The Pressed Plant

I love The Art of the Pressed Plant. The authors mine the history, the science and the art of preserved plants in this rich book. It was fascinating to learn about the people who have collected plants throughout history, what that meant, and what that was like for them. It was inspiring and surprising to see the beautiful specimens. You will not be disappointed if you get this book.

The author provides a well written history of plant preservation and pressing with summaries, comments, illustrations, and a comprehensive "how to" section. Anyone interested in pressed plant collecting should own this book.

As an avid fan of leaves and wildflowers, with not a few pressed examples stuck in books and files, I was glad to find a book that celebrates all kinds of pressed plants, from ferns to seaweeds (!), as art. There's an amazing fossilized impression of a prehistoric plant, photos of Victorian botanists' carefully pressed samples, and sun prints done with photographic paper over a century ago. Plus a few modern artists' examples. This book proves that Mother Nature has been one of the best artists all along, and that we humans can have a sort of artistic partnership by preserving botanical specimens in one way or another. The wide array of images is mouth-watering; and the book can be used as a sort of tasting party to get you started on a new collection, or, using the how-to at the back of the book, a new hobby or art.

For years I searched for a book that would direct me through the process of pressing ferns and other plants. This is it! This exquisite book is a treasure! The author shows the nature lover how to complete the process of preserving plants, just as the Victorians did. However, this wonderful hobby did not originate with the Victorians, they just renewed it with avid inspiration and volumes of renditons and renderings. This book takes the reader through the history of plant preservation, and shows the eager "artist" three different techniques for display: using the real thing, printing with paints and inks, and sun printing. This book is so wonderful, you may want to have two. The numerous copies of original and rare prints are so gorgeous, you may need an extra volume to "cheat" with: you know remove from the volume and, voila, inexpensive yet exquisite art!

This book is excellent for the new plant collector. The writer takes you through the history of the pressed plant with well written summaries, comments, illustrations, and a wonderful "how to" section. Anyone interested in plant collecting (pressing and dried), should take a look at this beautiful book.