In pursuit of both knowledge and delight, the craft of botanical illustration has always required not only meticulous draftsmanship but also a rigorous scientific understanding. This new edition of a TASCHEN classic celebrates the botanical tradition and talents with a selection of outstanding works from the National Library of Vienna, including many new images. From Byzantine manuscripts right through to 19th-century masterpieces, through peonies, callas, and chrysanthemums, these exquisite reproductions dazzle in their accuracy and their aesthetics. Whether in gently furled leaves, precisely textured fruits, or the sheer beauty and variety of colors, we celebrate an art form as tender as it is precise, and ever more resonant amid our growing awareness of our ecological surroundings and the preciousness of natural flora. About the series TASCHEN is 40! Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible publishing, helping bookworms around the world curate their own library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia at an unbeatable price. Today we celebrate 40 years of incredible books by staying true to our company credo. The 40 series presents new editions of some of the stars of our program-now more compact, friendly in price, and still realized with the same commitment to impeccable production.

The ultimate gift for gardeners and art-lovers, featuring 300 of the most beautiful and pioneering botanical images ever Following in the footsteps of the international bestseller Map, Exploring the World, this fresh and visually stunning survey celebrates the extraordinary beauty and diversity of plants. It combines photographs and cutting-edge micrograph scans with watercolours, drawings, and prints to bring this universally popular and captivating subject vividly to life. Carefully selected by an international panel of experts and arranged in a uniquely structured sequence to highlight thought-provoking contrasts and similarities, this stunning compilation of botanically themed images includes iconic work by celebrated artists, photographers, scientists, and botanical illustrators, as well as rare and previously unpublished images. Advisory panel: Rosie Atkins, Gillian Barlow, Brent Elliott, Celia Fisher, Patricia Jonas, Rob Kesseler, Hans Walter Laack, Gren Lucas, Henry Noltie, Mikinori Ogisu, Pia OEstlund, Lynn Parker, Martyn Rix, Charlotte Tancin, Alice Tangerini and Anita Walsmit Sachs Additional texts: Rosie Atkins, Helen Bynum, Ruth Chivers, James Compton, Tim Cooke, Brent Elliott, Celia Fisher, Carolyn Fry, Patricia Jonas, Rob Kesseler, Hans Walter Lack, Paula McWaters, Pia OEstlund, Lynn Parker, Martyn Rix, Julian Shaw, Charlotte Tancin, Alice Tangerini, Guy Tindale, Jacek Wajer and Martin Walters

A highly original collection of high magnification photographs that unlock the hidden beauty of seeds and fruit, from the author of Microsculpture

The Hidden Beauty of Seeds & Fruits is a photographic study that celebrates the wonders of nature and science in mind-blowing magnification. Levon Biss’ striking photography captures the breathtaking and beautiful details of the world of carpology, the study of seeds and fruits. Each picture reveals minute features and textures that are normally invisible to the naked eye, providing the audience with an insight into strange and often bizarre adaptations that have evolved over thousands of years. After spending months searching through the carpological collection at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Biss selected over a hundred striking samples to be featured in this book. Captioned with scientific text that provides the backstory for each specimen, The Hidden Beauty of Seeds & Fruits is guaranteed to amaze, entertain, and educate.

This stunning series of pocketbooks from Kew offers a snapshot into the diverse and beautiful world of plants. Kew Pocketbooks: Wildflowers lavishly showcases a meadow's worth of familiar plants in 40 botanical paintings. Kew Pocketbooks: Wildflowers is a celebration of the natural bounty around us, offering a meadow's worth of familiar plants including foxgloves, poppies, dandelion, ivy, daisy, bluebells and orchids, and many more. 40 delightful botanical paintings from the Kew archives depict these classic plants.

