Marianne Hazlewood is an RHS and BISCOT Gold award winning botanical artist. She works with plants, either sourcing and growing her subjects or finding them on her journeys. She likes to spend time observing her specimens to learn their nature before she illustrates them. The time spent nurturing leads to a deep connection and insight into their growing cycle that lends life and realism to her paintings and art work. She gets very attached to them.
Hazlewood specialises in detail. She creates photorealistic depictions of the plants that she works with to demonstrate the structures, patterns and tones within her specimens. She creates modern botanical illustrations in a number of media, complimenting her wish to document and spotlight particular details.
Hazlewood's specialises in a drybrush watercolour technique, producing faithful true-to-life representations of her subjects. Her Wishbone series and Crabapple of Dalry were created from found specimens during Lockdown.
Her watercolour series of 'Arisaema, infloresence & fruit', combine 2 seasons of growth. Her 'Fernation' series displays the diversity of forms within the fern family. Both nod to traditional botanical illustration so loved by the Victorians.
She also creates looser work using a dip pen and Japanese ink paste. Her 'ink shoots' series are looser works, and are monocolour which is a distinct step away from traditional botanical illustration to a more contemporary design ethic. Pattern and structure take prominence allowing viewers more leeway for imaginative interpretation.
In 'Arisaema geometric stylings' Hazlewood has taken some of her ink drawings through a further screenprinting process, blocking out forms and reintroducing colour to satisfy her love of colour and graphic styling.