Scabiosa Fabulosa! It`s Back!

Transcription

INSIDE THIS ISSUE
ISSUE 4
Fresh Paint
Newsletter August 2016

SCABIOSA FABULOSA
DIARY DATES
PAINTING GRAPES
AUTUMN HOLIDAYS
WHAT PLANT IS THAT?
It’s Back!
MY SUMMER LOVE
Dear Reader,
Scabiosa Fabulosa!
I am shamed to say there has
been a gap of three years since
issue 3 of this newsletter.
Several people have asked me
to revive it, so here it is!
This is my nick name for Scabiosa caucasica,
the Caucasian pincushion flower, which I so
enjoyed painting in all its splendid hairiness!
Just by chance I saw them offered for
sale as cut flowers in a local market and
it was love at first sight. What attracted
me was the colour, the hairiness and
the wonderful papery texture of the
petals. I am somewhat of a texture
freak when it comes to botanicals.
The plant, from the Caprifoliaceae
family is native to the Caucasus, north
eastern Turkey, and northern Iran.
“the buds remind you of pin
cushions from which the long
pin-like pistils will emerge”
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It will be published periodically
(probably 3-4 times per year).
Elaine Searle
Botanical Artist & Tutor
Now they have become classic British
garden plants and with a hugely long
flowering season, good vase life and
the bonus that the bees and butterflies
adore them.
Growing to 60 cm (24 in) tall and
broad, it is a clump-forming perennial
with divided leaves. Pincushion-shaped
buds, borne on erect stems, open to
pale blue or lavender flower heads, 8
cm (3 in) in diameter, from late summer
through to autumn.
I chose to paint them at 1.5x as I
wanted to be able to show those hairs
(see the buds in the header) and my old
eyes need all the help they can get.
Many varieties exist which range
from pale blue to violet, and even
white such as Scabiosa caucasica
perfecta ‘Alba’ (above). Maybe for
next Summers painting season I can
try to grow several!
A VINEYARD IN UMBRIA
2017 diary
13 –16 February
4 Day Beginners Course
In search of the
Noble Grape
‘Beginning with Fruit’
Chelsea School of Botanical Art, London
26 – 27 February
RHS London Botanical Art Show
RHS Lindey Hall, London
3 –7 April
5 Day Intermediate Course
‘Depth in Detail’
Chelsea School of Botanical Art, London
25 May–1 June
Botanical Painting Holiday, Italy
‘Flowers and Fruits of Early Summer’
2–9 June
‘Wild Flower Composition’
24–31 August
’Autumn Study Sheet’
1–8 September
2-9 September 2016 I shall
be running a holiday workshop
in Umbria and this time it is
themed to grapevines.
‘Colours of Autumn’
12–14 October
Its always inspirational to
look at how histotical botanical
artists have approached the
subject and here are two well
known exponents.
Far left you can see the
Umbrian grapevine I painted
whilst there in 2013
The Poonah Grape
Joseph Hooker 1820
Umbrian Vine 2016
Elaine Searle
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Still life with grapes
Augusta Innes Withers
(1793-1877)
Meet the
Romanellis...
A real family affair...when I took a group of
botanical painters to the vineyard for lunch in
2013 the young boy pictured here was only a
babe in arms and was handed round the table
for cuddles!
The delicious wild asparagus omelette with
we ate as part of our ‘tasting’ meal was proudly
made with eggs from Grandmas’ hens
New: Additional Autumn Painting Weeks
For several years now I have been offering Spring Painting Holidays to
Umbria, Italy. Their popularity has prompted me to offer additional weeks in
2017 for a chance to experience this magical setting at a different season.
Although the native orchids and other wild flowers are gone there is still much
to discover in the warm and sun of late August and early September.
24–31 August, Botanical Painting Holiday, Italy
’Autumn Study Sheet’
This weeks focus will be on painting a mixed study sheet of various seasonal flowers, fruits, seedpods and even feather and porcupine quills that we can find on short walks around the meadows
and woodland paths adjacent to the studio. A chance to slow the pace down and focus on some
detail with tips and tricks about composition, building form, etc. from Elaine.
Our day excursion will be to Spello, a lovely hill village with lots of churches, small galleries and
specialist food shops selling local honey and olive oil. An opportunity to buy unique souvenirs well
off the tourist trail. Lunch at a typical village restaurant is included.
1–8 September, Botanical Painting Holiday, Italy
This weeks we will work on the glowing earthy colour palette provided by fruits and foliage. Fruits
such as grapes, figs and plums should be available. A chance to focus on dealing with dark colours
with again tips and tricks about composition, building form, etc. from Elaine.
Our day excursion will be to Montefalco, a medieval hill town noted for its wine. There will be time
for shopping or to view the frescoes by Benozzo Gozzoli in the Franciscan monastery church.
A ‘tasting’ lunch of organic wines and oil at the Romanelli vineyard is included.
www.paintbotanical.com for full details and pricing
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WHAT PLANT IS THAT?
Tragopogon
porrifolius
Purple salsify
In May this year one of the group
who came to Umbria, Lois Jackson
from Vermont found some great
plants to draw and paint.
She introduced me to this giant
seed head which she very cleverly
sprayed lightly with hairspray to
stop it falling apart as she drew it!
Mature plant
Plants grow erect, range from 2 to 4 feet (60–120 cm) tall,
and have few stem branches. Rosette and stem leaves are
grasslike with parallel veins, slightly fleshy, release a milky sap
when torn, and range from about 5 to 20 inches (15–50 cm)
long. The leaf base is broad and clasps the stem. Leaves are
alternate to one another along the stem. Taproots are thick,
fleshy, usually branched, and also contain a milky sap
Flowers
Flowering takes place from April through July. A thick stalk
bears a single flower head at its tip. The flower head contains
purple flowers that cluster, daisy like, and is surrounded by 8
or 9 narrow and green modified leaves (bracts) that are much
longer than the petals. Flower heads are generally open and
track the sun from morning to midday.
Fruits
Mature fruiting heads look like those of dandelion puffballs.
The tiny, oblong to narrowly football-shaped fruit is about
1 to 1-3/5 inches (2.5–4 cm) long, and has a thin projection
that ends in a tuft of soft white hairs. Each fruit contains one
seed.
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reproduction of a painting by the Swedish
botanist C. A. M. Lindman (1856–1928), taken
from his book(s) Bilder ur Nordens Flora
“This plant is
sometimes
cultivated in
France and Italy
for its edible
root which is
said to mildly
taste of oysters”