RMSBA

Event Announcement: Sunday Sketching

RMSBA member sketching from across the pond.

RMSBA member sketching at the lily pond last month

Flowers and leaves in the lily pond at Denver Botanic Gardens

Nov 9: Join RMSBA members and friends for a sketching outing in our beloved Botanic Gardens! We'll draw for the first 90 min, and come together afterwards to share sketches. Invite a friend!

Nov 9, 1-2:30pm
Cactus House / Rock Alpine Garden
2:30pm - Meet near Hive Bistro

Join RMSBA for our quarterly meeting THIS SUNDAY, November 2, from 1-3pm at the Denver Botanic Gardens. If you can't join us in person, join online. Guest teacher Lori Ann Levy-Holm will talk about color theory. We'll also talk about RMSBA's open calls for entry (Full Spectrum and Sydney Parkinson).

Event Announcement: Sunday Sketching

RMSBA member sketching from across the pond.

RMSBA member sketching at the lily pond last month

Flowers and leaves in the lily pond at Denver Botanic Gardens

Oct 12: Join RMSBA members and friends for a relaxed sketching outing in our beloved Botanic Gardens! We'll draw for the first 90 min, in a different area each month, and come together afterwards to share sketches.

October 12, 1-2:30pm
Birds and Bees Walk
2:30pm - Meet near Offshoots

FULL SPECTRUM call for art closes November 2, 2026 (yes, a year away—botanical art is slow art!)

YELLOW: A close-up sunflower by member Dorothy DePaulo.

VIOLET: A single thistle blossom by member Mary Crabtree.

RED: A pairing featuring bright Indian Paintbrush by Jan Boyd Haring.

OPEN CALL FOR ART! "Full Spectrum" — A joyful celebration of colors. Submit botanical artworks accentuating a singular hue.

Learn more and sign up at: asba-art.org/content.aspx...
The call closes November 2, 2026, but you must claim your color spot soon!
#callforart #juriedshow #botanicalart

Event Announcement: Sunday Sketching

RMSBA member sketching from across the pond.

RMSBA member sketching at the lily pond last month

Flowers and leaves in the lily pond at Denver Botanic Gardens

September 14: Join RMSBA members and friends for a relaxed sketching outing in our beloved Botanic Gardens! We'll draw for the first 90 min, in a different area each month, and come together afterwards to share sketches.

September 14, 9:30-11am
Ellipse Garden
11am - Meet near Offshoots

RMSBA member sketching from across the pond.

RMSBA member sketching at the lily pond last month

Flowers and leaves in the lily pond at Denver Botanic Gardens

August 10: Join RMSBA members and friends for a relaxed sketching outing in our beloved Botanic Gardens! We'll draw for the first 90 min, in a different area each month, and come together afterwards to share sketches.

August 10, 9:30-11am
Lily Pond (Monet Pool)
11am - Meet at Hive Bistro Patio

RMSBA Event announcement: General Membership Meeting.

Join us THIS SUNDAY: July 27 from 1-3pm at the Freyer Newman building at the Denver Botanic Gardens—in person or online. Guest teacher Scott Dressel-Martin, the Gardens' photographer, will give us pointers about photographing our work! We'll also talk about RMSBA's next call for entry and more.

RMSBA event announcement: Sunday Sketching!

JULY 13: Join RMSBA members and friends for a relaxed sketching outing in our beloved Botanic Gardens! We'll draw for the first 90 minutes, in a different area each month, and come together afterwards to share our sketches.

July 13, 9:30-11am
Japanese Tea House
11am - Meet at Tea House

Sara on a recent bike ride with fall aspens and blue sky in the background.

Years in practice: 7. Years since graduation: 2.5. Career or title: Retired—formerly a project manager at an environmental engineering firm. Preferred art medium: I enjoy them all, but I am probably most proficient in graphite and colored pencil. I am determined to better master watercolor, however!

