Jessica Rosemary Shepherd Explained

Jessica Rosemary Shepherd
Other Names:Inky Leaves, Úrsula Romero
Birth Date:October 1984
Nationality:British
Occupation:Artist

Jessica Rosemary Shepherd FLS (born October 1984) is a painter, artist, publisher and botanist who works under the names of Úrsula Romero and Inky Leaves.

Early career

After attending Steyning Grammar School,[1] Shepherd studied for a BSc in botany at Plymouth University[2] and was awarded the Eden Project Prize for her thesis in which she initiated the restoration of Plymouth's historic Drakes Place Gardens.[3] [4] During her time at university Shepherd dedicated time to researching and cataloguing the 19th Century Thomas Bruges Flower (1817–1899) herbarium at Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery alongside her studies.

After graduating from Plymouth University, she secured a NERC funded grant to study for a MSc in Botanical Taxonomy at University of Edinburgh and graduated with a distinction after studying the Cytology of Campanula rotundifolia for her thesis.[5] [6] [7]

Following her attendance at Edinburgh Shepherd was funded by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation to conduct two years of research into the 18th Century St. Aubyn (1758–1839) herbarium and mineral collection at Plymouth City Museum.[8] [9] [10] [11] Meanwhile she was also employed by the University to continue her work on improving the campus and was the curator of the Muirhead Herbarium.[12] [13]

In 2010 Shepherd was employed by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and was positioned in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art.[14] [15] During this time she freelanced as an illustrator for scientific journals and books[16] [17] [18] whilst developing her own painting techniques and delivered several talks about the Marianne North Gallery.[19]

She was elected Fellow of the Linnean Society of London in 2012[20] and was elected as a member of the Chelsea Physic Garden Florilegium Society in 2013[21] and a member of the Chelsea Arts Club in 2017.[22]

Career

Shepherd's paintings feature in the Shirley Sherwood Collection,[23] the Fitzwilliam Museum[24] and National Botanic Gardens (Ireland). Her work has been featured in a number of exhibitions. In 2014, she was featured on the BBC4 documentary "In Search of Rory McEwen" where she demonstrated how to paint on vellum in the Chelsea Physic Garden.[25] [26] [27]

On 16 February 2017 Shepherd held her first solo exhibition at Abbott and Holder in London and in conjunction published her first book titled ‘Leafscape’ featuring her collection of watercolour paintings on leaves.[28] For the collection, Shepherd worked in collaboration with musician Hoodlum Priest (Derek Thompson) to produce a soundtrack which was released by Concrete Music Publishing.[29]

In late 2017, inspired by Novalis' unfinished Bildungsroman 'Heinrich von Ofterdingen', Shepherd began her next project on the Blue Flower.[30] In 2018 Shepherd launched INK Quarterly (INKQ) – a collaborative art publication that acts as a stage for thinkers and artists to talk freely about their ideas and practice for an educated audience.[31] 2018 also saw the birth of the Inky Leaves podcasting channel which, via a series of talks and interviews, discusses and promotes botanical art.[32]

Personal life

Shepherd was a model and muse for well known ceramic artist, printmaker and painter Eric James Mellon between 2004 and 2006, frequently appearing in his work wearing hats.[33] [34] [35] She has also been a model for other well known artists including Piers Ottey, Gym Hamala[36] and Youth and spent a year studying the history of painting under the tuition of YBA artist Nick Fudge.[37]