Be inspired to embroider all the elements of an idyllic English country garden. Suitable for beginners as well as accomplished embroiderers, Lorna Bateman's beautiful book includes 12 practical projects for you to make and adorn with exquisite floral motifs. Lorna walks you through a variety of stitches including raised and textured stitches, teaching you to embroider individual flowers with them and how to incorporate these into an original garden motif. For the nature enthusiast, there is plenty to get excited about: an A-Z of English garden flowers and how to stitch them; a section on stitching common garden insects; and how to embroider iconic garden imagery such as birdbaths and garden ornaments. Roses are the archetypal cottage flower and Lorna describes how to incorporate a climbing rose, rose spray and standard rose in your designs. Embroidered Country Gardens is peppered throughout with seeds of wisdom: invaluable hints and tips from the author to help you develop your own skills and unique style. As well as step-by-step instructions, there are also detailed photographs, outline template drawings and a fully illustrated A-Z of stitches.

A gorgeous, easy-to-follow, and inspiring guide to stunningly realistic botanical drawing that covers everything you need to draw our natural world. Achieve amazingly realistic and vibrant botanical illustrations, from flowers so dazzling you feel as if you might be able to smell them, to tomatoes that look as if they've just been picked from the garden. Wendy Hollender is known for her vivid, detailed, and inspiring illustrations and in The Joy of Botanical Drawing, she helps you take your art to the next level by sharing her perfected techniques through short lessons that start simple, then build on the basics with easy-to-use and clear step-by-step illustrations. Using colored pencils and watercolor pencils, Hollender shows you how to accomplish scientifically accurate botanical portraits of a spiraling pine cone, a spiky chestnut, a fuchsia-tined radish, a graceful morning glory, and many more. From colorful leaves to delicate petals to textured bark and slender stems, The Joy of Botanical Drawing will give you the skills to complete lifelike drawings while also enjoying nature and the mindfulness of a regular drawing practice.

The Tropical Hothouse describes over 50 tropical plants, telling the intriguing stories of their origins and compelling features. Sourced exclusively from the archives at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, each accompanying illustration presses out of the page, transforming your book into a work of art. The Tropical Hothouse contains a botanical paradise, where tropical trees are festooned with vines, orchids and bromeliads, lurid blossoms perfume the air, and leafy ferns and palms jostle for the light. From exotic-looking potted orchids and motley assortments of succulents, to luxuriant, leafy greenery, house plants and terraria are more popular than ever as additions to stylish interiors. This beautifully presented and fascinating collection includes perennial favourites and unusual specimens, transporting this world of extraordinary plants into your hands and home.

Chickadees amid cherry blossoms, peacocks nestled in wisteria branches, sleeping owls against a moonlit night sky and majestic cranes diving in the ocean waves-these are some of the transcendent pleasures offered in this exquisite collection of plates bound in an accordion style format that honors the Japanese bookbinding tradition. Every major artist of this genre is included-from Keisai, Keibun and Hokusai to Hiroshige and Koson-as the history of Japanese printmaking unfolds in stunning detail. An introductory booklet explores the centuries long role that nature has played in Japanese art, from Chinese influenced works of the Kano school, which depicted the bird as a Buddhist symbol, through to the ukiyo-e, when artists strove to capture fleeting moments of pure joy. Fans of Japanese art, lovers of birds, and anyone who enjoys beautiful depictions of the natural world will cherish this sumptuous, satisfying volume of earthly delights.

In this lucid account, Stephanie Porras charts the fascinating story of art in northern Europe during the Renaissance period (ca. 1400-1570). She explains how artists and patrons from the regions north of the Alps - the Low Countries, France, England, Germany - responded to an era of rapid political, social, economic, and religious change, while redefining the status of art. Porras discusses not only paintings by artists from Jan van Eyck to Pieter Bruegel the Elder, but also sculpture, architecture, prints, metalwork, embroidery, tapestry, and armor. Each chapter presents works from a roughly 20-year period and also focuses on a broad thematic issue, such as the flourishing of the print industry or the mobility of Northern artists and artworks. The author traces the influence of aristocratic courts as centers of artistic production and the rise of an urban merchant class, leading to the creation of new consumers and new art products. This book offers a richly illustrated narrative that allows readers to understand the progression, variety, and key conceptual developments of Northern Renaissance art.

