A bouquet of beauties from Lewis & Clark

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2/5/2004 3:12:00 PM

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Dorothia Rohner examines the stages necessary to develop artwork based on the flora discovered by Lewis and Clark on their historic expedition. She used specimens from Iowa State University to sketch flowers like the meadow anemone. Rough sketches and color charts were developed before she ever took brush in hand. Ultimately, her paintings are being transformed into notecards and other items.

The Lewis & Clark botanical illustrations developed by Rohner start with specimens from the herbarium at Iowa State University (upper left), sketched in pencil (upper right), and then developed into full-color paintings (lower left). A finished notecard (bottom right) is just one of the products Rohner will be marketing.

A bouquet of beauties from Lewis & Clark
Arlington artist's design focus on explorers' discoveries

by Melissa Rice
Editor, Arlington Citizen

The fields outside Dorothia Rohner�s are snow covered, but inside her home studio, flowers are in extravagant bloom.

Delicate fairy slippers and purple prairie clover compete with meadow anemone and aromatic asters. These flowers aren�t in vases, but instead fill the canvases and sketch pads of this rural Arlington artist.

These flowers, along with 20 others, are part of a series Rohner is developing on the flora discovered by Capts. William Clark and Meriwether Lewis during the Corps of Discovery expedition more than 200 years ago. The flowers will grace notecards and other items Rohner is developing in time for the bicentennial.

Rohner is no stranger to botanical illustrations. She earned her degree in biological pre-medical illustration from Iowa State University and has studied fine art and design at Boise State University, the University of Colorado, and Colorado State University. Her illustrations have been featured in Garden Gate magazine and used by the Iowa State University Extension Service. A recent commission was to develop a poster for the Christina Reiman Butterfly Wing at Iowa State.

But these botanical illustrations are a labor of love for Rohner. She got the idea through a close friend, as well as her husband, Homer Caton.

�He�s a history buff and was reading �Undaunted Courage�,� Rohner said. �He suggested I focus on the flowers.�

There were plenty to choose from. Rohner discovered that more than 230 specimens were chronicled by the explorers during their multi-year voyage across the country.

Rohner�s project required that she find the specimen plates of the actual flowers. She contacted her mentors at Iowa State University, and they invited her to the herbarium to access the specimens.

Rohner originally planned to develop 12 paintings, but quickly decided to do more.

�There were so many wonderful specimens that I went to 24,� she said. Eight of those will be released later this spring as special notecards, with eight more following in 2005 and 2006. In addition, some will be featured on T-shirts, as well as on decorative boxes with custom-designed soap and bath salts. She hopes to market the items through museum gift shops.

Rohner got started on the design project almost a year ago. Her notecards are now in final production and in May, she hopes to start on the next series of eight.

The work is painstaking, but it�s something she loves.

�The wonderful thing about being an artist is seeing that beauty that is everywhere,� Rohner said. When she is working on a project , she admits to becoming �immersed.�

Illustrations take several days for initial pencil sketches, and she allows herself a full week for the actual painting. But all that effort is only after she�s fully researched each of the flowers, using the specimens, photos, written descriptions and her rough sketches.

Choosing 24 flowers out of a possible 239 botanical specimens was a tough job.

�I wanted flowering plants, and anything named after Lewis or Clark,� she said. She also chose plants with special significance: For example, she selected the Oregon grape because it was a state flower.

Rohner admits its hard to pick a favorite .

�I love them all,� she said.

With her first eight completed, Rohner will be working on her next set. Among those to be designed will be wild delphiniums, lupines and phlox, gallardia, and a native grass.

While she�s been creating her floral illustrations, she has also been busy on other projects. For example, she is currently illustrating a children�s book for a Fremont author. But being able to do the work she loves, at her home studio, is something Rohner hopes to continue.

�The hardest thing about being an artist is that I don�t want to have a real job again,� Rohner said.

Editor�s note: Information about Rohner�s work can be found on her website, www.paintedwings.com .