Marches Makers Festival Artist 2020
Ruth Kirkby
Ruth Kirkby’s diverse job history includes working as a bi-lingual PA, a potter, a modern foreign languages teacher and joint head of department, mother of three, and more lately botanical illustrator. Tutored by Moya Davern in Botanical Illustration at Aberystwyth University, she has won RHS Silver Medals in 2012 and 2013, and a Gold Medal at RHS Linley Hall for her collection of illustrations of Siberian Iris in 2014.
She particularly likes to paint plants, vegetables and flowers that are in season. ‘First of all, I start with careful observation, followed by accurate drawing of the subject matter. Good drawing skills are essential and I like to imitate the natural cadences of the plant or flower that I am going to paint. Getting the colour correct is the next task - and finding an absolute match can be challenging. I always paint from real-life specimens, as photographs just are not precise enough. I work mostly in watercolour and occasionally add backgrounds in gouache – the former is unforgiving, but I feel it best represents the translucency of petals and leaves and the subtle colour changes in all plant life. Nature is the artist; I merely try my best to represent her in all her diverse beauty’.
She frequently instructs at one-day courses both in botanical illustration skills and in how to break the rules of watercolour painting.
She has exhibited in London, Malvern, Hereford, Presteigne & Discoed and her work has appeared several times on the cover of the reputed gardeners’ quarterly Hortus Magazine. She was featured in Country Living September 2015 and is in the April 2018 edition of Welsh Border Life.
Ruth Kirkby’s diverse job history includes working as a bi-lingual PA, a potter, a modern foreign languages teacher and joint head of department, mother of three, and more lately botanical illustrator. Tutored by Moya Davern in Botanical Illustration at Aberystwyth University, she has won RHS Silver Medals in 2012 and 2013, and a Gold Medal at RHS Linley Hall for her collection of illustrations of Siberian Iris in 2014.
She particularly likes to paint plants, vegetables and flowers that are in season. ‘First of all, I start with careful observation, followed by accurate drawing of the subject matter. Good drawing skills are essential and I like to imitate the natural cadences of the plant or flower that I am going to paint. Getting the colour correct is the next task - and finding an absolute match can be challenging. I always paint from real-life specimens, as photographs just are not precise enough. I work mostly in watercolour and occasionally add backgrounds in gouache – the former is unforgiving, but I feel it best represents the translucency of petals and leaves and the subtle colour changes in all plant life. Nature is the artist; I merely try my best to represent her in all her diverse beauty’.
She frequently instructs at one-day courses both in botanical illustration skills and in how to break the rules of watercolour painting.
She has exhibited in London, Malvern, Hereford, Presteigne & Discoed and her work has appeared several times on the cover of the reputed gardeners’ quarterly Hortus Magazine. She was featured in Country Living September 2015 and is in the April 2018 edition of Welsh Border Life.
