Anastasia Traina’s Fairytale Botanical World

Berkshire Botanical Garden's first gallery show of 2018 was “Anastasia Traina’s Fairytale Botanical World,” an exhibition of botanical drawings, fairies and inspirational ephemera, which ran from Jan. 6 through March 5 in the Garden’s Center House Leonhardt Galleries.

The exhibit contained a collection of more than 50 drawings representing the artist’s enchanting depiction of botanical subjects and fairy themes using pen and ink, silverpoint, watercolor, graphite, and colored pencil. The setting for the exhibition was in the original, circa 1700s section of the Garden’s then-newly renovated and restored Center House, considered to be one of the oldest structures in Stockbridge.

The main gallery featured Ms. Traina’s relocated work desk, styled as it exists in her own studio, with tables and cloches scattered throughout. A small, naturally lit gallery and temporary home to a cyclopean tree gnome was hung with prisms to create beams of reflected light, and a children’s art table and bench was stocked with paper and crayons to inspire drawings of fairies, elves and flowers. The galleries were decorated with bits and bobs of natural artifacts throughout, creating a uniquely artistic environment.

“Years ago, reading The Mabinogion, a collection of Welsh medieval fairy tales, I discovered Gwydion, a shape shifter who could create a woman out of flowers,” said Ms. Traina. “This was my inspiration in recognizing the spirit that lies within each and every piece of flora. Attempting to articulate that led me to both studying and working in pure botanicals while also delving into a fairy world borne out of these earthly delights.”

Anastasia Traina is a playwright, screenwriter and botanical artist. Her illustrations were published in the children’s book, BITSY and RAFF written by David Caudle highlighting the power of friendship and inclusion. She is a member of the American Society of Botanical Art, the Tri-State Botanical Artists of NYBG, the Writer’s Guild of America and the Dramatists Guild of America.