Recipient of the Lizzie Sanders Award for Excellence, 2025
I enrolled the Diploma course at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in March 2023. I have since developed my preferred style in botanical illustrations, inspiring by the fascinating facts of plants, I try to illustrate the life cycle of plants in a story telling way. In producing a botanical painting, I would work in this process:
Collecting specimens, close observing and studying, dissecting, drawing, designing composition, and painting in watercolour. The mediums I prefer in creating my artworks are watercolour on hot pressed paper, and pencil.
Title of the project
Native and Archaeophyte Trees of Britain
About the project
In my final project, I produced five paintings of native and archaeophyte trees of Britain. I tried to depict the life cycle of growth of these trees.
In each piece, there is a spring branch of fresh green leaves, with or without flowers/buds, a summer branch of blossom/young fruits, and a seed-bearing autumn branch. At the bottom of each painting there is a line of enlarged sections of the reproductive parts of the tree by tonal drawing.
The five trees illustrated in this project are: Fraxinus excelsior, Castanea sativa, Quercus robur, Tilia platyphyllos and Sorbus aria.
Lizzie Sanders Award for Excellence, 2025
‘Lizzie Sanders award for Excellence’ is a prize which is awarded to the student showing an exceptional level of analysis, observation, understanding and a remarkable level of skill in recording the chosen plant group.
Li Zhang studied ‘Native and Archaeophyte Trees of Britain’.
Working from life, Li has produced the most exquisite collection of British tree paintings. Attracted to the tree’s phytodiversity, as well as the historical and cultural connections. Her diligent work has paid off and the beautifully balanced compositions are bold yet delicately painted, including every seasonal aspect, and detailed enlargements making an impressive exhibit.
Congratulations Li on your striking exhibit and hard work throughout the course.
