Species spotlights, drawing guides, and tips for botanical illustrators.
Species Spotlight · March 2026
What appears to be a brilliant red flower is actually a cluster of colorful bracts surrounding much smaller true flowers. Getting this distinction right is the entire challenge of illustrating Castilleja.
Read →Species Spotlight · March 2026
The iris flower's complex three-dimensional structure — falls, standards, and style arms — makes it one of the most architecturally interesting subjects in botanical illustration.
Read →Species Spotlight · March 2026
The most widely distributed native tree in North America. Its flattened petiole, fine-toothed leaf margin, and smooth white bark demand more precision than a landscape painting.
Read →Species Spotlight · March 2026
An ideal subject for learning to draw composite flowers. Once you understand Rudbeckia's structure, you'll have the foundation for illustrating sunflowers, daisies, and hundreds of other Asteraceae.
Read →Species Spotlight · February 2026
The largest genus of flowering plants endemic to North America. The two-lipped corolla and distinctive bearded staminode make Penstemon an excellent subject for learning bilabiate flower structure.
Read →Species Spotlight · February 2026
Yarrow's flat-topped flower head is made of dozens of tiny individual florets. Understanding its structure as a composite — not a single flower — is the key to drawing it accurately.
Read →Species Spotlight · February 2026
Opens at dusk, closes by midmorning. The four broad petals, prominent cross-shaped stigma, and long floral tube make Oenothera a fascinating study in floral architecture.
Read →Species Spotlight · February 2026
Colorado's state tree. Drawing coniferous foliage requires a different approach than broadleaf plants — spirally arranged needles, four-sided cross-sections, and waxy bloom on every surface.
Read →Species Spotlight · February 2026
Familiarity is a trap. The sunflower's apparently simple structure conceals one of the most mathematically elegant arrangements in the plant kingdom — Fibonacci spirals in the disc florets.
Read →Species Spotlight · February 2026
Dandelions are everywhere and overlooked. For a botanical illustrator, that's a mistake — the dandelion is one of the most structurally complex subjects you can study.
Read →Species Spotlight · January 2026
The defining plant of the American West. Its subtlety — tiny three-toothed leaves, silvery pubescence, minute flower heads — makes it one of the most rewarding subjects for advanced illustrators.
Read →Species Spotlight · January 2026
Unlike almost anything else you'll draw. No conventional leaves, no typical stem structure — just waxy pads, sharp spines, and treacherous glochids requiring entirely different rendering techniques.
Read →Species Spotlight · January 2026
Colorado's state flower presents one of the most rewarding challenges in botanical illustration: five spurred petals arranged around a dense cluster of stamens.
Read →Species Spotlight · January 2026
Compact flower spikes, narrow aromatic leaves, and architectural elegance. A satisfying subject at every skill level with a dense whorled spike that rewards close observation.
Read →Species Spotlight · January 2026
Wild roses strip away the frilly complexity of cultivated varieties and reveal the elegant simplicity of the genus: five petals, many stamens, and clean radial symmetry.
Read →