Favorite pastime: Going on hikes and identifying/photographing wild plants, mountain biking, and container gardening. Proudest piece: My seed pods in pen and ink and watercolor. I got the inspiration for the piece on a bike ride through Bear Creek Lake Park in Lakewood, CO and seeing the yucca seed pods in particular—they are structurally so cool! Toxic art trait: Erase a lot when I am sketching.

Sara's pen and ink + watercolor drawing of 3 seed pods: Glycerrhiza lepidota (American licorice), Yucca glauca, and Asclepias speciosa (milkweed). A milkweed seed has escaped the pod and floats off to the right.

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Sara Handy! Sara sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #rmsbamemberspotlight

Poster for TREES: A visual narrative of our enduring relationships with trees through the seasons. Trees are enigmatic organisms that can provoke powerful feelings within us. Maybe you feel joyful seeing the new buds and blooms of trees each spring. Perhaps you appreciate the shade trees provide in summer. Maybe you are captivated by thechanging color of leaves in fall, or you find calm in seeing snow-covered branches in winter. Do you have a favorite tree you walk by each day or lookout your window at each morning? Whatever your relationship with them, we can all celebrate the glory of trees through the eyes of the botanical artists featured in this exhibition. The intent of the 2025 RMSBA exhibit is to expand the artist's and viewers' appreciation and knowledge of trees, and we are pleased to share it with you. The RMSBA (Rocky Mountain Society of Botanical Artists) logo and a winter portrait of a crabapple in carbon dust by Brittany Hass are included on the poster.

Candid image of people enjoying the TREES exhibit at CU Boulder's Museum of Natural History

(left to right) Artists Shiere Melin and Barbra Sobhani talk with Barb's daughter Ashlyn in front of several original works showing various trees

Group picture of artists attending the opening of the TREES exhibit in CU Boulder's Natural History Museum

If you haven't been up to CU Boulder's Museum of Natural History to see our TREES exhibit yet, you're missing out! The exhibit will be up through at least the end of June, so there's still time. #sciart #artshow #botanicalart www.colorado.edu/cumuseum/tre...

Members photographing and sketching from benches near peony garden.

RMSBA members sharing drawings and ideas at the end of Second Sunday Sketching at Denver Botanic Gardens.

Beautiful late spring specimens of all sorts at Denver Botanic Gardens.

It was a beautiful day to sketch in the Gardens this past Sunday! Hope you can join us for the next one, July 13. Suggestions for which area would be the most exciting to draw in for the next few Second Sundays are welcome! We are on a summer schedule of 9:30 am, to try and beat the heat. #sciart

Years in Practice: I really took up botanical illustration after my graduation from law school in 2003. Career or title: I taught high school history and German. Preferred art medium: My preferred medium is colored pencil on drafting film because of the artistic potential of drafting film and the precision and versatility of colored pencil.

Heidi's favorite piece, a mesmerizing drawing on multiple layers of drafting film, showing reflected light and fish below the surface.

Favorite Pastime: My favorite pastime is "prowling" through shrubbery to get a good shot of that turtle, bird, flower or mushroom. I used to spend hours "off the beaten path" or sitting under a tree, learning a lot about my specimen. That's why it was a big blow when I had my first 2 strokes which left me permanently disoriented... I had to rethink the very foundations of how I procure materials and gain my knowledge, especially since I was "too lost" to drive. Luckily I had a lot of material to work with (cont'd).

Having met people...who had to relearn to walk, talk or write, I am more determined than ever to find a way to connect with them and help any way I can. In the meantime I am truly grateful for my good luck and the opportunity to reaffirm what is important in life. Best tip for aspiring botanical artists: I try to be the best I can be (now there is a learning curve!), do good, and draw, draw, draw. Life is precious, don't take it for granted.

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Heidi Snyder! Heidi sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #rmsbamemberspotlight

Deb with her camera on a hike with evergreen and fall trees

Deb's scratchboard piece Strawberries and Old Glass, completed in 2024. Reflections and refractions in the small glass dish contrast with the orderly seeds on the strawberries inside and outside the dish, which are velvety and ripe.

Years in practice: I started the Botanical Illustration program at DBG in March 2022 and will graduate December 2025. Career or title: Retired and loving it! Preferred art medium: I love most mediums but right now my favorite are scratchboard, charcoal and carbon dust.

Proudest piece: I am proud of my scratchboard piece called Strawberries and Old Glass because it was accepted into the International Scratchboard Society annual show and it won an award. Favorite pastime: Being outside, photography, camping and travel. Little known fact about you: I volunteered with raptors for 25 years. I was also a scuba diver for many years.

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Deb Jenkins! Deb sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #rmsbamemberspotlight

Shiere's painting of Opuntia or Prickly Pear, with several part and cross-section vignettes and a cute bug peeking out of a blossom.

Little known fact about you: I began my career as a medical illustrator. Preferred art medium: My favorite is pen and ink although I haven't done any for a long time (sounds weird)! Watercolor or watercolor plus colored pencil has become most practical especially for commissioned color work.

Proudest piece: Datura wrightii (gouache on black matte board). The plant grew at my friends' home. I went there regularly to watch it grow, document and sketch. It's like face-time with people—the more time you spend with them, the ore they become a part of you, as this plant did with me. Similarly, with Opuntia or Prickly Pear (colored pencil on 2-sided mylar), growing in the open space near my home, I was able to get to know it as well. The final art seems to take on more life when live specimens can be used.

Shiere's painting of Datura wrightii on black board practically glows.

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Shiere Melin! Shiere sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #rmsbamemberspotlight

May 4: Sunday Sketching Event Announcement

Brittany at the last Sunday Sketching at Denver Botanic Garden

MAY 4: Join RMSBA members and friends for a relaxed sketching outing in our beloved Botanic Gardens! We'll draw for the first 90 minutes, in a different area each month, and come together afterwards to share coffee, tea, and drawings.

May 4, 9:30-11am
Annuals Garden
11am - Meet at Hive Bistro

Years in practice: Began taking classes in 2013. Career or title: I am retired now. I was a City Planner with Denver for 20 years and in private consulting before that. My husband and I live with our cat. We visit our daughter in Phoenix as often as possible.

Toxic art trait: Work too fast especially as I get toward completion. Favorite pastime: Fitness, reading, Mah Jongg, and getting together with friends. Best tip for aspiring botanical artists: Seek out good teachers and practice.

Preferred art medium: My favorite is colored pencil. I try to keep up my graphite skills too. Proudest Piecee: I really like my American Elm submitted for the Trees exhibit. And I did a view of the Costa Rica cloud forest that I am pleased with. Little known fact about you: Commitment to fitness.

Today we are featuring RMSBA President Ellen Ittelson! Ellen sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #natureart #realism #rmsbamemberspotlight

Proudest piece: My most recent painting on kelmscott vellum: Found things. It was so complicated to get all the little things composed just right, and there was so much variation of colors, textures, and size. I really ha to push myself. Little known fact about you: I have as many chickens as I do children: 6!

Rose's painting on stretched vellum of Found Things—leaves, sticks, butterfly, dragonfly, bee, seeds, snailshells and more, in a light wood frame.

Rose's painting of a huge historic tree called Sylvia's Tree, with vignettes of the tree's bark, seeds, and twigs.

Best tip for aspiring botanical artists: Observe. Really look at the world around you, notice the little details, the colors, textures, patterns, how the light plays, and the character of all the natural things around you. Where can you be found online? www.rosetorresart.com and on Instagram @rosetorresart

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Rose Torres! Rose sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #natureart #realism #rmsbamemberspotlight

Event Announcement: General Membership Meeting

Join us for our second meeting of 2025 on April 13 from 1-3pm at the Freyer Newman building at the Denver Botanic Gardens. If you can't join us in person, join us online.

This is also the time to bring in your accepted, framed Trees exhibit piece! Can't wait to see them all together...

Years in practice: I have been a botanical illustrator since 2012 when I did my first botanical illustration for the RMSBA Rare I exhibit. I have taken a few classes at the Denver Botanical Gardens, but most of my art training I received at the Colorado Institute of Art, where I graduated in 1990. Preferred art medium; Though I have tried many media, my favorite medium is colored pencil and I work almost exclusively on drafting film.

