Exhibition

Weird, Wild & Wonderful

Name: Weird, Wild & Wonderful | The Huntington
Location: The Huntington

Botanical artists have traditionally depicted conventionally beautiful flora. This exhibition showcases nature's oddities, plants of charismatic quirkiness that have a bizarre beauty all their own.

Heirloom tomato, Solanum lycopersicum. Watercolor on paper. © Asuka Hishiki

White Batflower, Tacca integrifolia. Watercolor on paper. © Beverly Allen

Vine-leaved Passionflower, Passiflora vitifolia. Oil on paper. © Ingrid Finnan

Milk Barrel Cactus, Euphorbia horrida. Colored pencil on paper. © Nancy Gehrig

Seed Capsules, Capparidastrum sola. Watercolor on paper. © Ann S. Hoffenberg

Violet Hedgehog Mushroom, Sarcodon fuscoindicum. Gouache and watercolor on paper. © Lucy Martin

African Blood Lily, Scadoxus puniceus. Watercolor on paper. © Lisa Pompelli

This exhibition is open on weekends only.

The eccentric beauty of the plant kingdom is celebrated in this traveling exhibition of botanical art, presented by The New York Botanical Garden in conjunction with the American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA). The juried show, curated by the ASBA, includes 47 contemporary works by artists from Australia, Canada, India, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. “Weird, Wild & Wonderful” made its debut at The New York Botanical Garden in spring of 2014, and will conclude a four-month run at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum before coming to The Huntington.

Botanical artists have traditionally depicted conventionally beautiful flora. This exhibition showcases nature’s oddities, plants of charismatic quirkiness that have a bizarre beauty all their own. The visually stunning artworks, from the bristly Violet Hedgehog Mushroom (Sarcodon fuscoindicum) by Lucy Martin to Asuka Hishiki’s charmingly misshapen Heirloom Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), are rendered in a range of media including watercolor, oil, colored pencil, tempera, graphite, gouache, acrylic, aquatint etching, and pen and ink.

The Huntington will co-host a symposium about weird and wonderful plants on July 23–26, partnering with the ASBA and the Botanical Artists Guild of Southern California (BAGSC, the local ASBA chapter). For details and registration information, visit the ASBA’s website. In conjunction with “Weird, Wild & Wonderful, ” the BAGSC will present a supplemental display from Aug. 1–9 in Banta Hall that will include demonstrations and lectures about botanical art and specimens of botanical curiosities.

A full-color exhibition catalog will be available in the Huntington Store.