers life size and work directly from the live specimen. In contrast a tree or building has to be reduced immensely in order to fit the page. To draw the proportions accurately I use a photograph and ruler or proportional dividers to map out the main structure. For trees detailed observation of how the leaves and twigs are held enable me to capture as much of the character of the particular tree as I can with the aim that my final drawing should clearly represent the species of tree drawn.
Watercolour is a wonderful medium for depicting the freshness and vibrancy of the colours of flowers and the mellow hues of roofs and walls, but I find that ink is ideal for capturing the structure and character of trees, especially the wonderful ancient specimens that characterise Windsor Great Park and Burnham Beeches.
For this exhibition I have selected pictures to illustrate these contrasts. Many of the flowers grow in my garden and most of the trees come from Windsor Great Park, Burnham Beeches or near the River Thames, reflecting the diversity that we have in our local area. Where subjects come from further afield, they support the themes of the exhibition, for example the painting of the cottage at Selworthy reflects the juxtaposition of old buildings and trees in our countryside and Willy Lott’s Cottage is included, because from childhood I have been inspired by John Constable and the wonderful way he painted trees in his landscapes. Sadly Dutch Elm Disease means that the English Elms which dominate his paintings are no longer the tall trees he knew, but scrub in places such as Eton Brocas.
Crack Willow (Salix fragilis)
River Thames, Dorney
Pen and ink
Growing on the riverbank the partly broken branch of this tree has rooted in the river where a mass of new shoots are growing.
Framed original £400
Ankerwyke Yew (Taxus baccata)
River Thames, Wraysbury
Pen and ink
2,500 year old Yew Tree, possibly witnessed the signing of the Magna Carta in 1,215.
Framed original £450
Ancient Beech (Fagus sylvatica)
Burnham Beeches
Pen and ink
Beech pollard, possibly 500 years old.
Framed original £400
Mounted print £50
Druid's Oak (Quercus rober)
Burnham Beeches
Pen and ink
Ancient Oak, possibly 800 years old.
Framed original £350
Trunk of the Druid's Oak (Quercus rober)
Burnham Beeches
Pen and ink
Massive hollow trunk of the ancient 800 year old tree.
NFS
King Offa's Oak (Quercus rober) in summer
Windsor Great Park
Pen and ink
Ancient Oak, possibly 1,200 years old and dating from the reign of the Anglo-Saxon King Offa.
Framed original £600
King Offa's Oak (Quercus rober) in winter
Windsor Great Park
Pen and ink
Ancient Oak, possibly 1,200 years old and dating from the reign of the Anglo-Saxon King Offa.
Framed original £600
Staghorn Oaks (Quercus rober)
Windsor Great Park
Pen and ink
The silhouette skeletons of dead oaks can take on fantastical shapes.
Framed original £400
Wych Elm (Ulmus glabra)
Burnham Park
Pen and ink
Many Wych Elms succumbed to Dutch Elm Disease, but this tree, growing close to diseased English Elm (Ulmus procera) suckers, appears to be resistant.
Framed original £350
American Red Oak (Quercus rubra)
Burnham Park
Pen and ink
In 2011 it was the tallest American Red Oak in Buckinghamshire.
NFS
Tulip Tree (Liriodendron tulipifera)
Taplow House Hotel
Pen and ink
Possibly planted by Elizabeth I, which would make it the oldest Tulip Tree in Britain.
Framed original £400
Lime (Tilia europaea) and Mistletoe (Viscum album)
Eton
Pen and ink
Mistletoe is common in Lime trees in South Buckinghamshire.
Framed original £350
Horsechestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) with Mistletoe (Viscum album)
Eton
Pen and ink/watercolour
About 25 years ago I noticed a single clump of mistletoe in this tree. Now it is so abundant I wanted to capture the moment.
Framed original £450
Snakeshead Fritillaries (Fritillaria meleagris)
Pen and ink
Every year this clump of Fritillaries is a welcome harbinger of spring in my garden.
Framed print £100
Mounted print £50
Musk Thistles (Carduus nutans)
Dorney Common
Pen and ink
I drew this specimen in September by which time there were ripe seed heads but also open flower heads and new buds present on the same plant.
Framed original £300
Jackpot Tulips (Tulipa Jackpot)
Watercolour
These tulips were painted for an exhibtion in Madrid marking the 350th anniversary of the crash in the stock markets due to Tulipomania.
Framed orignal £350
Mary Ann Tulips (Tulipa Mary Ann)
Watercolour
These tulips were painted for an exhibtion in Madrid marking the 350th anniversary of the crash in the stock markets due to Tulipomania.
Framed original £350
Heartsease Pansies (Viola tricolour)
Watercolour
Each one of these pansies has slightly different markings, showing the variability within the species.
Framed original £250
Autumn Rosebud (Rosa cultivar)
Watercolour
Late blooms often have a freshness lacking in their counterparts of high summer.
Framed original £250
Slipper Orchid (Phraphiopedilum hybrid)
Pen and ink
Usually this orchid produces one or two flowers and so when it formed three I just had to draw it!
NFS
Balloon Flower (Platycodon grandifloras)
Pen and ink/watercolour
Open flower in watercolour, buds and seed heads in ink.
Framed original £400
Oak Apple Gall (Biorhiza pallida on Quercus rober)
Watercolour
The grubs of a parasitic wasp cause the oak tree to form the oak apple around them as they grow.
Framed original £250
Butchers' Broom (Ruscus aculeatus)
Pen and ink
The flowers and berries appear to grow from the leaves, but the leaves of this curious plant are actually flattened stems.
NFS
Willy Lott's Cottage, Flatford
Watercolour
It was the reflection that led me to paint this cottage, immortalised by John Constable 200 years ago.
NFS
St Mary Magdalene Church, Boveney
Watercolour
There has been a chapel on this site for over 1,000 years.
Framed original £300
Mounted print £50
Cottage at Selworthy
Watercolour
The cob cottages of the hamlet of Selworthy nestle around the green in a sheltered valley.
NFS
© Pamela Taylor 2020