'This is an extraordinary book.' Review of Jean Haines' Atmospheric Watercolours in The Artist Magazine 'It simply dazzles on the page and makes you want to grab your brushes and get going straight away.' Review of Jean Haines' Atmospheric Watercolours in The Leisure Painter Jean Haines is arguably one of the world's most accomplished and inspirational artists, and in this, her fifth book, she explores one of her most beloved subjects - flowers. Taking inspiration from her own beautiful garden in the English countryside where she lives, Jean takes you on an artistic journey that not only teaches you how to create gorgeous paintings, but also shares with you the joy to be gained from the simple act of painting flowers. In this beautiful book, Jean explains with passion and enthusiasm how to loosen up your painting style and include just enough detail in your paintings to portray the essence of flowers, bringing them to life on the paper and infusing them with vibrancy and energy. She shares unreservedly the materials and techniques she uses, provides a wealth of expert tips and advice, and guides you step-by-step through numerous studies and projects. Throughout the book there are many glorious examples of Jean's paintings of a dazzling variety of flowers, providing an abundance of inspiration for artists of all abilities. Jean uses Daniel Smith materials in this book but other materials can be used to achieve similar results.

This stunning series of pocketbooks from Kew offers a snapshot into the diverse and beautiful world of plants. Kew Pocketbooks: Carnivorous Plants lavishly showcases 40 botanical paintings of these deadly beauties. Carnivorous plants are deadly beauties that trap, kill and consume everything from insects, spiders and crustaceans to lizards and mice, luring their prey in with specialised hairs, sweet nectar, bright colours, or the convenience of a toilet. 40 stunning botanical pairings of this extraordinary group are showcased here, including the famous Venus flytrap, as well as pitcher plants and sundews.

Now available in a new, large single volume with an appendix also listing the modern plant names, this classic collection by "the Audubon of botany" features more than 250 exquisite reproductions of Walcott's celebrated watercolors of wildflower life in the United States of America and Canada. Published in association with the Smithsonian Institution What does it take to paint a wildflower that blooms for a single day in a deep forest? For Mary Vaux Walcott, it involved spending up to seventeen hours a day out of doors with her paintbox to capture the shape, movement, and colors of delicate petals and leaves. Originally published in 1925 to enormous acclaim in five, oversized volumes, Walcott's sketches introduced the diversity and beauty of North American plants to the general public. A selection of some of the most stunning illustrations are now available in a single volume, these illustrations have lost none of their beauty or realism. Walcott's technique involved precise attention to detail, color, light, and perspective. Her art can also be appreciated as the work of a woman scientist battling the prejudices against her sex of the day. She was an intrepid explorer, skilled geologist, and generous benefactor to the Smithsonian Institution at a time when women's accomplishments were often overlooked or misattributed. As inspirational and informative as they are a pleasure for the eyes, this bouquet of nature's fleeting gifts is a lasting treasure of botanic and scientific artistry.

Colours of Nature is the perfect companion for anyone who is puzzled by the seemingly unpredictable behaviour of the paints on their palette, as well as those who would like their watercolour paintings to look fresher and livelier. In this new paperback edition, the author has tested more than 150 artists' watercolour paints from six manufacturers, and the results of this exhaustive testing are included here, along with recommendations for the best colours in the palette sections at the end of each chapter. This beautifully illustrated book guides the reader through a world of colours and exquisite flowers and fruit, explaining simple concepts and more advanced colour-mixing theory while exploring the serendipity and beauty of wet-in-wet watercolour painting.

Observe, draw, paint, explore and master the art of botanical illustration. Award-winning botanical artist Isik Guner shares her passion for drawing and painting living plants from around the world. Her work is both artistically accomplished and scientifically accurate, and will inspire you to master the skills you need to produce your own botanical illustrations from life. - Discover how to select, preserve and position your specimens. - Develop your understanding of perspective and composition. - Learn the techniques of drawing and watercolour painting. With the help of Ekin Ozbicer's striking photography and numerous illustrations by Isik and other renowned botanical artists, this visually stunning book bridges the gap between science and art and will inspire artists, illustrators, botanists and plant lovers in equal measure.

