DIANE DEROO
Works on Paper, Ceramics, Pressed Vegetables
Golden Beets Vegetable Shadow Box
City: Kaleden, British Columbia
Website: https://botanicalartbydiane.ca
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BotanicalArtByDianeDeRoo
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/botanicalartbydiane/
Artist Statement: My fascination with all things botanical has always shaped my art. I find beauty in what I grow and in what I collect from the wild. I love to experiment with the texture, shapes and details that one finds in the everyday world of plants.
I hope to create art that celebrates the simple natural beauty of the materials I work with - the intricate details of the most delicate flower, the vibrant beauty of the vegetables we eat every day.
Biography: I am a botanical artist who has developed my own unique style. Utilizing the vegetables, herbs and flowers cultivated from my cottage garden, I create a collection of show stopping wall hangings. Throughout my 30 plus years of practice, I have developed a range of drying, pressing and casting techniques for capturing the beauty of my homegrown plants in my art.
My work uses delicate cross sections that I create by using a razor to cut through the centre of each vegetable, preserving the roots, stems and seeds. I have spent years developing a process for pressing and drying these perfect cross sections and retaining their integrity. My finished works capture the vivid colours, varied textures and delicate inner details of each vegetable.
In my latest collection of botanical casts, I focus on traditional representations of herbarium specimens as art. My cast pieces are directly inspired by this art form. For this work, I meticulously transfer the delicate veins, tendrils and flowers of my plants into a clay mold, and then encase them in plaster medium. My new botanical relief tiles showcase intertwined leaves, herbs and flowers, reminiscent of an exuberant, free-flowering cottage garden.
All of my work is inspired by my love of nurturing plants in my backyard oasis, my ever-growing interest in art and botany, as well as the calming and meditative place that is my cottage garden. As an artisan I aim to draw the viewer in, and surprise them as they look more closely into the intricate beauty of each piece.
My work has been showcased and highlighted in juried artisan shows across Canada since I started my craft. I have also exhibited in local boutiques, shops and art galleries.
I currently reside, cultivate and create in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia.