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Botanical Art
 Filoli instructor Catherine Watters assists a botanical art student.The Botanical Art program at Filoli has long been an essential part of our mission to interpret and preserve the history of this country estate. Whether it's through one of our two–to–five–day classes, the Certificate Program, the Filoli Florilegium or the annual exhibit, artists continue to be inspired by the plant collections at Filoli.
Our students say it best:
“Excellent class in every way. Thank you!” By Jean Carpenter from Introduction to Botanical Art
“You continue to inspire, support and challenge – thank you.” By Diana Platt from Drawing Plants in Perspective II with Catherine Watters
“Learning these basics has been the type of class I’ve always wanted to take.” By Kay Wolfolk from Watercolor I with Lee McCaffree
“Nina is a very good instructor – positive, encouraging, relaxed and skillful.” From Colored Pencil with Nina Antze
“I like Martha’s friendly attitude and help…great handouts…I gained confidence.” From Graphite Pencil with Martha Kemp
2012 Classes
Filoli offers a wide-ranging schedule of botanical art classes for all levels of experience. It is not necessary to enroll in the Botanical Art Certificate Program to participate in these classes; however, prerequisites must be completed.
Class materials lists are available upon registration or can be downloaded in advance under the class description. Instructor biographies are available by clicking on the instructor's name or by clicking on Instructor Biographies. Certificate Program credit hours are listed next to the class title.
Unless otherwise indicated, these classes take place in the Roth Room on the second floor of the historic House. Access to this classroom is by stairs only. For questions about accessibility, please contact the Education Office by email to classes@filoli.org or by phone at (650) 364-8300, ext. 233.
With the exception of Introduction to Botanical Art, all classes listed below are part of the Botanical Art Certificate Program and are noted by month using the following key:
 Required Courses
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 Elective Courses
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January
February
March
April
May
June
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July
August
September
October
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Drawing skills are essential to botanical art.
Drawing Plants in Perspective I
Saturday, January 28 and Tuesday, February 7, 2012, 9:00 am – 3:30 pm
Saturday, February 25, 2012, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Instructor: Lee McCaffree
This foundation course teaches students to accurately draw plants by observing basic botanical shapes and structures and illustrating them in great detail with botanical accuracy. Each of the five sessions focuses on one shape to emphasize and develop observation and foreshortening skills. Students learn to interpret hidden edges to achieve a believable drawing and work on shading skills through value contrast to create three–dimensional shapes. Students enrolled in the Certificate Program are given homework assignments in each session.
Fee: $235 for members; $280 for non–members
Camellias
Friday and Saturday, February 3 and 4, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Sunday, February 5, 2012, 12:00 pm – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Catherine M. Watters
Over 286 distinct varieties of camellias grow at Filoli. Their deep glossy green foliage and elegant flowers make them wonderful subjects for botanical art. At their peak, they are bursting with stunning displays in all shades of red, white and pink. A wide selection of flowers will be available for you to choose from.
Fee: $210 for members; $250 for non–members
Buckeye by Nina Antze.
Colored Pencil: Winter Seeds and Pods
Thursday, February 16, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Nina Antze
Sharpen those pencils! Discover how to accurately draw those uniquely shaped and textured winter seeds and pods through thoughtful exercises using a variety of colored pencil techniques. Rendering plants can be at any stage of its life, why not start here where it all begins.
Fee: $80 for members; $90 for non–members
Calligraphy Workshop: Introduction to Chancery Cursive
Thursdays, March 1 through March 22, 2012, 9:00 am – 11:30 pm
Instructor: Sarah Loesch Frank
Calligraphy is Greek for “beauty writing.” It is the art of writing in an expressive, harmonious and skillful manner. Develop the skill of lettering through careful instruction and practice using a broad–edged pen. Add flair to your correspondence, journals, invitations and announcements, artwork, and more. Former students are welcome to attend to further their studies through independent instruction. This is a Botanical Art Certificate program “elective” course.
Fee: $150 for members; $180 for non–members
Botanical Art Certificate Program Hours of Credit: 4
Strawberry by Catherine M. Watters.
Introduction to Botanical Art
Friday and Saturday, March 2 and 3, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Catherine M. Watters
Have you admired botanical art but questioned whether you could do it? If so, this is just the class for you. This two day hands–on workshop introduces traditional botanical art skills such as plant observation, drawing, color mixing and watercolor painting using leaves, flowers and fruit as models. No previous art experience is needed.
Fee: $180 for members; $215 for non–members. Fee includes all materials.
Currants by Catherine M. Watters.
Techniques Class: How to Paint Glossy Surfaces
Friday, March 9, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Catherine M. Watters
Learn how to make glossy subjects such as eggplants, cherries and magnolia leaves look shiny by skillfully balancing highlights and shadows. Students will also focus on reflected light, how to make sliced fruit look wet and how to successfully add water drops.
