Botanical Art & Illustration Classes

Contemporary botanical art captures the beauty of the natural world with precision, and our extraordinary instructors share their expertise in this nurturing yet rigorous program. NYBG offered North America's first formal botanical art certificate program and remains a leader in the discipline after more than three decades. This program offers a well-rounded array of courses that can be enjoyed singly, just for fun, or lead to a Certificate.

Click here for an overview of the Certificate Program.


July

Learn the basic watercolor techniques used by botanical artists while painting daisy-like mums—a hardy summer perennial. Flat wash, layering and other techniques will be covered. This online course will offer live demonstrations, videos, and individual feedback.
271BIL136O 07/07 Tu 6:00pm-8:45pm Vogel
ONLINE

This intro class teaches you basic botanical illustration techniques to help you make realistic drawings of branches, stems, leaves, and flowers using graphite.
271BIL145D 07/12 Su 11:00am-2:00pm Yount
NYBG

Examine the enormous variety of forms and structural adaptations of flowering plants—the world's dominant plant group. Through lectures, demonstrations, and laboratory studies, learn to recognize and draw the many plant parts and growth stages of the most common plant families. more...
271BIL300BO 07/12 Su 10:30am-1:00pm Bijkerk
ONLINE

Enhance the realism in your botanical compositions by mastering the art of drawing the fine details. In this class, you'll explore various graphite techniques that help to capture the intricate detailing of small, complex botanical subjects such as dried seedheads, more...
271BIL371O 07/12 Su 12:00pm-4:00pm Schermer-Gramm
ONLINE

Pen and ink, among the most versatile and useful media, can be used to create high quality, easily reproducible drawings. Learn how to produce different strokes and how to create tone by using stipple, line, and crosshatch techniques.
271BIL400O 07/17 Fr 11:00am-2:00pm Morley
ONLINE

The focus of this course is on color theory and application. Colored pencil line and tone can be applied to look like either drawing or painting, making it a versatile medium for creating botanical artwork. Learn a variety of techniques, more...
271BIL415O 07/23 Th 11:00am-2:00pm Thompson
ONLINE

Apply your understanding of contours, perspective, and tone to drawing three distinct types of flowers. The object is to accurately draw a fully toned flowering plant. Explore compositional possibilities, textures, and details.
271BIL303BO 07/25 Sa 11:30am-2:30pm Rawlins
ONLINE

Capture the textural variations of your favorite berries. Using PanPastels, which are soft colors packed in a unique cake-like format, you'll create scaled-up compositions that highlight the luscious colors and forms of seasonal berries-such as blueberries, raspberries, and more. Enhance more...
271BIL403O 07/26 Su 10:00am-3:00pm Reiner
ONLINE

Learn how the wet-on-wet watercolor technique is used by botanical artists to achieve the groundwork for painting peppers. Additional techniques, such as dry brush for the finishing touches, will also be covered.
271BIL259O 07/28 Tu 6:00pm-8:45pm Vogel
ONLINE

August

In this in-depth study of cacti, explore how to artistically capture the strength and resilience of this intriguing succulent. With over 1750 species, cacti have adapted throughout time and conditions by developing thick herbaceous or woody chlorophyll-containing stems used to more...
271BIL315O 08/05 We 10:00am-12:30pm Bijkerk
ONLINE

Butterflies play a crucial part in plant pollination. Learn how to use watercolor and colored pencil techniques to create brilliantly colored patterns seen on the wings of these vital insects. To ensure accuracy and detail, you'll use real specimens and more...
271BIL464O 08/06 Th 11:00am-2:00pm Reiner
ONLINE

This intro class teaches you basic botanical illustration techniques to help you make realistic drawings of branches, stems, leaves, and flowers using graphite.
271BIL145EO 08/13 Th 6:00pm-9:00pm DeCicco
ONLINE

Small maroon, light brown, and yellow potatoes are ideal subjects for perfecting graphite shading techniques such as rendering smooth tonal shading. In this class, you'll focus on achieving a seamless transition between tones to enhance form while depicting how light more...
264BIL378 08/15 Sa 10:00am-3:00pm Wry
NYBG

Accurate observation translates into sensitive, realistic drawings and is an essential skill for botanical artists. Using basic shapes, fruit, and leaves, learn contour drawing with an emphasis on proportion, and explore techniques such as foreshortening, perspective, and line weight.
271BIL301BO 08/20 Th 5:30pm-8:30pm Rawlins
ONLINE

Unlock the key to drawing realistic and descriptive flowers by identifying the specific geometry and patterns that plants in the same family share. Guided by botanical artist and author of The Album of Plant Families, Wendy Hollender, you'll start with more...
271BIL460 08/20 Th 1:00pm-7:00pm Hollender
NYBG

Much like our own family, plant families share characteristics, often in the arrangement of their flowers, leaves, and stems. Acclaimed botanical artist Wendy Hollender depicts twenty-four plant families commonly encountered in the garden and in the wild in her newest more...
271LEC214 08/20 Th 10:30am-11:30am Hollender
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