STORY BEHIND THE ART OF DOROTHY DEPAULO

Botanical Art Worldwide: America's Flora

Lone Mesa Snakeweed

Gutierrezia elegans

Since becoming a botanic artist, the rare plants of my home state of Colorado have been a major interest to me. Al Sneider, an amateur botanist, first found the species Gutierrezia elegans in 2008 while he was assisting botanists from Colorado State University to document plants in an area that had recently become public land.

When I contacted him and explained that I wanted to draw this plant for the Rocky Mountain Society of Botanic Artists’ second exhibit of rare and endangered local plants, he agreed to take me to the area in the very south-west part of the Colorado to see this very rare plant. Luckily, a few of them were in bloom!

I did sketches in the field and color studies. I also took many photographs. Then working in my studio, I combined the sketches with the photos to do the finished drawing. I was not able to see the root structure of the plant, so I thought it was important to indicate the type of soil that it grows in.

This drawing was part of the Rocky Mountain Society of Botanic Artists’ RARE II exhibit that toured the state from 2015 through 2017. A photographic image of this drawing was donated to the Colorado State University Natural Heritage Program for use in their Rare Plant Guide.

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Read more about this artist’s work: 15th annual