Tupa Rosada, Watercolor by Ann Fleming, US

Lobelia bridgesii

Listing: Vulnerable, IUCN Red List

The Plant’s Story:

Chile’s temperate rainforest, where Lobelia bridgesii grows, has been identified as one of the world’s key biodiversity hotspots by Conservation International, known as the “Chilean Winter Rainfall – Valdivian Forests”. In 1991, the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, Scotland initiated the International Conifer Conservation Program to inventory, research, and establish protected sites for the world’s conifers, with one of its focal points being the Chilean rainforest.

Rain forest trees of all kinds are being removed from the Valdivian forest for construction lumber and industrial and home fuel, both for domestic use and for export to countries as far-flung as Japan and North America. Plantations of non-native pine and eucalyptus trees are changing groundwater and soil composition, and affecting surrounding areas.

Lobelia bridgesii, called tupa rosada in Chile, is one of the giant lobelias, and it can be found in a tiny range of only about 6 miles. The Universidad Austral de Chile, Valdivia, and the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, are collaborating on rainforest research and conservation efforts and have established in-captivity propagation programs.

The Artist’s Story: Ann Fleming

In July, 2007, anticipating a trip to Scotland to visit my mother, I learned from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh’s website that they have an extensive collection of very threatened plants from Chile. I contacted their conservation department and discussed my interest in finding a plant to illustrate for this exhibition. I was able to arrange a day at the Garden. Lobelia was prolific, growing up to 5’ tall in a walled garden. I was able to spend the entire day doing preliminary sketches of the plant and taking notes. Along with photographs that I took, I had all the necessary information to complete the illustration in Denver.

More of the plant’s story and the artist’s story can be found in the exhibit catalog, available at the exhibition venues or online from the ASBA.

Green Ixia, Watercolor on Vellum by Jean Emmons, US

Ixia viridiflora

Listing: Endangered, National Red List of South African Plants

The Plant’s Story

The Cape Floral Kingdom is a global biodiversity hotspot. The wine industry in South Africa is the world’s ninth largest, and nearly all of it takes place within this global hotspot. Over 100 vineyards have joined the Biodiversity and Wine Initiative, a consortium with the Botanical Society of South Africa, Conservation International, and the Green Trust, setting aside lands for conservation purposes, removing non-native vegetation, and implementing sustainable practices in grape cultivation. South Africa has created teams of mostly volunteers who have gone through training to learn how to identify at-risk plants and habitats, called CREW teams (Custodians of Rare and Endangered Wildflowers). CREW teams have found several notable species on the property of Theuniskraal Vineyard including this beautiful Ixia viridflora. A portion of the property Tulbagh Alluvium Fynbos, is considered a critically endangered habitat.

The Artist’s Story: Jean Emmons

Brooklyn Botanic Garden grew plants of Ixia viridiflora from seed for their Warm Temperate Pavilion, one of the most diverse collections of Cape flora in the United States. Cut flowers and a small plant were mailed to me in order to create a previous painting for the Brooklyn Garden Florilegium Project. I was so taken with the turquoise color of the Ixia, I wanted to try another painting of it. My technique involves starting with multiple layers of pale washes in many different colors. Slowly, I work dryer and dryer and finish with very tight drybrush using the local color of the plant.

More of the plant’s story and the artist’s story can be found in the exhibit catalog, available at the exhibition venues or online from the ASBA.  This artwork is on the cover of the Losing Paradise? exhibit catalog.

Moss, Watercolor by Maria Alice De Rezende, Brazil

Itatiella ulei

Listing: Critically Endangered, List of Endangered Flora of the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil

The Plant’s Story

Mosses are notoriously difficult to identify due to their small size and remarkable diversity. Tropical Atlantic rainforests of Brazil are havens that nurture a richness of mosses. Atlantic rainforests cover just a small portion of the area of Amazonian rainforest, but their biodiversity is just as great. In addition to moss diversity, the entire flora of the region is rich, with over half of its tree species found nowhere else. New York Botanical Garden researchers counted over 450 species of trees in less than 3 acres!

The Artist’s Story: Maria Alice De Rezende

The idea of making a watercolor painting of this endangered moss arose when I was working with the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden illustrating “Endemic and Threatened Species from Itatiaia National Park”. These mosses are so small it is difficult for people to see what they look like. We decided a painting of an enlarged plant would allow people to be able to see how beautiful they can be, and maybe provide an increased understanding of the importance of preserving them in nature.

More of the plant’s story and the artist’s story can be found in the exhibit catalog, available at the exhibition venues or online from the ASBA.

Iris, Watercolor by John Pastoriza-Pinol, Australia

Iris winogradowii

Listing: Red Data Book, Republic of Georgia

The Plant’s Story

The Republic of Georgia is one of six nations considered part of the Caucasus biodiversity hotspot, which encompasses the isthmus between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea and nearby areas. The former Soviet Union was largely isolated from the rest of the world for many years, and this isolation was also botanical. Although people around the world can now visit its alpine meadows and high mountain oak forests, development pressures have accelerated, with natural resource extraction proceeding at a rapid pace. Political and economic upheaval have contributed to this acceleration, and poaching of wildlife, fuel wood, timber, and plants have increased significantly. Infrastructure development, such as roads, dams and pipelines have fragmented and degraded habitats. In the wild this iris is found in the area of Mt. Lomtismta, now a reserve, and it was once found in Abkhazia as well. Iris winogradowii has a number of unique features for an iris; it has a bulb rather than a rhizome, its leaves are triangular in cross-section, and it dies back completely by mid-summer. The Karamov Botanical Institute published a massive 30-volume Flora of the USSR during the mid twentieth century.

The Artist’s Story: John Pastoriza-Pinol

The purpose of my art is to capture the unique features of plants and to engender appreciation for contemporary botanical art and accurate realism. My academic background as a botanist influences the plants I choose, as well as my compositions and painting style, and I enjoy searching out rare and unusual plants.

More of the plant’s story and the artist’s story can be found in the exhibit catalog, available at the exhibition venues or online from the ASBA.