here. - Yanny Petters

 SBA Course 9 Assignment 6 Essay Julienne Hanson 2012 “Explain the attraction which botanical painting holds for you. Name a well-­‐known botanical artist from the past, before 1950, and one piece of work which you particularly admire. Compare this with work by a contemporary (living) botanical artist whom you equally admire. Would you say it is easier or more difficult for a botanical painter to forge a career today? Give your reasons and name your sources of reference material.” Photography, the mass reproduction of images and the ubiquity of the Internet have combined to give everyone unprecedented access to images of plants1. Yet, botanical painting is undergoing a renaissance2. Many explanations may be advanced, but four are: intrinsic satisfaction, intellectual challenge, its complementarity to gardening and the significant messages that it communicates. These reasons attracted the author to botanical painting3. Many choose to practice botanical painting because it is skilful and contemplative. It offers opportunities to escape from today’s pressurized, competitive and consumer-­‐driven world. Plants have complex forms, jewel-­‐like flowers and striking foliage that demand to 1 Photography has several limitations in respect of appreciating plants: the camera cannot record everything in sharp focus, the size and scale of the plant may not be shown clearly, it may not reproduce colour accurately and it may reduce the image to two dimensions so that vital information about the growing plant is obscured. 2 Sherwood, (2005) says, ‘I believe there is another ‘Golden Age’ here and now, with excellent artists from all over the world aspiring to great heights.’ p.12. 3 Several other equally-­‐valid reasons for engaging in botanical painting have not been advanced because they are less relevant to the author’s personal experience. 1 be painted. Whilst painting, it is necessary to pause, shed everyday cares, and joyfully celebrate the intrinsic beauty of nature, freely-­‐
given to all who look attentively. Botanical painting is attractive because it poses significant intellectual challenges. Executing a botanical drawing requires detailed observation and an understanding of how the parts of a plant combine into a functioning, aesthetically-­‐pleasing whole. Contextualising a plant study may draw on artistic, scientific, historical, geographical, art-­‐historical, mythological and symbolic research. Gardening is a life-­‐affirming activity that instils a love of plants. Painting plants is a perfect complement to growing and nurturing them. A living plant is transient; it is a challenge to capture its essence before it droops or deteriorates. Cultivating plants and painting them may even provide an apt metaphor for life itself. Finally, observation of even the lowliest plant invariably surprises and captivates. Each is an instance of ‘those endless forms most beautiful, and most wonderful’ that delighted Darwin (1859). Specimens do not have to be exotic or rare to excite interest, for suitable subjects abound locally. Ecology demonstrates the inter-­‐relatedness of living things, and prompts a new appreciation of wild places, landscapes, parks and gardens4. In this spirit, two examples that illustrate an ‘ecological’ approach to botanical painting have been selected for comparison. The Large Turf, by Albrecht Dürer, (1471-­‐1528), commands attention because it expresses a timeless awe at the miracle of creation5. Irish Meadow, a 4 In the final paragraph of his paradigm-­‐changing book, On the Origin of Species, (1859) Darwin wrote, ‘It is interesting to contemplate an entangled bank, clothed with many plants of many kinds, with birds singing on the bushes, with various insects flitting about and with worms crawling through the damp earth, and to reflect that these elaborately constructed forms, so different from each other, and dependent on each other in so complex a manner, have all been produced by laws acting around us.’. p.396. He was recalling a familiar hedge bank near his home at Down House, Kent, but he could equally well have been describing Dürer’s The Large Turf or Petters’ Irish Meadow. 5 Martin and Thurstan (2008) have suggested that, whilst many botanical paintings appear to be ‘of their time’, Dürer’s The Large Turf transcends the time at which it was conceived and looks as if it could have been painted yesterday. p. 10. 2 modern work by Yanny Petters, (born 1961), is a softer, exquisitely-­‐
