We celebrate the launch of the world’s youngest florilegium, the James & Shirley Sherwood Botanical Art Collection showcasing art as powerful communication tool to showcase Rare and Endangered South African plants
Botanical illustration is a universally loved artform. The works in this permanent collection not only accurately represent the appearance, structure and anatomy of plants, they are breathtakingly beautiful. Botanical art allows plants that are seasonal or seasonally dormant to be appreciated throughout the year.
Since 2023 Stellenbosch University Botanical Garden (SUBG) has been holding an annual botanical art exhibition, encouraging the best artists to work with our most important plant collections. Generous donors have contributed works to our permanent collection, showcasing the best of South African botanical art, and raising the profile of our most threatened and interesting plant accessions.
This project gives botanical artists access to live, rare material, and important scientific data – a unique situation which Annerie Senekal and Razelle Gallant have managed gracefully. We also trained three art interns to help with the gallery change over, facilitate sales and to meet and greet our many visitors. Through this florilegium or permanent collection, working in conjunction with the Red Data list, and identifying either rare and endangered or previously undocumented plants, we will connect visitors to the phenomenal diversity of threatened South African plants. Helping us to shift public perception about the value of wild areas for long-term conservation.
All paintings in this collection tell a story highlighting the plight of our plants. Rupert Koopman has done a splendid job of bringing these stories to life, complimenting the images perfectly. These works are botanically correct and checked by Prof. Leanné Dreyer for accuracy. We have included a number of novice artists in the collection believing that support at an early stage of their careers will yield great results, building their standing in the botanical art community.
SUBG potentially has more conservation-grade collections than any other garden globally. We believe that botanical art is a crucial part of communicating the wonder and value of plants. Many of the most threatened plants are geophytes – dormant for half the year, and dry summer landscapes are often considered botanically unimportant and often overlooked by Environmental Impact Assessments. Effective visual communication is a key reminder of the seasonal threatened plants.
Our latest exhibition opening on 9th May 2026 to the public, will showcase the new works we’ve acquired for the James & Shirley Sherwood Botanical Art Collection which will be permanently housed at the recently upgraded, and historically significant Garden office building. The exhibition runs until Sunday 20 September and will also feature the donated Brendel Botanical models with fantastic explanation labels drawn by Matthew Moir and written by Prof Leanné Dreyer.
About the team
This special collaborative project is the initiative of Karen Stewart M.Phil (specialising in Botanical Illustration) and chair of the Botanical Artists’ Association of southern Africa’s Cape branch, Dr Don Kirkwood (PhD Botany Ecology) late curator of the Stellenbosch University Botanical Garden, Annerie Senekal (acting curator of SUBG), Martine Robinson B (Arch) a well-respected South African botanical artist focusing on Rare and Endangered geophytes, and Prof Leanne Dreyer a world expert in the mega diverse Cape Oxalis.
Contact
Annerie Senekal (Acting Garden Curator) amsenekal@sun.ac.za
Karen Stewart (JSS BAC Curator) karenstewart@sun.ac.za 072 719 6136
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