Dorothy's beautiful colored pencil illustration of a purple succulent with a chalky coating.

Career or title: Over the years I have illustrated for magazines and children's books. I co-authored and illustrated a book with Heidi Snyder titled Wild in the City which shows the flora and fauna in the parks and open spaces in the Denver area. Before being an illustrator, however, I was an emergency room nurse for many years.

Best tip for aspiring botanical artists: When I get stuck with a drawing and I'm not sure why, I try looking at a mirror image of my drawing and often just a different point of view will show me the direction I need to take. Where can you be found online? I show my work on Facebook and on Instagram, I'm @fineartbydepaulo. I am an associate member of Valkarie Gallery in Lakewood and I always try to have new work hanging there.

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Dorothy DePaulo! Dorothy sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #realism #rmsbamemberspotlight

Brittany's painting of 5 sticks with lichen and butterflies, in watercolor and colored inks.

Years in practice: 1.5 years since graduation, but I've been banging my head against art (aside from childhood explorations) for 7+ years. Career/title: Independent designer — I have my own business designing for nonprofits and small business marketing departments. I'm also in the thick of mom life, raising a 13yo and a 10yo.

Favorite pastime: Knitting, and imagining home/garden renovations I can't afford. Little known fact about you: I can't visualize in my "mind's eye" — a condition called aphantasia. I have to draw it to see it. It seems like this might be debilitating as an artist, but I actually wonder if it's what pushed me this direction.

Brittany's painting of a red pepper with googly eyes, looking accusatory, on a green background with neon pink accents.

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Brittany Hass! Brittany sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #realism #rmsbamemberspotlight

Purple early spring flowers poking thru the leaf litter!

APRIL 6: Join RMSBA members and friends for a relaxed sketching outing! We'll draw for the first 90 minutes, in a different area each month, and come together afterwards to share.

April 6, 1 - 2:30pm
O'Fallon Perennial Walk
2:30pm - Meet near indoor entrance to Offshoots café

Years in practice? It is never too late to learn... I started late in life at 59. I started teaching myself eighteen years ago and never looked back. Preferred art medium? Started out doing mostly watercolor, but with my new series of Federally Endangered Plants of Texas, I have been using watercolor pencils with dashes of either ink or graphite—such as the Walker's Manioc.

Lotus McElfish's 2023 illustration of Walker's Manioc.

Proudest piece? The Texas Snowbell. Painting this specimen allowed me to meet an exceptional man, who will be turning 97—David Bamberger. This species is endangered and he has made it his mission to "de-list it." The specimen I painted was on his ranch (instagram.com/bambergerranch).

Lotus McElfish's 2007 illustration of Texas Snowbell, with an inset photo of her and David working with the plant.

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Lotus McElfish! Lotus sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #natureart #realism #rmsbamemberspotlight

Patty Whalen's 2010 painting of Pedicularis groenlandica, with tiny purple-pink elephant-head-shaped flowers atop long stalks and ferny fronds.

What inspired you to make this piece? This exact plant greeted me as I walked along the M. Walter Pesman Trail, also referred to as the Mt Goliath Trail, near Echo Lake Park. It was a perfect specimen for a lover of native plants! What tree lover could resist a walk among those wonderful ancient gnarling Bristlecone/Krummholz Pines of the Mt Evans Wilderness Area?

What struggles did you overcome along the way? The herbarium had moved and now wanted an appointment made to examine specimens. I always did this to review seasonal or unseen parts of any specimen I was illustrating. Also, with all those tiny elephant heads to paint, it took me longer to illustrate than any other botanical painting I had previously done!

We hope you will be inspired by RMSBA member Patty Whalen's Pedicularis groenlandica, "Elephant's Head." Swipe for a little insight from Patty about this piece. Thanks for sharing, Patty! #art #botanicalart #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #realism #nativeplants #coloradoplants

Jan Boyd Haring's illustration of bright red Wyoming Paintbrush and Fender's Sandwort, painted in 2009.

