The beginner's guide to botanical drawing, with 15 step-by-step exercises and 1 stunning floral composition by Emma Tildesley
The ultimate step-by-step guide to creating realistic and delicate botanical art in coloured pencils, from Co-President of the Society of Botanical Artists, Emma Tildesley (@emmatildesleybotanicalart), in collaboration with The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
By studying individual botanical elements - 5 leaves, 5 stems, 5 flowerheads and then 1 extraordinary final project - Emma will show you how to achieve your own stunning floral artwork in manageable steps.
Inside this thoughtful and inspiring guide you will find:
THE ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS, KEW is a world-famous scientific organization, internationally respected for its outstanding collections and scientific expertise in plant and fungal diversity, conservation, and sustainable development in the UK and around the globe. Kew’s extensive collections include 200,000 botanical illustrations assembled over the last 200 years.
Table of Contents
Introduction 6
How to use this book 8
Botanical drawing 10
Tools and materials 14
Preparing to draw 20
Measured drawing 24
Colour pencil techniques 32
THE EXERCISES
Stems 38
Tulip stem 40
Red Hellebore stem 43
Spring Rose stem 46
Passionfruit tendril 50
Leaves 38
Camellia leaf 58
Lily leaf 62
Cabbage leaf 66
Variegated ivy leaf 72
Viburnum leaf 78
Flower heads 84
Pansy 84
Narcissus 92
Fuchsia 98
Tea rose 104
Cala lily 110
BOTANICAL PROJECT
Rosa 'Oh Wow' 118
Outline drawings 140
Index 144
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About Emma Tildesley
Emma Tildesley is popular and talented watercolour artist specializing in botanicals. For as long as she can remember she’s been captivated by the intricate beauty of plants, and her journey as a botanical illustrator is one dedicated to capturing the essence of the plant and translating it onto paper.
Emma started posting tutorials on her YouTube channel nearly 10 years ago. Since then she’s amassed nearly 6.5k subscribers, a number that keeps on growing; she also has over 60k dedicated followers on Instagram, where she shares news of her latest tutorials and special watercolour commissions.
Emma is based near Birmingham, UK.
