Members

ROSALIND ALLCHIN

Inspiration came from seeing a beautiful watercolour painting of an iris by Kerri Weller. I knew instantly this was what I wanted to do. Kerri’s classes have taught me new ways of looking at botanical subjects, the skills and, especially important for me, the rigour necessary to continue to improve. The range of subjects I see as potential paintings is ever expanding. Winter is no longer a barren landscape. It’s amazing what you can find above the snow.
I love the delicacy of watercolour but also its surprising strength. In choosing subjects I find myself drawn to intricate detail writ large.



rosallchin@gmail.com 

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ROBERT ANDERSON

Robert started painting in watercolor in the mid thirties at the age of eleven. He was able to develop his skills at High School. A national scholarship enabled him to attend university courses in Architecture, interrupted by military service (1943-1946). Art for Architectural students meant precise and accurate work from plaster models involving cast shadows, which were shown by fine closely spaced lines in the manner of the engraving on a postage stamp."Patience and attention to detail have served me well". A scholarship to the British School of Florence resulted in many drawings and sketches in watercolor. graduating in 1950, he worked in England until 1953,when he moved with his family to Canada. During the next twenty years Robert continued intermittently sketching and painting but it was not until 1974 after moving to Ottawa and taking classes at the Ottawa School of Art that he became an active watercolorist   and a member of the Ottawa Watercolour Society. He undertook walking tours in Europe, and travels in  Central and South America, which lead to completion of many pencil sketches and watercolours. More recently he has attended a workshop with Mary Nunn, and a number of Botanical Art classes with Kerry Weller.

Robert has shown his work in exhibitions held by the Ottawa Watercolor Society, the Ottawa Orchid Society, Ottawa University, the Boys and Girls Club and group shows  by the Ottawa Society of Botanical Artists at the Shenkman Centre, Nepean Visual Arts Centre and the Herb Garden. His paintings are in private collections in England, the United States and Canada. Robert is a founding member of the Ottawa Society of Botanical Artists

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MARY ATKINS

Having taken art courses throughout high school, I most enjoyed working with watercolour and pen and ink.  After leaving high school it all was pretty much forgotten.  In 2009 I retired from the Government and decided to try and get back to drawing and painting.  I first started with landscape painting, but soon found out that I was trying to be too particular about details and botanical art was suggested.  In the spring of 2011, I took my first Botanical art class with Kerri Weller and I haven’t looked back.  Kerri has taught me to look at drawing shapes and not to panic about the whole picture and with a lot of practice, I can see the improvement. My art has been displayed at the Visual Arts Centre, at the Sportsplex, the Bergamot Barn Art Gallery at the Herb Garden in Almonte, and currently at Artistic Landscape and Design.

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CELIA GODKIN

Celia’s first career was as a biologist. In her late twenties, she decided to combine her love of nature with her love of art by becoming a scientific illustrator. To that end, she took the diploma course at the Ontario College of Art, followed by an illustrated master’s thesis in zoology at the University of Toronto (U of T).

In 1987 Celia was hired to teach scientific illustration in the Department of Bio medical Communications at the U of T, where she eventually attained the rank of Associate Professor. As well, she taught many studio arts courses for the School of Continuing Studies at U of T, including Botanical Drawing and Botanical Watercolour.  In 2001, her botanical art students, together with students of her mentor, Pamela Stagg formed the Botanical Artists of Canada.

Celia is an award-winning author and illustrator of seven children’s picture books. She has also illustrated children’s books written by others as well as textbooks and academic journals. In the last few years she has created a number of coin designs for the Royal Canadian Mint.

Celia works in a variety of media, including pen and ink, graphite pencil, coloured pencil, watercolour, oils and mixed media. She has recently learned to combine traditional media with digital art. Her subjects are often depicted in their natural habitats and they include all life forms from microscopic soil organisms to giants like trees and whales.

Celia has mounted four solo shows and has participated in many group shows, particularly with the Botanical Artists of Canada. Her painting of Black Walnut was awarded first prize in the 2009 Botanical Artists of Canada exhibition, Trees: From Roots to Crown. Her work has been shown across Canada, including the National Gallery, Ottawa, and the Musée des Beaux  Arts in Montreal, as well as internationally in the United Arab Emirates, Italy and Taiwan.

website: celiagodkin.com    

e-mail: celia@godkin.ca

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INGA LEGERE

After a career teaching Public School, Inga spent the following years at home raising a family. During that time, she took many art courses with local artists, painting occasionally. Kerri Weller’s course in Botanical Painting rekindled her desire to paint with watercolour. It seemed a perfect match for one who is an avid gardener and enjoys the beauty of flowers and nature. Inga has displayed paintings at the Ottawa Orchid Society Show, the Nepean Visual Arts Centre, the Bergamot Barn Gallery at the Herb Garden in Almonte, ON, and the Shenkman Arts Centre.

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JANET MARSHALL

As a youngster, I loved art and was chosen for classes through The University of Manitoba where I studied with George Swinton. I also took art classes all through school, showing up to work before school and eating my lunch with the teachers.

At The University of Calgary, I studied Art and Music and went on to teach in Calgary, Kingston, Napanee and Ottawa. Following university, I studied Advanced Drawing with Ivan Eyre at The University of Manitoba and Art History at Queenʼs, Carleton and The University of Calgary.

While living in Edmonton, at home with two small children, I was part of a figure drawing studio. In Ottawa, I have taken part in figure drawing studios at The Nepean Sportsplex and The Ottawa School of Art. Iʼve also worked in clay at the Sportsplex doing mostly bas reliefs -- drawing in clay.

I discovered Kerri Wellerʼs class and realized that she could take me in new directions. I want to master watercolour painting and to produce more finished artwork. Part of watercolourʼs appeal is that I can do it at home in retirement and itʼs portable for travel.

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CECILIA MARTIN

Cecilia Martin grew up in a family of artists. She studied at the Medway College of Art in England before coming to Canada in the early 1960’s.Then starting on her career, worked in the Display field of the retail industry for many years. Always a love of painting kept her involved in her artwork in her spare time.

In recent years the pastime of gardening, and an awareness of the beauty of the natural world around us, has lead her to believe that In a busy world, we need to stop and look, because the more we look the more we see and appreciate.

This in turn brought her to Botanical Art. Cecilia says “Botanical Art is an exacting field, and the more I know about it, the more I find I need to learn.

It takes time, and patience to see, and try to portray the beauty of plants, but if I can make a flower look like it is real, like it comes off the page and looks as if you could pick it up and smell it, hold it in your hand, see the sunlight reflecting off it, then I have achieved my goal”

Cecilia had shown her work in several exhibitions held by the Botanical Artists of Canada, the Ottawa Orchid Society, group shows by the Ottawa Society of Botanical Artists at the Shenkman Centre, Nepean Visual Arts Centre, and the Herb Garden. She has work in many private collections and is a founding member of the Ottawa Society of Botanical Artists.

Email:  Cecilia.helen.m@gmail.com

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KERRI WELLER        www.kerriweller.com    k.weller@magma.ca
   

Kerri and son Trevor
planting a school garden

Planting a garden is one of my favourite activities. For many years, I was involved in creating green spaces for school yards. Being in a garden, in nature, centres my life and gives inspiration for my paintings. 

Trained as a medical illustrator and graphic designer, I enjoyed a previous career in exhibit design graphics at the Ontario Science in Toronto. Today, I am a representational painter with oil paint being my favoured medium.  But drawing, with just a pencil, remains a joy as one so immediately captures their subject. My work is in the permanent collection of the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, and juried into the 14th, 15th & 16th International Exhibitions of the American Society of Botanical Artists at the Horticultural Society of New York. 

Parrot Tulips, oil painting by Kerri Weller

I love to teach and bring a broad base of knowledge and skills in the visual arts to the classroom. It's incredibly rewarding to see students improve over the duration of a course and continue on to embrace the genre of botanical art. 

Currently, I teach botanical art classes at the City of Ottawa’s Nepean Visual Arts Centre and at the Glebe Community Centre. Other teaching venues have included the Canadian Museum of Nature, Algonquin College and the Botanical Artists of Canada. I am a graduate of the Ontario College of Art and of the University of Toronto's Art as Applied to Medicine program.

With many of my students, I am a founding member of the Ottawa Society of Botanical Art. I hope to see this organization flourish over the years and introduce the beauty of the plant world to both the public and art collectors, alike.