Years in practice: twenty. Career or title: Nature enthusiast, woodsman, gear head and animal lover. Preferred art medium: Watercolor, colored pencil, egg tempera. What are you working on now? Locating, identifying, documenting and illustrating plants in South Park, Park County, CO.

A photo of Jan bundled up for cold weather!

Best tip for aspiring botanical artists: Don't give up and/or don't be afraid to start over. Where can you be found online? Member Gallery at www.asba-art.org

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Jan Boyd Haring! Jan sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #natureart #realism #rmsbamemberspotlight

Years in practice: Two. Career or title: Artist, science geek, retired technical writer (43 years) Preferred art medium: Ink, graphite, colored pencil Little known fact about you: I was a beekeeper for 11 years.

Proudest Piece: Bromeliad and Friend colored pencil piece, because I was working from numerous references (live plant, photos of the plant, and reference photos of the frog that were not taken from above). Annoying art habit: Trying to work on several things at once.

Helen Hastings' colored pencil illustration of a bromeliad from above with a tiny frog nestled into one of the leaves below a red flower.

Favorite pastime: Gardening, bicycling, swimming! Best tip for aspiring botanical artists: It's OK to start over! Where can you be found online? Instagram: @h2illustrate

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Helen Hastings! Helen sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #scientificillustration #botanicalillustration #natureart #realism #rmsbamemberspotlight

It has been 7.5 years since I took my first drawing class at DBG-SBAI. I graduated from the SBAI Certificate program in 2021 and I will complete the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh Diploma (online) Course this summer. Watercolor on vellum is my #1 preferred medium, followed by watercolor or colored pencil on paper.

I'm retired following 40+ years as a researcher in molecular virology primarily with the US Centers for Disease Control. Outside of work I'm an avid gardener, a weaver, and a dog and cat mom. I'm quite shy. Find me online at marycrabtreebotanicalartist.com

Mary's 2022 piece Midsummer, a watercolor painting of multiple flower types on vellum.

Best tip? Push your limits by taking on challenging projects—you will learn a lot and your skills will improve by making yourself go beyond what you think you can accomplish. Use the resources that are available (workshops online and in person, books, conversations with other artists) to learn new techniques to meet your expanded goals. And recognize that there's a lot more to learn no matter how long you've ben creating art!

Today we are featuring RMSBA member Mary Crabtree! Mary sat down to answer some questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #realism #coloradoartist #rmsbamemberspotlight

SUNDAY: Join RMSBA members and friends for a relaxed sketching outing in our beloved Botanic Gardens! We'll draw for the first 90 minutes, and come together afterwards to share.

March 9, 1 - 2:30pm
Marnie's Pavilion
2:30pm - Meet near indoor entrance to Offshoots café

Watercolor painting of shiny red maple leaves

In-progress watercolor painting of maple leaves showing green and yellow underpainting.

We hope you will be inspired by RMSBA member Jane Fournier's Red Norway Maple in ink and watercolor. Swipe for a little insight from Jane about this piece. Thanks for sharing, Jane! #art #botanicalart #hydrangea #botanicalillustration #biophilia #natureart #realism

The RMSBA Call for Art "Trees" closes THIS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28! It's now the 11th hour—your last chance to erase any stray marks, tighten up edges, and add your species labels and scale bars. Read all the details here: https://buff.ly/4hSUT08 #art #sciart #callforentry #contemporaryart #botanicalart

Answers to interview questions: Toxic art trait: Not cleaning my brushes. Proudest piece: Vintage poster style Buddha's hand Citrus, featured at Denver Botanic Gardens as a poster

Photo of smiling Stephanie Oliver with glasses and an embellished denim jacket

Poster in Denver botanic Gardens Orangerie display featuring Stephanie Oliver's buddha's hand citrus illustration

Today we are featuring member Stephanie Oliver! She sat down to answer questions about herself and her art practice. Swipe through to enjoy a taste of her life and work! #art #botanicalart #sciart #botanicalillustration #realism #coloradoartist #rmsbamemberspotlight @303illustrations.bsky.social