detailed portrait of a wild habitat that shares a family likeness to Durer’s painting. At its simplest, art is a form of communication. Insofar as these paintings communicate a yearning to connect with nature, they illustrate one attractive way to practice botanical art today. Figure 1. The Large Turf The Large Turf 6 (see Figure 1 overleaf, and enlargement, p. 9) is an observational study made from nature7. It is a ‘botanical’ painting8 by Dürer in watercolours on paper, with additional brush and pen and body colour. The painting, which measures 403 × 311 mm (15⅞” × 12¼”), was produced in Nuremberg in 1503 and is housed at the Albertina in Vienna. Uniquely at Dürer’s time, in The Large Turf the viewpoint is rendered in sectional perspective. It shows a realistic, life-­‐size representation of wild plants that are normally considered weeds9. Each blade of grass, 6 Also known as The Great Piece of Turf, or in German, Das Große Rasenstück 7 Critics agree that Dürer’s watercolours were innovative representations of nature in their own right, the first true observational studies painted from life, but also that the artist himself viewed them as subsidiary to his oil paintings, the former furnishing a library of study material that could be drawn on to add verisimilitude and detail to the latter (Wolf, 2010, p. 57). 8 Other subjects included a columbine, a pine tree, a linden tree and an iris. Dürer also recorded many drawings of animals, and thirty-­‐four watercolour landscapes. 9 These have been identified by various authors including Lubbock (2008) and Mabey (2010), as cock’s foot, creeping bent, daisy, dandelion, germander 3 and every flower and stem are individuated. Some of the roots are exposed. The background is a pale wash, which throws the plants into relief, and the light source comes from the top left, as in a modern botanical painting. The plants appear to continue into an implied meadow beyond the picture plane. Dürer’s contemporaries studied plants for their medicinal and mythological value. Plant drawings were made to illustrate herbals, in which case they were abstracted and stylized with scant attention to botanical accuracy, or they embellished the borders of ‘Books of Hours’, where they were reduced to idealized flowery meads. Dürer’s painting is the earliest-­‐known artistic depiction of real plants growing naturally. Dürer stated that, ‘artists must always take nature as their starting point in order to then creatively transcend it.’ (Wolf, 2010, p. 62). Put succinctly, the purpose of art is to render the external features of a subject visible, in order to unveil its essential nature10. Wolf (ibid., p. 62) traces Dürer’s inspiration to a passage from a contemporary humanist philosopher11 that drew an analogy between a painting of a meadow and an expression of the soul. He suggests that the central message of The Large Turf is to assert the unity of perception, art, science and natural philosophy. Lubbock (2008) has argued that the appearance of the painting is chaotic, but the ecologist Richard Mabey (2010) suggests otherwise; ‘this is painting’s discovery of ecology.’ (p. 57) Despite its modest size, Dürer’s painting is a timeless, scientifically accurate composition that showcases an interdependent ‘community of plants’, such as one might find growing in any meadow. At one level, The Large Turf is a mere study piece, but at another, Dürer’s intention may have been to demonstrate a unity between the botanical microcosm represented in his painting and the macrocosmic order underpinning the whole of creation. speedwell, greater plantain, hound’s tongue, pimpernel, salad burnet, saxifrage, smooth meadow-­‐grass and yarrow. 10 This could perhaps serve as one concise definition of botanical painting? 11 The Theologica Platonica, by Marsilio Ficino, published in 1484, which was the first translation of Plato’s works from Greek into Latin, and an early attempt to reconcile Humanism to Christianity. Ficino describes how the renowned Ancient Greek artist Apelles claimed that truth is to be discerned in even the most ordinary piece of nature. Dürer may have been alluding to this in his painting. 4 Yanny Petters is a Dublin artist who studied graphics at the College of Marketing and Design in Dublin before moving to London to work. Whilst working as a sign writer in Dublin, Petters learned how to paint on glass to produce murals and decorative windows and mirrors. In 1994, Petters returned to Ireland, where she began to paint the local flora in order to, ‘raise awareness of the wonders of nature, and especially the wild plants of Ireland’, (Petters, 2012) 12. Irish Meadow, (see Figure 2, overleaf, and enlargement, p.10) now in the Shirley Sherwood Collection, featured in Sherwood’s (2005) book ‘A New Flowering’, which was published to mark an exhibition at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. Sherwood explains that she included Petters’ painting, ‘ in homage….to that wonderful painter from the past, Albrecht Dürer (1471-­‐1528) and his much admired A Large Piece of Turf.’ (p.166). Figure 2. Irish Meadow Measuring 790 x 410 mm (31” x 16”) Irish Meadow is approximately twice the size of Dürer’s Large Turf. It, too, is a sectional perspective, but unlike Dürer’s painting the small sod of earth is completely 12 Her artist’s statement further elaborates, ‘My work is inspired by the minutiae of nature. I explore the detail, colour and form within the realm of nature and the environment. My wish is to share with the viewer my fascination with the beautiful and bizarre in a world which we all too easily take for granted.’ 5 contained within the picture frame. It depicts a smaller ‘community of plants’13, and a spider to represent the interdependence of plants with insects and their predators. Unusually for a botanical painting, Irish Meadow was painted in oils on the back of a sheet of glass14. This technique has given Petters’ painting an extraordinary luminosity. The light is directed from behind and slightly to the viewer’s right, spotlighting the plants as if on a small stage or in a vivarium. Although Petters paints other botanical subjects, she specialises in Irish bog plants, which are painted from life in a botanical manner. Unlike Dürer, whose paintings are spatially non-­‐specific, timeless and speak to all generations, Petters’ Irish Meadow is temporally-­‐situated and place-­‐specific, in that she has recorded the minutiae of a particular Irish bogland habitat15. These endangered boglands are important places of great scientific interest. Through her portrayal of these irreplaceable ‘microworlds’, Petters draws their plight to public attention and makes a compelling case for their conservation. Dürer was a polymath whose patron was the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximillian I. Few artists today are so fortunate as to attract lifelong patronage to underwrite their output. Dürer’s commissions included Biblical and mythological scenes and portraits of notables. He was not a botanical artist in the modern sense16, but he painted plants to situate his subjects within a credible milieu. Dürer’s prodigious talent also made his fortune. He left nearly 7,000 gulden in his will. Today, 13 White clover, timothy, perennial rye grass and bird’s foot trefoil, as well as plants like plantain and smooth meadow grass that are also shown in Dürer’s painting. 14 Also known as back painting in English, in German as Hinterglasmalerie, and in France as Verre Églomisé, the technique was developed and differentiated from stained glass in Augsburg, Germany, around 1684. 15 Irish bogs are rare, wild wetlands, that are amongst the richest in Europe in terms of their plant and animal diversity. They are complex ecosystems that support many plants and animals that have specialised to survive in damp, nutrient-­‐poor conditions. For generations they remained undisturbed, but in recent decades they have been modifed by human agency and attacked by climate change, which now threatens to reduce their biodiversity and ultimately to destroy them. 16 Still life painting of subjects like flowers did not emerge as a separate discipline in Northern Europe until about 1600, over seventy years after Dürer’s death. (Leidtke, 2003). 6 his Large Turf is commercially reproduced in countless art prints and on a wide variety of everyday objects from wallpaper to tea-­‐towels, as well as serving as an inspiration for other artists, including contemporary digital artists17. Unlike Dürer, Petters has consistently studied and recorded the ecology of Irish bogs for over twenty years. Like most professional artists working today, Petters teaches workshops on botanical painting. She also accepts private commissions and participates in public exhibitions throughout Ireland18. However, as well as maintaining a successful career as a professional artist, she reaps rich non-­‐material rewards by using her talent to sustain her nation’s environmental heritage. Today, many professional botanical artists work freelance, engaging in a ‘mixed economy’ that involves not only exhibiting and selling original artworks and prints but also teaching botanical painting, becoming an artist-­‐in-­‐residence, executing scientific commissions, illustrating books and magazines, providing paintings for the media,
