Claire Kathleen Ward PSBA

Biography

Claire Kathleen Ward is a botanical and nature artist based in the beautiful and inspiring scenery of West Wales.

She has studied botany, horticulture and field ecology and is a mostly self-taught watercolour & oil artist. She has always drawn a variety of subject matter but became hooked on botanical illustration in 2005, when she took classes with RHS Gold medallist Moya Davern. In 2007 she completed the diploma in botanical illustration with distinction from the Society of Botanical Artists and then became a full member in 2010.

She mainly works in watercolour but sometimes paints with gouache on dark backgrounds which really gives impact to her work. She is passionate about the conservation of the native flora and fauna of the British Isles, especially native orchids, fungi and lichens, and this is her main focus.

She is a tutor on the SBA diploma course on the ‘working in the field’ and ‘Flower composition’ assignments and she is currently working towards an exhibition with the RHS called ‘Wildflowers of South & West Wales’ and writing a book on Painting Fungi due to be released in 2023.

In 2020 she became a natural history illustration tutor for the School of Lifelong Learning at Aberystwyth University.

She became a co-president of the SBA in 2021.

Awards:
Jantien Burggraaff Memoral Award 2007
Highly Commended Award SBA Westminster 2014
Certificate of Botanical Merit SBA London 2019
Certificate of Botanical Merit SBA London 2022

Collections:
Hunt Institute, Pittsburgh, USA
Private collections around the world

Website: www.claireward.net/

Instagram: @claire_ward_art

Email: ckbotanica@gmail.com