First published as an oversized clothbound volume in 2009, Botanica Magnifica has received widespread acclaim from the scientific and artistic communities. In the words of an ARTnews critic, Singer's flowers and plants, photographed "in large scale and exquisite detail, emerge from the shadows in a manner evocative of Old Master paintings." Now Abbeville is to offer this masterwork of botanical photography as a pocket-sized hardcover book, in their trademarked Tiny Folio format. Mirroring the design of the larger edition, this little volume is organised into five alphabetically arranged sections: (I) Orchidaceae, presenting the full diversity of orchids; (II) Florilegium, portraying the complexity and beauty of flowers; (III) Proteus, illustrating plant forms perfectly adapted for survival; (IV) Zingiberaceae, a tribute to the fascinating ginger family and (V) Botanicus, a selection of beautiful and bizarre specimens from the Smithsonian's research collection. Each pictured plant is accompanied by a clear and accessible description of its botany, geography, history, and conservation. With its marvellous reproductions and fascinating text, the Tiny Folio of Botanica Magnifica is a charming miniature version of one of the most impressive volumes of natural history ever published.

Fill your home with gorgeous flowers every day with this beautifully designed book. The Flower Garden brings to life over 50 varieties of flower with exquisite botanical illustrations. The innovative paper design allows you to press each illustration out of the page, transforming your book into a lovely object for you to display. Sunflowers, lilies, frangipani and birds of paradise are brought into your home and described in lyrical detail by botanist Michael Scott. This stunning bunch of blooms is the perfect gift for any lover of flowers to treasure for years to come. To see how your Paperscapes book transforms, check out the video below (just above the reviews) or have a look at the Paperscapes author page.

RHS Staff Pick of the Year 2021 Spectator Gardening Book of the year 2021 'A refreshingly insightful history of plant introductions.' - Roy Lancaster Travel the world with extraordinary tales of the botanical discoveries that have shaped empires, built (and destroyed) economies, revolutionised medicine and advanced our understanding of science. Circling the globe from Australia's Botany Bay to the Tibetan plateau, from the deserts of Southern Africa to the jungles of Brazil, this book presents an incredible cast of characters - dedicated researchers and reckless adventurers, physicians, lovers and thieves. Meet dauntless Scots explorer David Douglas and visionary Prussian thinker Alexander von Humboldt, the 'Green Samurai' Mikinori Ogisu and the intrepid 17th century entomologist Maria Sibylla Merian - the first woman known to have made a living from science. Beautifully illustrated with over 100 botanical artworks from the archives of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, this absorbing book tells the stories of how plants have travelled across the world - from the missions of the Pharaohs right up to 21st century seed-banks and the many new and endangered species being named every year. *** THE ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS, KEW is a world-famous research organisation and a major international visitor attraction. It harnesses the power of its science, the rich diversity of its gardens and collections to unearth why plants and fungi matter to everyone. Its aspiration is to end the extinction crisis and help create a world where nature and biodiversity are protected, valued and managed sustainably.

A unique guide that will teach complete beginners how to paint a beautiful floral watercolour in just one weekend. Beginners recognise that they need to acquire basic painting skills - but at the same time they are eager to produce their first finished painting. This popular 'weekend' formula allows them to do both in a limited amount of time - to build skills gradually and to produce an attractive, frameable painting that they can hang on their walls by the end of the weekend. The author starts by introducing the materials required, and then leads readers through a series of watercolour technique exercises designed to provide a basic grounding in the skills needed for this subject area. This instruction is followed by six weekend projects for painting a range of popular floral subjects: a single flower; a group of white flowers; an indoors still life; an outdoors close-up; autumn flowers; and wild flowers in the landscape. Each course starts with practice exercises to be completed on the Saturday; readers are then ready to complete the full watercolour painting on the Sunday. Clear instructions accompany step-by-step photographs throughout, and technical information is given in special feature boxes.