Kentucky Artisan Center
Elizabeth Greene to Demonstrate Prismacolor Wildflower Renderings at Kentucky Artisan Center

On Friday, November 2, Elizabeth Greene of Lewisburg, will demonstrate how she renders wildflowers and plants with pencil, ink and Prismacolor from 10:30 – 3:30 pm at the Kentucky Artisan Center at Berea.

Elizabeth Greene grew up in Chicago, but her family had roots in Kentucky. Both of Elizabeth’s parents graduated from Berea College. Her father, whose degree from Berea was in art, continued his career at the Chicago Art Institute and then worked as a designer in industry. Elizabeth says that she was influenced artistically by both her parents who took her camping and allowed her to immerse herself in the natural world. She states, “I was fascinated as a child, with all things growing in the wild, stopping to study form, small details and the many subtle color variations that can be found in one plant.”

Elizabeth admits that while she has been drawing and doodling from an early age, it was only after leaving a career in banking that she began to draw seriously. She moved to the country and started an herb garden which included wildflowers transplanted from the woods. After being asked to do a presentation on herbs, she created drawings of them. These herb drawings eventually led Elizabeth to create a line of wildflower note cards. She states, “I started putting my drawings on note cards, out of frustration in not finding ‘just the right card’ in stores.”

Elizabeth prefers drawing from the actual plant, and often sets up a chair and draws on site. She sometimes brings cut flowers into her studio to draw, and when plants are rare – she takes photos of them – using the images to complete her drawings. Elizabeth starts with a #4 pencil, completing the entire sketch and then going over it with ink. She uses Prismacolor pencils to shadow, layer and blend the colors.

Elizabeth scans and prints her cards herself and continues to add new plants to her repertoire. Her newest drawings are of the Shasta daisy and native Ground Cherry.

Wildflower cards by Elizabeth Greene are regularly available at the Kentucky Artisan Center located just off Interstate 75 at exit 77 (Berea). The Center’s exhibits, shopping, and travel information areas are all open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and the café from 8 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Admission is free. The Center currently features works by more than 650 artisans from 90 counties across the Commonwealth. For more information call 859-985-5448 or visit the Center’s web site at www.kentuckyartisancenter.ky.gov