VALERIE EMMETT
I "dropped" art at school at the end of the third year. I went on to study chemistry and pursued a career in research and then in science education, spending more than 20 enjoyable years as one of HM inspectors of schools in England. My personal interests were in natural history, especially botany. Approaching retirement I was inspired to resume involvement in art by an exhibition at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and I took several different short art courses to learn a range of techniques and work with different media. Once we had settled in Scotland, I took a two-year diploma course in botanical illustration. I work principally in watercolour using small brushes and enjoy the challenge of illustrating the fine details of plant structures in all their different stages. Sometimes I will happily spend almost a day trying to portray a leaf or flower accurately!
I joined the SBSA nearly 20 years ago and have served on the committee as treasurer and secretary at different times.
I "dropped" art at school at the end of the third year. I went on to study chemistry and pursued a career in research and then in science education, spending more than 20 enjoyable years as one of HM inspectors of schools in England. My personal interests were in natural history, especially botany. Approaching retirement I was inspired to resume involvement in art by an exhibition at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and I took several different short art courses to learn a range of techniques and work with different media. Once we had settled in Scotland, I took a two-year diploma course in botanical illustration. I work principally in watercolour using small brushes and enjoy the challenge of illustrating the fine details of plant structures in all their different stages. Sometimes I will happily spend almost a day trying to portray a leaf or flower accurately!
I joined the SBSA nearly 20 years ago and have served on the committee as treasurer and secretary at different times.
