2007-01-15T17:13:00.000-08:00

INTRODUCTORY COURSE

Introduction to Botanical Illustration

Are you new to drawing? If you can write with a pencil, you can draw with one. Step-by-step, acquire the techniques you need to draw what you see. Simple exercises train you to observe objectively and draw accurately. A relaxed pace and straightforward instruction will open your mind to your own creative abilities. Build drawing skills to enter the Botanical Illustration Program with confidence.

* Mon., Feb. 13, 20, 27, March 5, 12, 6 – 9 p.m.

REQUIRED COURSES

Botanical Illustration in Pencil I

Learn to draw! Begin with a brief history and an overview of the specific elements of botanical illustration. Learn the skills of careful observation and realistic drawing in graphite pencil, including line drawing, shading and perspective. Step-by-step, added techniques help you render accurate perspective, texture and detail. This is the entry course for every program student and a prerequisite for all required courses to follow. You'll emerge from this class with the tools you need to draw anything. No prerequisites.

*Weekend Workshop

Fri. – Sun., Feb. 17 – 19, 9 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

*Tue., March 20, 27, April 3, 10, 17, 6 – 9 p.m.

Offsite at Arvada Center (call 720-898-7200 to register or go to www.arvadacenter.org)

Tue., Jan. 10, 17, 24, 31, Feb. 7, 1:30 – 4:30 p.m.

Botanical Illustration in Pen and Ink I

Pen and ink is at the heart of botanical illustration. Expand your drawing repertoire as you learn techniques to create line, form and texture in black and white. “Expressive line” and “stipple” become part of your artistic vocabulary as you practice this traditional medium with modern and versatile technical pens. Step-by-step instruction, demonstration and practice will give you the foundation you need to draw any botanical subject accurately and skillfully.

Prerequisite: Pencil I

* Mon., March 26, April 2, 9, 16, 23, 9 a.m. - noon, 9 a.m. - noon

Botanical Illustration in Pen and Ink II

Take your pen and ink skills to a new level of sophistication. Explore the Gardens’ limitless world of color, texture and complex botany to incorporate this information into black and white illustrations. Working with both technical pen and traditional quill, learn advanced techniques to make strokes mimic the fuzz on a fern, the down in a milkweed pod or the mottled colors of a variegated begonia. Learn how to layer and manipulate lines and stipples to develop a full range of value, texture and atmospheric perspective. Pen techniques take on new meaning as you flesh out a final inked illustration of a plant of your choice. Prerequisites: Pencil I, Pen and Ink I

*Thurs., May 3, 17, 24, 31, June 7, 9 a.m. - noon.

ELECTIVE COURSES

Art Materials for the Botanical Illustrator
Take the mystery out of materials. There are ten types of erasers - which one is right for the job? What is the difference between sable and synthetic? What’s vellum? This information-packed class will provide you with detailed information about all of the art materials used throughout the Botanical Illustration program. From papers to pencils, inks to pens, brushes to paints, you’ll learn where and how to find all the right materials and how they are used. Save time and money by shopping expertly the first time.
*Fri., March 23, 9 a.m. - noon

Radiance in Realism

Add an extra flair to your pen and ink work…with color! Innovation with mixed media can completely change the look of your drawings. Instruction and demonstration of how to combine ink drawing with ink washes, watercolor pencil and colored pencil will spark your imagination. Analyze first existing works of art to see how other illustrators have used the three media together. Then you’ll dive right in and practice on your own pieces and discover the beauty of mixed media. Prerequisites: Pencil I, Pen and Ink I, Color Mixing for Artists, Watercolor Pencil I.

*Mon., Jan. 9, 16, 23, 30, Feb. 6, 6 – 9 p.m.

Pen & ink, calligraphy and publishing

Elegant Hand Lettering I

Learn copperplate or round hand lettering, the traditional style for labeling early botanical plates. Popular in England in the 17^th and 18^th centuries, this elegant lettering complements botanicals beautifully. Start with an introduction to the oblique pen and flexible quill nibs. Practice basic pen strokes and learn to form each letter in this classic style. Learn label placement and lettering size to complete your plates with a special flourish.

No prerequisites.

*Mon., Jan. 9, 16, 23, 30, Feb. 13, 1 – 4 p.m.

