The Kew Book of Drawing Flora and Fauna - by Joy-Louise Robinson (Paperback)

About the Book

"Learn the art of drawing charming flora and fauna in easy stages. Discover 20 delightful projects inspired by nature, including a range of flowers, insects, birds and small animals. Each project builds up in simple steps, allowing you to create wonderfully detailed drawings with ease, developing your skills as you progress through the book. Follow the carefully structured step-by-step instructions inside to complete each project, either as a striking line drawing, or use the suggested palette to add a gorgeous coloured finish. Joy-Louise's expert techniques take you through drawing petal shapes, adding shading, creating realistic feathers and fur, along with tips to apply these to your own creative drawings. You only need paper, pens and pencils to get started, so whether it's a cheerful daisy, glossy beetle, majestic magpie or snuffling hedgehog, it's never been easier to create your own beautiful nature-inspired artwork."--Page 4 of cover.

Book Synopsis

Learn to draw stunning flora and fauna in easy steps with popular author and teacher, Joy-Louise Robinson (@Felicityandink).

Discover 20 delightful projects including flowers, insects, birds and small animals, endorsed by The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Whether you are a beginner looking to learn, or a more experienced artist looking for new ideas and a fresh approach, this stunning book is designed to make drawing simple and enjoyable - and will give you results to be proud of. Joy-Louise's distinctive and much-loved bohemian botanical style of art is inspiring to look at, but made achievable through her carefully structured step drawings and clear instructions. This complete guide to drawing contains:

• A brief overview of the small amount of equipment required simply grab paper, pens and a pencil.
• A drawing warm-up section that will encourage you to experiment with mark-making and motion.
• In-depth tips and techniques in each section, from drawing accurate petal edges to creating realistic feathers and fur.
• Simple, easy-to follow steps, with each new step added in a different color, making it easy to identify which lines to add.
• A suggested color palette for each project as an optional coloured finish to your line drawings.

So whether it's a cheerful daisy, glossy beetle, majestic magpie or snuffling hedgehog, it's never been easier to create your own beautiful array of flora and fauna.

Review Quotes

Library Journal - Jan 16 2025
Artist Robinson's charming guide to drawing flowers, insects, birds, and small animals offers beginner artists easy-to-follow instructions and ample encouragement to start honing their skills with whatever supplies they have on hand. Beginning with a section devoted to flowers of different shapes and complexity of detail, Robinson shows readers how to build drawings around key elements of a subject such as the center of a bloom or a bird's eye. In the initial section, the author introduces readers to methods of shading, while the second section, on insects, provides techniques for creating texture when drawing subjects, including butterflies, beetles, and moths. The final sections, which outline projects for drawing birds and small mammals, bring together the skills learned earlier in the book, and Robinson leaves readers with advice for future growth, emphasizing the importance of observation and practice to one's artistic development. Example artworks, photos, and suggested palettes for each project encourage readers to add color to their finished pieces.
VERDICT Simple instructions, practical advice, and colorful examples make this a wonderful resource for aspiring artists interested in capturing elements of the natural world.

About the Author

Joy-Louise Robinson has been drawing for most of her life. She has almost a decade of experience working in the creative industry, with a background in fine art, graphic design and illustration. Joy-Louise believes than anyone can learn to draw with practice, and loves to bring out the artistic confidence in others. Since 2019 she has been helping others with their drawing through her successful online tutorials, classes, tips and ebooks. See more from Joy-Louise at her website: www.felicityandink.com

THE ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS, KEW is a world-famous scientific organization, internationally respected for its outstanding collections and scientific expertise in plant and fungal diversity, conservation, and sustainable development in the UK and around the globe. Kew's extensive collections include 200,000 botanical illustrations assembled over the last 200 years.