Gilly Shaeffer’s lifelong interest in art and love of nature drew her to the study of botanical art in 1994. Her work has been selected to appear in juried exhibitions throughout the United States, including the “Flora 2000” Exhibition at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania, the United States Botanic Gardens, Washington, D.C., the Horticultural Society of New York, the 11th International Exhibition of Botanical Art & Illustration at the Hunt Institute, the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis, and the Filoli Gardens in Northern California. In 2006 and 2008, she had solo exhibits of a large body of her work at the Descanso Gardens in La Canada, CA. Gilly received the Georg Jensen Award from the American Society of Botanical Artists. Her work is included in the permanent collection at the Hunt Institute of Botanical Documentation at the Carnegie Mellon University and many private collections around the United States.
Gilly studied drawing and painting extensively at San Francisco State University and at art schools in Boston, San Francisco and Los Angeles. She holds a California Art Teachers Credential and teaches art to children at two private schools in the Los Angeles area.
In 1998, she met and began a course of study with Anne Marie Evans of the Chelsea Physic Garden in London, who strongly influenced her development as a botanical artist. In 2004, Gilly received the Botanical Art and Illustration Certificate from the New York Botanical Garden for completion of Anne Marie Evans Botanical Watercolor Program. Gilly has taught botanical art classes at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, the Virginia Robinson Gardens in Beverly Hills, and at her home studio in Los Angeles.
Gilly is a founding member and past president of the Botanical Artist Guild of Southern California.
View more images and contact Gilly at http://www.gillyshaeffer.com
Artist’s Statement:
Though I love all forms of art, the idea of being able to beautifully and accurately represent plants in watercolor has aroused my interest so strongly that it has become the main focus of my artistic pursuits. By close observation of the plant world, I have become inspired by the beauty and intelligence that I see in these living forms and hope that my efforts to recreate them will be a source of upliftment to those who view my work.