The Elegant Line: Calligraphy II

Your paintbrush has a new task! From the Romans to the Romantics, artists have wielded the brush to add the final flourish to artwork and documents alike. Whether working in a formal or an informal script, the brush is natural for creating elegant letterforms. Learn how to maneuver the lively springy character of the brush to bring life to letterforms and decorative strokes. Practice arm and wrist movements that will bring your calligraphy to a new level of precise control. Explore media other than black ink to add the final, personal touch to every artwork. Prerequisites: Entry level calligraphy course such as Elegant Hand Lettering I or Calligraphy I

* Thurs., June 14, 21, 28, July 5, 12, 1 – 4 p.m.

Mixed Media – illumination

Drawing on Tradition: Floral Designs in the Kimono

The kimono’s long history in Japan is evidenced by discoveries of the belted garments in archaeological excavations of areas dating to 300 BCE. Fabric designs based on flowers and nature are strongly linked to a symbolic and significant meaning whether it is a kimono for man, woman or child. A local kimono expert will come to the classroom with an early 20^th century selection of garments to share the tradition connected to the kimono in the past and present. Learn also about the connection and influence of Japanese art and design to the Art Deco and Art Nouveau movements. In this class you will create a fabric design with a traditional Japanese color palette and design concepts. Use modern mixed media including colored and gold inks, colored pencil, watercolor pencil and other water media. Stretch your creative vision and bolster your confidence when you transfer your design onto silk using a brush and color media to produce your own fabric following the rules of traditional patterns in Japanese kimono art. Prerequisites: Pencil I, Color Mixing for Artist, Composition

*Tue., March 27, April 3, 10, 17, 24, 1 – 4 p.m.

Horologium Florae – Floral Clock

Morning glory and wild rose open their petals at 5 a.m.; Californian poppy opens at 10 a.m.; daylilies close at 8 p.m. We can tell the time of day by watching flowers open and close in the garden. Linnaeus was the first scientist to discover that flowers open and close at specific times of day with accuracy. You’ll dive into chronobiology and create your own local petal time clock by incorporating twelve miniature flower portraits in your illumination. Select twelve flowers known to open and close at specific time in our region and work either with the day or the night cycle. Prerequisites: Pencil I, Color Mixing for Artists, Water Color Pencil I or Watercolor I or Gouache.

*Thurs., June 14, 21, 28, 5, 12, 9 a.m. – noon

Watercolor Pencil

Watercolor Pencils I

It’s dry, it’s wet, it’s mixed media in a single pencil! Discover the versatility of watercolor pencils. Start with color studies to explore the qualities of watercolor pencils as they translate into watercolor. Experiment with graphite pencil and ink as embellishments as you develop and work on sketches from your journal, then put your new skills to use to create a finished botanical plate in this fresh and fluid medium. Prerequisites: Pencil I, Color layering for Colored Pencil, Color Mixing for Artists.

Wed., Jan. 11, 18, 25, Feb. 1, 8, 6 – 9 p.m.

Watercolor Pencil II

More to explore! Build on your new watercolor pencil skills and add more techniques to your toolbox. Create a swatch sampler of watercolor pencil with varied paper and media, including walnut and colored inks, gouache and more. Learn how to create backgrounds. Refine your skills and apply new ideas to a finished work of your own design. Prerequisites: Pencil I, Watercolor Pencil I

Wed., June 13, 20, 27, July 11, 18, 9 a.m. - noon

Five Easy Ways to ENROLL

By telephone: 720-865-3580
By fax: 720-865-3685 (24 hours)
In person: Visit the education office at the gardens, 1007 York Street, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., Monday – Friday
By mail: Attention: Registrar, 909 York Street, Denver, CO 80206
Online: www.botanicgardens.org

Refund and Cancellation Policy:

Cancellations more than one week prior to a class are subject to a 15% cancellation fee. Cancellations with less than one week notice are non-refundable.

After Course has Commenced:

Instructors have no authority to grant or promise refunds. In the event of a family emergency or because of inclement weather circumstances, the student can later complete the course by taking the missed classes from the same instructor and notifying the program manager two weeks before the course starts. If 60-80 percent of the course is missed because of the family emergency or the inclement weather circumstances, the course can be re-taken from any instructor in that media if space is available.

These policies apply to all registrations in the Botanical Art and Illustration Program. Selected courses have additional cancellation and refund requirements printed with the course description. Denver Botanic Gardens regrets that it cannot make exceptions.

Certificate credit requirements for individual courses:

Attendance is required at the first class for all courses. In order to receive credit, 80 % of a course must be attended (at least 12 hours of a 15-hour course).

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