Introducing myself a little…

I have been painting for over 34 years,  and teaching botanical  illustration,

watercolor,  in Kyoto for 23 years.  During the past 27years,    I have been

mainly featuring plants,  with bugs sometimes.    I admire  nature.      Every

stage of plant life - the baby bud,  the bloom,  and  the wilting flower…   is

beautiful.  The cycle of life continues.   It really is worth paying attention in

every moment.

When I do the sketching, I concentrate to carefully observe the plant.  There,

I  start  to  feel,  see,  and  hear something.     I am  trying  to  express  that

something in my paintings.      I am not trying to draw precisely to get closer

to photographs.     With the plant I am drawing and painting,   I am trying to

realize the atmosphere and even the scent surrounding the plant,once again

on the paper. This is one of my main objectives in painting.

I am more than happy if you think that you heard plants' voiceless voices when

 seeing my paintings.

Yuka TAKAGI