designing textiles, illustrating greeting cards and decorating homewares (Art Plantae Today, 2008). Consumer-­‐driven society tends to undervalue artwork, and purchasers are often unwilling to pay a price commensurate with the time taken and skill required to produce a successful botanical painting. For this reason, it may be easier to engage with the art today, but harder to make a successful career than it was in the heyday of the planthunters and botanisers, although even in this ‘golden age’ of 17 For example, Inside the Large Piece of Turf (Paar, 2009) is a three-­‐dimensional analytic model that depicts the distribution of the plant species shown in Dürer’s original painting, on the basis of a quasi geo-­‐referenced planting plan. The digital plants were generated using real photo textures and realistic shades, rendered with Cinema4D. 18 Including ‘The Living Bog’ at the Davis Gallery, Dublin, in 2003; ‘Field Work’ at the Riverside Gallery in Arklow, County Wicklow, in 2008; ‘The Art of Plant Evolution’, Shirley Sherwood Gallery, Kew, in 2008; ‘The Living Line’, Droichead Arts Centre, County Louth, in 2011. Petters is currently preparing for her next solo exhibition at the Olivier Cornet Gallery in Dublin in 2013. Examples of her bog plant paintings are also owned by the Wicklow Mountains National Park Headquarters and the Connemara National Park Visitors Centre, both of which are important conservation bodies responsible for the management of Ireland’s unique bogland ecosystems. 7 botanical illustration, individual fortunes varied.19. This comparison between two artworks that were made an astonishing five hundred years apart, has identified another rewarding way to engage with the public, which also appeals to the author, namely raising awareness about the fragility of the planet through holistic botanical studies of rare, endangered habitats20. (1499 words, excluding footnotes and references) 19 The Bauer brothers, Ferdinand (1760-­‐1826) and Franz (1758-­‐1840), typify career choices in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Ferdinand accompanied the first planthunters all over the world. He was almost unheard of in his day, but he died comfortably off. Franz botanised at Kew Gardens19, working there as its first resident botanical artist for over forty years at a low but steady annual income of £300. He was celebrated during his lifetime, becoming a member of the Royal Society, ‘Botanick’ (sic.) Painter to King George III, and tutor in botanical illustration to Queen Charlotte, Princess Elizabeth and William Hooker. However, Franz died a bankrupt. (Mabberly, 1999). 20 According to Oxley (2008, p.113), the first person systematically to adopt an ecological approach was Barbara Nicholson in the 1960s, to illustrate a book by Frank Brightman (1966). In the early 1970s, Frank and Barbara went on to produce seasonal wall charts, showing plant communities in their natural habitats throughout the year, for the Natural History Museum. 8 Figure 1 reproduced from http://www.albrecht-­‐durer.org/ Image 768 of 933. 9 Figure 2 reproduced from http://www.yannypetters.net/ Image 4 of 10. 10 References Art Plantae Today (2008) discussion thread. http://artplantaetoday.com/2008/11/20/sba-­‐day-­‐job/ accessed 04.09.2012. Brightman, Frank (1966) The Oxford Book of Flowerless Plants. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Darwin, Charles (first published in 1851, cited edition published in 1998) On the Origin of Species. London: Gramercy Books. Liedtke, Walter (2003) Still-­‐Life Painting in Northern Europe, 1600–
1800. In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nstl/hd_nstl.htm accessed 04.09.2012. Lubbock, Tom (2008, Friday 18th January) Dürer, Albrecht: The Large Turf (1503) London: The Independent's Great Art Series. Mabberley, David, (1999) Ferdinand Bauer: the Nature of Discovery. London: Merrell Holberton and The Natural History Museum. Mabey, Richard (2010) Weeds: how vagabond plants gatecrashed civilisation and changed the way we think about nature. London: Profile Books. Martin, Rosie and Thurstan, Meriel (2008). Contemporary Botanical Illustration with the Eden Project. London: Batsford. Oxley, Valerie (2008) Botanical Illustration. Marlborough:Crowood Press. Paar, Philip (2009) Inside The Large Piece of Turf – Albrecht Dürer's Wonderland, http://vimeo.com/5992218 accessed 03.09.2012 Petters, Yanny (2012) http://www.yannypetters.net/ accessed 01.09.2012. Sherwood, Shirley (2005) A New Flowering: 1000 Years of Botanical 11 Art. Oxford: The Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford. Wolf, Norbert (2010) Albrecht Dürer. Munich: Prestel Verlag. 12