About
Before coming to botanical art, Ann spent thirty five years as a successful full time studio potter producing hand-thrown high-fired stoneware selling direct to visitors at prestigious craft venues and then, for eight years, from her studio in south Devon. Individual commissions were sent to clients around the world and, for a number of years, considerable exports to Japan were achieved.
Retirement from the pottery meant Ann could realise a long held ambition to take up botanical painting, which she did in 2019. Although largely self taught, especially throughout Covid lockdowns, Ann was grateful to receive much valued tuition and advice from botanical art tutor Rosie Martin. Ann works in watercolour and graphite producing highly detailed paintings. She is a keen gardener and loves walking in the countryside and along the beautiful south Devon coast.
Inspiration
“I love the detail and precision of recording a plant within a botanical watercolour painting. My inspiration is around me on a daily basis, from hedgerow wild flowers, and waste ground ‘weeds’, to plants in my steeply terraced south Devon garden and everything in between! Architectural and unusual plants tend to draw me in with their special challenges. There is real joy in watching a plant gradually take form and ‘grow’ on the paper in front of me, despite the very many hours of painstaking work involved.
Botanical painting has made me look so much more closely at plants and their pollinating insects than I ever did before. There is a constant sense of wonder at the beauty, sheer diversity and ingenuity of the natural world around us.”
Exhibitions
In July 2022 Ann’s botanical artwork was accepted for future exhibition by the Royal Horticultural Society – RHS.
In June/July 2024 Ann exhibited a series of six paintings entitled Sarracenia-Trumpet Pitcher Plants of North America at the RHS Botanical Art and Photography annual exhibition held at the Saatchi Gallery, London. Ann was awarded a Bronze medal.
In March 2023 she was accepted to exhibit with the SBA-Society of Botanical Artists
She is a member of:
SBAF Society of Botanical Artists Fellow
SWSBA – South West Society of Botanical Artists.
ABA – Association of Botanical Artists