Exhibitions

Sound

Publications

Illustrations by Shepherd

Essays

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Pupil's work pays off at show . West Sussex County Times . 20 June 2003 . 20.
  2. Web site: Mitchley . Jonathan . Dr M's botanical selfies No. 5 – Jessica Shepherd eats, shoots and Inky Leaves... . Dr M Goes Wild . 24 August 2018 . 23 July 2014.
  3. Munn . C. . Plymbiosis . Newsletter for the School of Biological Sciences . 2007 . 1 . 3 . 16.
  4. Web site: Shepherd . J. R. . homepage . linkedin.com . 24 August 2018.
  5. Web site: Shepherd . Jessica Rosemary . Polyploidy and the phylogeography of Campanula rotundifolia L. in the British Isles and Ireland . . 24 August 2018 . 2007.
  6. Web site: Items where NERC Author is "Perry, Annika" – NERC Open Research Archive . . 24 August 2018.
  7. Stevens . Carly J. . Wilson . J. . McAllister . H. . Biological Flora of the British Isles: Campanula rotundifolia . Journal of Ecology . 2012 . 100 . 266 . 821–839 . 10.1111/j.1365-2745.2012.01963.x . 2012JEcol.100..821S . free .
  8. News: Cross . P. . On a tour of herbal delights . The Herald . Reach plc . 8 May 2008.
  9. Web site: The Geological Society of London – The Collector . geolsoc.org.uk . 24 August 2018.
  10. Web site: Sparks . G. . 8) Sir John St Aubyn, BBC Radio Devon . 24 August 2018.
  11. Book: Lewis . C. L. E. . Knell . S. J. . The Making of the Geological Society of London – Special Publication no 317 . 2009 . Geological Society of London . 9781862392779 . English.
  12. Web site: Home " C. V. Starr Virtual Herbarium . N.Y.Botanical Garden . 24 August 2018.
  13. Web site: Leaves . Inky . Inky Leaves: The Muirhead Herbarium . Inky Leaves . 24 August 2018 . 18 November 2014.
  14. Web site: ARCHIVE Shirley Sherwood Gallery Exhibitions . Botanical Art & Artists . 24 August 2018 .
  15. Web site: Allen . M. J. . Links – Rory McEwen . martinjallen.com . 24 August 2018 . 2013.
  16. Book: Morris . H . International Dendrology Society Yearbook 2010 . 2010 . International Dendrology . 217–225 . en.
  17. Book: Morris . H . International Dendrology Society Yearbook 2013 . 2013 . International Dendrology . en.
  18. Book: results . search . Thurstan . Meriel . Exotic Botanical Illustration: With the Eden Project . 2012 . Batsford . 9781849940313 . English.
  19. Web site: Inky Leaves . inkyleaves.blogspot.com . 24 August 2018.
  20. Web site: Starting the Revolution from my Easel . The Linnean Society . 24 August 2018.
  21. Web site: Blog Archives . Botanical Art & Artists . 24 August 2018 .
  22. Web site: The ARTS Interview: Botanical Artist, Shepherd Shepherd . The Ecologist . February 2017 . 24 August 2018 .
  23. Book: Sherwood . Shirley . The Shirley Sherwood Collection: Modern Masterpieces of Botanical Art . 2020 . Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . London, UK . 978-1842466933.
  24. Web site: University of Cambridge Museums and Botanic Garden . What's new? Recent additions to the Department of Paintings, Drawings and Prints at the Fitzwilliam . November 2017 . 20 October 2021.
  25. Web site: Jessica Shepherd . IMDb . 25 August 2018.
  26. In Search of Rory McEwen . 24 August 2018 . BBC4 Secret Knowledge . 2015 .
  27. Web site: Links – Rory McEwen . martinjallen.com . 24 August 2018.
  28. Book: Shepherd . Jessica . Leafscape . 2017 . Independent Publishing Network . 9781788086660 .
  29. Culture File: In a Leafscape . 24 August 2018 . Lorcan Murray's Classic Drive . 6 March 2017 .
  30. Web site: blue-flower Inky Leaves . inkyleaves.com . 6 July 2017 . 24 August 2018 .
  31. Web site: INKQ – Inky Leaves Publishing . Inky Leaves Publishing . 24 August 2018.
  32. Web site: Inky Leaves Podcasting . inkyleaves.buzzsprout.com . 25 August 2018.
  33. Web site: Decorating Stoneware - Studio Slipware . Studio Slipware . 25 August 2018 . 2 November 2009.
  34. News: Toovey . Rev. Rupert . The Eccentric Life of Eric James Mellon . West Sussex Gazette. . Johnston Press plc . 5 March 2014.
  35. Book: Foster . P . Decorating Stoneware Ash Glazes and the Art of the Brush . 2007 . University of Chichester . en. 9780948765070.
  36. Book: Hamala . G . Zigzag: Flashbacks of a Painter . 2010 . 5000 books . en. 9780956727602.
  37. Book: Ongpin . S . Beauty in Individualism - Collection of works by women artists of the 20th and 21st Centuries . 2023 . Stephen Ongpin Fine Art . en.
  38. Book: Legido . T . Ellas Ilustran Botanica . 2023 . Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas . es. 9788400111458.
  39. Web site: The Botanical Rainbow In Pictures . 20 October 2021.
  40. Book: Castelo . L . Herbarios Imaginados . 2020 . Ediciones Complutense . es. 9788466936866.
  41. Web site: Jardín Nazarí Art Exhibition . 14 May 2019 . 20 October 2021 . 47.
  42. Web site: Registration for the Watercolor Festival is open right now, join us! . kalachevaschool.ru . 27 August 2018.
  43. Web site: Inky Leaves interview, Outhouse Filmworks . YouTube. 24 August 2018 . 9 May 2017.
  44. Web site: Jess Shepherd – Leafscape . . 23 December 2016 . 27 August 2018.
  45. Web site: Jessica Shepherd Paints Leaves and Sells . Botanical Art and Artists . 5 August 2023.
  46. Web site: Jess Shepherd La Conca Arts Club . La Conca Arts Club . 27 August 2018.
  47. Book: Dillon . Mary . Sayers . Brendan . Aibítir: The Irish Alphabet in Botanical Art : an Exhibition . 2014 . Irish Society of Botanical Artists . 9780992869304 . 50–53 . 24 August 2018 . en.
  48. Web site: Royal Horticultural Society London Orchid and Botanical Art Show . rhs.org.uk . 24 August 2018.
  49. News: Orchids Enjoy Spring Outing . The Daily Telegraph, Gardening Section . 5 April 2014.
  50. Web site: Lumba . Angelo . Jessica Shepherd . . 24 August 2018 . 15 August 2013.
  51. Web site: Peninsula Arts, (2009), [online exhibition programme] ]. . 24 August 2018.
  52. Web site: Bringing a herbarium to life at Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery Natural Sciences Collections Association . . 24 August 2018 .
  53. Shepherd . J. R. . St. Aubyn Mineral Collection (c 1794–2010) at Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery . Geological Curator . 2009 . 9 . 2 . 45–56 . 10.55468/GC209 . 251122020 . 24 August 2018.