'Three days to paint a single leaf': The intricate, laborious work of the artists in Chelsea Physic Garden's Florilegium Society
In the heart of London, nestled near the Embankment, lies the Chelsea Physic Garden – a historical haven that has been cultivating medicinal, useful, and edible plants since 1673. This venerable garden is home to around 5,000 specimen plants, and it's here that the Chelsea Physic Garden Florilegium Society (CPGFS) was established in 1995.
The CPGFS is an association of top botanical illustrators, dedicated to promoting botanical art and the documentation of the Garden’s plant collections through detailed botanical illustrations. Each year, the society selects one particular plant for botanical illustration, capturing its beauty from bud to fruit and from root to tip.
Margaret King, a former director at British clothing brand Aquascutum and Margaret Thatcher’s stylist, founded the CPGFS with a vision to keep botanical illustration alive and to foster a sense of camaraderie and purpose among its members. One of the society's notable chairpersons, Mary Ellen Taylor, has produced works showcasing the endangered birds of the Galapagos Islands and Romanian wildflowers, reflecting the high standards and artistic caliber of the group.
The process of botanical illustration is a labor of love, often taking several years, as seen in Mary Ellen Taylor's three-year painting of a magnolia tree. Working on a botanical illustration can take several days and requires the use of microscopes and magnifying glasses for precision. The finished artwork is then donated to the Chelsea Physic Garden for its archive and to raise funds by licensing the image for use on products.
Members of the CPGFS are typically botanical artists and illustrators who produce detailed and scientifically accurate art related to the plants cultivated in the Chelsea Physic Garden. Their works are judged by notable experts, such as Katherine Tyrrell and Emma Van Klaveren SBAF, highlighting the professional and artistic caliber of the group.
The CPGFS aims to make a visual record of all the plants in the physic garden, contributing to the broader educational and cultural mission of the garden. The society's activities include events, history displays, and workshops related to botany, medicinal plants, and botanical art.
In addition to their work with the CPGFS, several members are involved in other specialist art forms. For instance, Gillian Barlow paints heraldry at London's College of Arms. The artists are also allowed to take home cuttings of the selected plant for use in their work, and transporting these cuttings from the Chelsea Physic Garden to their homes can be a creative process, involving various methods such as plastic bottles and supermarket freezer bags.
The CPGFS has seen a rise in numbers since the pandemic, with many members having been involved with the society for years. Despite the solitary nature of their work, these botanical artists find a sense of community and purpose in the CPGFS, continuing to preserve the art of botanical illustration for future generations.
Botanical illustration holds an important place in botany, providing detailed records of plants before the advent of photography during the Age of Exploration. Today, the Chelsea Physic Garden Florilegium Society continues this tradition, fostering the art of botanical painting in connection with the Chelsea Physic Garden and contributing to its historical and educational mission in plant sciences and medicine.
- Margaret King, the former director at British clothing brand Aquascutum and Margaret Thatcher’s stylist, established the Chelsea Physic Garden Florilegium Society (CPGFS) to promote botanical art and foster camaraderie among botanical artists.
- Members of the CPGFS, like Gillian Barlow who paints heraldry at London's College of Arms, are involved in other specialist art forms, but they also take home cuttings of the selected plant for use in their botanical illustrations.