Fee: $80 for members; $95 for non–members. Fee includes all materials.
- Prerequisite: Some watercolor experience
- Hours of Credit: 4
- register
Olives by Martha Kemp.
Graphite Pencil I
Thursday, March 15 through Saturday, March 17, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Martha Kemp
From crisp details to flawless continuous tone, it's all about control. This workshop will explore the use of a lead holder and 2mm lead (actually, graphite) for exercises in rendering the texture, details and volume of leaves, flowers and everyday specimens from the grocery store’s produce department. It's almost like sculpting on paper.
Fee: $275 for members; $330 for non–members.
Pepperwood Wildflowers by Nina Antze.
Colored Pencil
Thursday, April 12 through Saturday, April 14, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Nina Antze
This workshop focuses on learning and practicing colored pencil techniques while making study pages for future reference. The workshop will begin with a lesson on the different types of pencils and papers; color theory, including a color wheel to learn about color bias; and hands–on learning of basic colored pencil techniques such as building-up color and blending. Continue your studies on day two by drawing, creating and modifying greens, using grisaille techniques for shading and forms. Complete your three-day study by adding a flower or seasonal fruit from the Filoli garden and practice finishing techniques like burnishing and clean–up.
Fee: $275 for members; $330 for non–members.
Magolia ‘Elizabeth’ by Jenny Phillips, Filoli Florilegium Artist.
Master Botanical Art Class
Wednesday, April 18 through Saturday, April 21, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Jenny Phillips
Jenny returns to Filoli! Join us for an inspirational week of botanical painting with Jenny Philips, world–renowned artist. Students will focus on refinement of paint handling, awareness and importance of light and composition. Students will develop essential drawing skills and painting techniques to further their work in botanical art.
Fee: $550 for members; $660 for non–members.
A student studies the anatomy of a flower.
Botany through Drawing
Tuesday, April 24, 9:00 am – 3:30 pm, Tuesdays, May 8, 15 and 22, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Instructor: Lee McCaffree
Studying botany increases your understanding and ability to be a successful botanical artist. By understanding the structure of stems, leaves, flowers and roots, an artist can be more creative in arranging an accurate plant portrait. Each class will explore a different aspect of plant structure and growth as well as plant families and nomenclature. Students exhibit what they have learned through a series of drawings. Students enrolled in the Certificate Program are given homework assignments in each class.
Fee: $235 for members; $280 for non–members
Irises
Friday and Saturday, April 27 and 28, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Optional Follow–up day: Wednesday, May 2, 2012, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Instructor: Lee McCaffree
Filoli’s iris collection includes 56 different varieties ranging from tall bearded irises to the dwarf purple irises. We will visit the garden to see the irises in their historic locations. You can choose from a variety of iris. This will allow you to use your botanical art skills to accurately portray these historic plants. This is the perfect class for those wishing to hone their watercolor skills and prepare for the next level of painting.
Fee: $160 for members; $190 for non–members
Optional Day Fee: $50 for members; $60 for non–members
- Prerequisite: Some art experience.
- Certificate Program hours of credit: 8 (10 with optional day)
- Materials List
- register
Pineapple by Catherine Watters.
Drawing Plants in Perspective II
Fridays, May 18 and 25, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Catherine M. Watters
This class will further develop your observation and drawing skills. A continuation of Drawing Plants in Perspective I, this course is for students who wish to receive more in–depth drawing instruction. Students enrolled in the Certificate Program will be given homework assignments.
Fee: $160 for members; $190 for non–members
Rosa rugosa by Catherine Watters.
Watercolor I
Saturday, May 19, 2012, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Fridays, June 1 and 8, 2012, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Saturday, June 16, 2012, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Instructor: Catherine M. Watters
Transparent watercolor is the traditional medium of botanical art. This beginning course serves as the foundation for painting in watercolor. It covers the basic materials such as papers, brushes and paints. Students learn techniques through exercises using different washes and application of paint on wet and dry paper. Dry brush work used for accuracy and detail is covered. These methods are applied to basic plant forms as students develop their skills. Students enrolled in the Certificate Program are given homework assignments in each session.
Fee: $235 for members; $280 for non–members
Colored Pencil: Zinnias and Other Composites
Thursday, June 21, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Nina Antze
Summer has arrived and with it comes brightly colored zinnias, gerbera daisies and more. With a large assortment to choose from, students will pick their favorite and learn to accurately draw it while exploring a variety of colored-pencil techniques including burnishing and impressed line.
Fee: $80 for members; $90 for non–members
Poppies by Jean Emmons.
