BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//jEvents 2.0 for Joomla//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York X-LIC-LOCATION:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:19700308T020000 RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;BYMONTH=3;BYDAY=2SU END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:19701101T020000 RRULE:FREQ=YEARLY;BYMONTH=11;BYDAY=1SU END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT UID:87d494d64e65ad92e8d919856cf76514107 CATEGORIES:Events SUMMARY:"Growing Natives" botanical illustrations by Mari Yamashita de Moya DESCRIPTION:
About the Artist<
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In my childhood, my mother ensured my two sisters and I were
well-supplied with materials for making “things”- she taught pre-school an
d kindergarten and enhanced our play. When I was 7, she allowed me to use h
er Kenmore sewing machine, and I happily made room furnishings, doll clothe
s and crazy outfits to wear to school.
During college at Antioch in Oh
io I majored in art and anthropology, and graduated with a BA from the Univ
ersity of Hawaii in Manoa. Then I earned a Master’s degree in Asian and Pac
ific Art history there before moving back to my birth state of Vermont. I g
rew up as a military “brat” and married a career Army officer. Producing my
own artwork took a back seat to raising a family and working for non-profi
ts, managing programs and volunteers. I always had art or crafts projects k
eeping me up until very late at night; painting, pottery and fiber art.
The first lecture I delivered on Asian inspired design stressed the impo
rtance of researching the iconic Asian symbols artists used, and the multip
le ethnicities and cultures represented in a vast geographic area. I contin
ue to find research an invaluable tool.
Although I expected to live in
New England after retirement, I woke up in Chapel Hill on a fall morning i
n October 2014 and headed to the North Carolina Botanical Garden to soothe
my soul. The exhibit in the gallery of botanical illustrations of work by m
embers of the American Society of Botanical Artists launched me into a happ
y trajectory to pursue a new skill set. In the summer 2017, I completed a c
ertification in Botanical Illustration and Art at the North Carolina Botani
cal Garden in Chapel Hill, and I joined the ranks of the ASBA. I have been
growing and appreciating North Carolina native plants in my backyard (liter
ally and figuratively) in Leland since 2015.
About Botanical
Illustration
An artist’s accurate drawing of a plant that inc
ludes sufficient information for species identification, and that may also
include cross sections and views of structure is a Botanical Illustration.
Botanical illustrators trained in the European or Western style typically f
loat the images on a white background, using shadow sparingly from a light
source cast from the upper left upon the specimen.
Study and mastery o
f Botanical Illustration is enjoying a resurgence after generations of disr
egard. The introduction of photography for graphics in scientific journals
and study guides was favored over pen-and-ink drawings and the muted chroma
of antique prints. Thousands of detailed illustrations made by the artists
and botanists from 17th century explorations have formed the core of Weste
rn botanical study, but plant evolution and discovery did not stop after th
ese studies were catalogued. Horticulture continues to be thriving field, w
ith new species discovered and hybrids developed in labs, nurseries and bac
kyards around the globe. Botanical illustrators are driven by a desire and
need to record earth’s vegetation.