An Exhibition at the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art,

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK

This exhibition now on view at the Shirley Sherwood Gallery celebrates the 30th year of her collection and unparalleled impact on botanical art. The gallery spaces are organized by geographical regions, and the entire gallery is given over to the exhibition. While over 150 artworks are on display in this exhibition, Dr. Sherwood has the most important private contemporary botanical art collection in the world, of over 1,000 works from 303 artists from 36 countries!

I am fortunate enough to have two works in the exhibition and accompanying book - Phragmipedium kovachii and Phormium tenax. The book itself is a treasure - over 300 images reproduced and so many old and new favorites in one place. The accompanying text and essays are also illuminating, contextualizing the works and the state of the genre. I’m also lucky enough to have the P. kovachii painting enlarged on the outside of the gallery, photo courtesy Mieko Ishikawa. It is a thrilling time to be a botanical artist, and we all owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude to Dr. Sherwood!

The exterior of the Shirley Sherwood Gallery, photo courtesy Mieko Ishikawa.

A page spread with my two paintings, from ‘The Shirley Sherwood Collection: Modern Masterpieces of Botanical Art’ by Shirley Sherwood, published by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.