Master Botanical Art Class:
Using Color Effectively in Botanical Art
Thursday, June 28 through Saturday, June 30, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Jean Emmons
This three–day workshop is a blend of traditional botanical watercolor techniques with impressionist color theory. After working through a series of color exercises, students will paint some small reflective fruits. A generous and engaging teacher, Emmons will help you make your botanical paintings more vibrant and intense as you become comfortable with color.
“Our goal is to enliven our botanical paintings as we become more sensitized to the properties of color.” — Jean Emmons
Fee: $400 for members; $480 for non–members
- Prerequisite: Intermediate and advanced botanical art watercolor experience.
- Certificate Program hours of credit: 15
- Materials List
- register
Angel Trumpet by Catherine Watters.
Watercolor II
Wednesday, July 18, 2012, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Wednesdays, August 1, 8 and 15, 2012, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Instructor: Catherine M. Watters
This intermediate class further develops students’ skills in mixing colors, washes and layering. Students work on highlights, shading of simple and complex forms, painting white flowers and transparent subjects. Students enrolled in the Certificate Program are given homework assignments in each session.
Fee: $235 for members; $280 for non–members
Crabapple by Nina Antze.
Colored Pencil II
Thursday, July 26 through Saturday, July 28, 2012, 9:30 am–3:30 pm.
Instructor: Nina Antze
Apply the techniques you have learned in Colored Pencil I to a variety of natural subjects including fruits, leaves and flowers. Try out new surfaces and papers and expand your repertoire into watercolor pencils and their possibilities as background and surface texture. We will continue our color explorations and apply them to live specimens, developing study pages focusing on value, detail and composition.
Fee: $235 for members; $280 for non–members
Anenomes by Martha Kemp.
Graphite Pencil II
Thursday, August 2 through Saturday, August 4, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Martha Kemp
Crisp details, flawless, continuous and total control. This workshop is for those with experience in using the lead holder. Subject matter will focus on leaves, leaves and more leaves. The goal will be to create a finished composition using three (or more) leaves of different shapes and textures.
Fee: $275 for members; $330 for non–members.
Summer flowers in the Filoli Cutting Garden.
Summer Flowers
Friday and Saturday, August 10 and 11, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Optional follow–up day: Friday, August 24, 2012, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Instructor: Lee McCaffree
Filoli’s Cutting Garden is bursting with vibrantly colored blooms this time of year. Take a walk to the Cutting Garden and select your favorite. Then Catherine will guide you as you hone your drawing and painting skills. Practice color mixing and texture techniques while creating your next flower portrait masterpiece.
Fee: $160 for members; $190 for non–members
Optional Day Fee: $50 for members; $60 for non–members
- Prerequisite: Some botanical art experience
- Certificate Program hours of credit: 8 (10 with the optional day)
- Materials List
- register
Learn how to get the colors you want.
Color Mixing for Artists
Thursday, August 16 through Saturday, August 18, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Susan T. Fisher
Color mixing is a necessity for all artists. This class teaches students to mix the colors they want, not the ones they end up with through trial and error. Learn an easy system for combining colors consistently to achieve the broadest possible spectrum for any “wet” medium including watercolor, gouache, acrylics, oils, inks, alkyds or egg tempura. This understanding will help students move to a much higher level of achievement. Students enrolled in the Certificate Program are given homework assignments in each class.
Fee: $325 for members; $390 for non–members.
Plums by Susan Fisher.
Designing for Success: Composition for Artists
Monday and Tuesday, August 20 and 21, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Susan T. Fisher
Amplify your ability to plan your next painting so your work stands out from the crowd. Enjoy this opportunity to unlock the mystery of composition in fine art. Indulge your artist’s eye as you browse through PowerPoint images of well–known paintings. Diagram fine art and become familiar with the various parts that make up the whole. Acquire the tools to enhance your own artistic expression. Class exercises will encourage you to analyze line, shape, value, color and structure. It is fun to diagram paintings and empowering to know how to plan your next piece.
Fee: $220 for members; $265 for non–members
Ficus Semivestia by Bruce Wilson.
Pen and Ink
Thursday, September 6 through Saturday, September 8, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Bruce Wilson
The basics of pen–and–ink techniques are taught through an engaging curriculum of lectures, demonstrations and hands–on exercises. Begin your studies with a historical overview of pen and ink followed by a demonstration of the basic techniques and creation of a tone scale with stippling technique and line drawing. Continue your studies on day two through technique exercises, including hatch and crosshatch, while illustrating a leaf using these techniques. On day three you will learn texture techniques while selecting a variety of textured subjects and making 3 small drawings.
