Botanical illustrator Lara Call Gastinger creates her art in a wonderful house in downtown Charlottesville where she lives with her husband, two boys and cat.
This busy mom is an acclaimed botanical artist and illustrator. She was the Flora of Virginia Project’s lead illustrator and has won two gold medals at the Royal Horticultural Society Botanical Art Shows in London (2007, 2018). She is also well-known for teaching how to start and keep a Perpetual Journal.
When teaching art, she emphasizes examining plants closely for defining traits in every detail. She is looking for structural, textural, and developmental changes in plants while producing botanically correct pen and watercolor paintings.
Her art’s subjects are drawn from the natural world, and often depict even tiny details of change, deterioration, and natural processes. A fading bloom, a damaged seed pod, gnarled roots, or insect nibbles on a leaf all provide her with inspiration. She attempts to create a plant portrait that reflects its individuality and distinctiveness. She hopes her details will inspire others to look deeper and pause longer.
Lara Call Gastinger’s Natural Inspirations
While Gastinger is fully immersed in Charlottesville mom life—carpooling, family schedules, going to the gym—her workstation and habits are simple. She is pursuing scientific truth in her art.
When Gastinger was a teenager, her family went to National Wildlife Federation Family Nature Summits, which are essentially summer camps for families. The summit included learning about the flora in the parks, and at one of these summits, she learned how to draw in a nature notebook and the rest, as the saying goes, is history.
So, from a young age, she knew she wanted to merge science and art as a vocation. At the University of Virginia Gastinger received an undergraduate degree in Biology and Architecture and later a masters degree in plant ecology from Virginia Tech.
Gastinger’s family enjoys hiking and camping. So close to Virginia’s beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, there are ample opportunities for Charlottesville families to enjoy nature. Hiking along the Appalachian Trail and exploring Big Meadows up in Shenandoah National Park are some of Gastinger’s favorite activities.
Q & A with Artist Lara Call Gastinger
What excites you about Charlottesville’s new Botanical Garden of the Piedmont (BGP)?
I really love that Botanical Garden of the Piedmont is located so close to downtown Charlottesville and is connected by the trails of the Meadowcreek Parkway. I am excited to see how it will bring more people to that area. I think the stream and woods will be lovely places to come visit.
Gastinger’s art focuses on the minute details of nature and the processes of change and decay in the natural world.
How has being a mom influenced your art and passion for nature?
As a mom, I realize how important it is to connect the younger generation to nature. This is an increasing challenge with the addiction to screens for teens and young adults. It is crucial to have kids engaged with nature and feel excitement for the natural world. I started an after school nature drawing club at the high school to help teens connect with nature through art.
How do you balance family and your career?
As any mom knows, it is hard to balance a career while being a caregiver. It has not always been perfect but when my kids were young, I worked on smaller projects (like pen illustrations) that I could easily start and stop throughout the rhythm of the days. After my kids were school age, I really focused on working during the school hours. In the end, being with my kids takes priority since we all know they grow up so fast!
What advice would you share with parents of babies and young children? How to keep time for creativity?
When the kids were little, I aimed to require a “green hour” each day and we spent time outside, even it if was just a walk to the library. We collected nature specimens and had a nature table that changed during the seasons. I would draw and paint while with them, and even though my kids did not gravitate to art, we always did crafts, cooking and games together.
How do you share your art with your own kids?
My kids have connected to my art by finding specimens for me draw. They occasionally bring something to me or say, “Mom, look at this!” That really warms my heart since it makes me happiest when they are curious and in awe of nature.
If you like to see her draw, Gastinger hosts a live Instagram drawing session everyone Monday mornings at 11 am Eastern on Instagram Live (starting in September). Stay tuned on her Instagram for any schedule changes, and follow her on Pattern as well.
Learn more about artist Lara Call Gastinger’s artistic process. In these stories you can find inspiration for you and your kids with hikes and science museums to explore as well as garden projects, zoos and more.
JENNIFER BRYERTON, Ma Ed., our Publisher and Editor-in-Chief, started her career in teaching, Co-founded CharlottesvilleFamily and is a mom of four. A believer in experiential education and an avid gardener, beehives, a fruit and veggie plot, perennial borders and a chicken coop dot the family lawn west of Charlottesville. Jen also enjoys sharing travel, museums, theater performances and nature attractions with her family.