Fee: $300 for members; $360 for non–members
Figs by Catherine Watters
Textures, Patterns and Details
Saturdays, September 15 and October 6, 2012, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Friday, October 26, 2012, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Instructor: Catherine M. Watters
This class continues to explore botanical painting skills to illustrate plants with more accuracy. Patterns of color, textures and other plant surfaces are practiced using color, washes, negative space and dry brush work. Representation of highlights, hairy and fuzzy surfaces, airy plants, shiny surfaces and succulents are challenges when maintaining the form of the plant subject. Using more advanced techniques gives the artist the confidence to try more complicated plant portraits. Students enrolled in the Certificate Program are given homework assignments in each session.
Fee: $235 for members; $280 for non–members
Portfolio: Presenting Your Artwork
Saturday, September 22, 2012 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Instructor: Lee McCaffree
How you present yourself and your artwork is very important. This class includes instruction on how to write a biography, a resume of exhibitions and an artist statement. Photographing and reproducing artwork are also discussed. Please bring your portfolio and artwork for class activities. This class prepares students for the Botanical Art Certificate Program portfolio presentation.
Fee: $45 for members; $55 for non–members
- Prerequisite: none
- Certificate Program hours of credit: 3
- register
Labeling, Matting and Framing
Saturday, September 22, 2012, 12:30 pm – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Lee McCaffree
Labeling, matting and framing are all essential elements in completing and presenting your artwork. This class teaches students the various ways to label their botanical artwork and demonstrates matting and framing techniques in a range of styles from the traditional to the contemporary. Mats and frames will be available for practice. Please bring one completed painting and a digital camera for class activities.
Fee: $45 for members; $55 for non–members
- Prerequisite: none
- Certificate Program hours of credit: 3
- register
Primula by Lee McCaffree.
Watercolor III
Tuesdays, September 18 and 25, October 2, 9 and 16, 2012, 9:30 am – 12:30 pm
Instructor: Lee McCaffree
This advanced class continues the development of watercolor skills while focusing on painting complex forms. Students enrolled in the Certificate Program are given homework assignments in each session.
Fee: $235 for members; $280 for non–members
Carissa macrocarpa by Margaret Best.
Master Botanical Art Class:
Mixing Natural Greens and Painting Leaves
Tuesday, September 25 through Friday, September 28, 2012, 9:30 am – 3:30 pm
Instructor: Margaret Best
Luscious limes, middle greens, earthy greens, desert and alpine greens are just a few of the green categories found in plants. This comprehensive class will show you the pigment options to consider in your pursuit of producing natural greens that significantly improve your leaf rendering. Through fun exercises discover how to draw, color match and paint any leaf with accuracy. Also included in the curriculum is basic leaf morphology such as shape, apex, margin and vein structure.
Fee: $400 for members; $480 for non–members
Winter Ash by Nina Antze.
Colored Pencil: Autumn Leaves
Thursday, October 11, 2012, 9:30 am–3:30 pm
Instructor: Nina Antze
Autumn Leaves are the perfect subject for learning and exploring colored–pencil techniques. Their unique colors provide the opportunity to practice mixing and layering color. Learn to create rich reds, browns and purples. Students will focus on a variety of local leaves and their shapes and structure. Leaves will be provided or you may bring your own.
Fee: $80 for members; $90 for non–members
Nuts by Catherine Watters
Winter Fruits, Nuts and Berries
Friday and Saturday, October 12 and 13, 2012, 9:30 am–3:30 pm
Instructor: Catherine M. Watters
Explore these beautiful winter botanical subjects and make them come to life! The instructor will guide you through the steps of drawing and building layers of color to capture their form, rich colors and texture. Your painting may be the perfect subject for your holiday cards!
Fee: $160 for members; $190 for non–members
Botanical Art Certificate Program
Variegated Pink Eureka by Sally Petru, graduate of the Filoli Botanical Art Certificate Program, Summer 2010
The Filoli Botanical Art Certificate Program offers a unique, in–depth study of botanical art through challenging, integrated and comprehensive courses. The curriculum includes the systematic study of artistic skills and concepts, basic botany and botanical art history. A certificate will be presented upon successful completion of coursework (180 classroom hours plus homework) and presentation of a portfolio and final project. This program is for the serious student who wishes to develop knowledge and skills in botanical art.
Enrollment in the Certificate Program is not necessary to participate in these classes; however, prerequisites must be completed. To enroll in the Certificate Program, please complete the enrollment form. Credit hours for each class are indicated under the class description.
Certificate Program enrollment includes a student handbook and course material binder, classroom materials and handouts and instructor consultation time (up to four hours annually).
Class materials lists are available upon registration or can be downloaded in advance under the course description.
The primary instructors and curriculum developers are Lee McCaffree and Catherine M. Watters. Biographies for all instructors are available either by clicking an instructor’s name or clicking on Instructor Biographies.
Required Courses
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Elective Courses
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