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Three-volume Set
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Volume I
Volume II
Volume III |
1981
1988
2000 |
Elegantly presented, this three-volume monograph
is half-bound in dark green hide with matching
buckram sides and gold embossing on the spine
and cover; the head is gilded.
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Volume I was published in 1981 and Volume II followed in 1988, each containing twenty-eight plates. Since the decision to publish in 1974, four new species of Banksia have been discovered and, consequently, Volume III contains twenty-eight plates, bringing the total over three volumes to seventy-six. This is the first time that an entire genus of this magnitude has been painted and reproduced.
Celia Rosser's passion for Banksias is evidenced in every watercolour. The remarkable standard of scientific accuracy and artistic flair achieved by Rosser puts her among the great artists of this, or any other period. The Banksias is one of the outstanding botanical works of this century.
Alex George's accompanying text completes and enhances this three-volume monographic work and his unrivalled knowledge of Banksias is evident in his scientific and scholarly approach.
The Foreword to Volume III is written by Professor Martin Canny and Professor Ray Martin: "Celia Rosser's watercolours of the Banksias have achieved a beauty, complexity and fame surpassing anything that any of us could have forseen. Paintings like these are the flowers of botanical science. With the publication of Volume III, the completion of The Banksias represents an organic growth, a metaphor for the genus it celebrates." |
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About Banksias |
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Banksias are fascinating. So say botanists, naturalists, scientists, gardeners, florists and artists worldwide. Their continuing fascination lies in their uniqueness, diversity, and the spectacular nature of their flowers and rugged, woody fruit of many colours. The history of their modern discovery and naming reflects the European exploration of Australia and involved many explorers and botanists who have ranged around and across the continent.
Being named after Joseph Banks gives an immediate link to the botanist who visited Australia's shores with James Cook on the Endeavour and who played a significant role in the establishment of European settlement. Exclusively Australian, banksias are part of the family Proteaceae, an ancient family of trees and shrubs found primarily in the southern hemisphere but also extending into China, southern India, north-central Africa and Central America
With the greatest diversity in Australia and Africa, it includes the well-known African proteas as well as other Australian natives such as waratahs, grevilleas and hakeas. Australian Aborigines have long used Proteaceae as a source of nectar, either sucking the nectar directly from the flowers or soaking the flowers in water to produce a sweet drink.
Evidence of the long history of banksias in Australia is in fossil remains of various types.These suggest a presence of 40-50 million years in a form not dissimilar to that of some of the present day speciesAlthough found in all states, 60 of the 76 species are native to Western Australia, with the remainder scattered through the other states. Only Banksia dentata extends outside Australia's boundaries, growing not only on the mainland but also in New Guinea and on the Aru Isles. |
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The plants themselves are evergreen and woody and range from prostrate shrubs whose flowers often touch the ground, to trees that can reach 30 metres (Banksia seminuda). Their leaves are commonly tough and toothed, although some species, such as Banksia brownii, have finer feathery foliage. They are most remarkable, however, for their spectacular blooms. These are frequently large and candle-like in appear-ance and usually form brightly coloured dense spikes consisting of hundreds of smaller spirally arranged individual flowers. Others have small rounded spikes. Colours range from various shades of yellow and orange, to mauve, purple, shades of green and scarlet (notably Banksia coccinea, one of the most striking of all). All banksias have scented flowers, some pleasant, some not so.
There are different species in flower at all times of the year, and insects, birds and small animals such as the tiny honey possum pollinate the flowers. The extraordinary seeding cones that follow the spent flowers are often of intriguing shapes. The woody cones con-tain follicles enclosing winged seeds. In some species the follicles open when mature, but in others they remain closed until, in the wild, they are burnt in a bushfire. Others of the species survive bushfires due to their ability to sprout from either woody rootstock or fire-resistant steins.
Many species are widespread and common. Others, however, are threatened by pressures such as agriculture, mining, urban development and diseases, such as the dieback pathogen Phytophthora cinnamomi that enters plants through their roots and slowly destroys them. Exploitation of natural populations for cut flowers and seeds is another problem, now largely addressed by restrictions on picking and seed harvesting.
A few species such as Banksia brownii, Banksia goodii, Banksia cuneata and Banksia oligantha are rare and endangered in the wild. Although seven Western Australian banksias are currently declared rare flora, species in the eastern states are more widespread and less threatened than those in the west. Commercial cultivation and the development of cultivars suited to the cut-flower trade are reducing the pressure on wild populations.
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THE ARTIST - Celia Rosser |
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Early in her artistic career Celia Rosser began painting
the uniquely Australian wildflowers
with
which she
was intimately acquainted.
In 1965 her first exhibition at Leveson Gallery
in
Melbourne
included three watercolours of banksias.
In 1967 she published her first book
Wildflowers of Victoria.
Rosser's talent for botanical illustration was immediately
recognised
and her reputation for artistic and
accurate
depictions of Australian flora grew.
She is now among the world's finest botanical artists and is recognised internationally for her banksia paintings. The works reflect her total commitment to both technical excellence and aesthetic presentation, and her paintings rank alongside such botanical greats as W.H. Fitch and the Bauer brothers. |
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In 1977 she was awarded the coveted Jill Smythies Award for Botanical Ilustration from the Linnean Society of London, and in 1966, the Medal of the Order of Australia (O.A.M.) for her contribution to botanical art. In 1981, Monash University honoured her artistic achievement by awarding her an honorary Master of Science degree and in 1999 an honorary PhD.
Rosser's attraction to the genus Banksia began near her home in country Victoria when she first saw Banksia serrata, coincidentally one of the four banksias first discovered by Sir Joseph Banks in Botany Bay in 1770. The unusual and distinctive flowers captivated her, and undaunted by the difficulty of depicting the intricate flower spikes consisting of hundreds of inflorescences, she decided to paint it.
Rosser accepted the position of Science Faculty Artist at Monash University in 1970. In this capacity she illustrated Peter Bridgewater's The Saltmarsh Plants of Southern Australia and also George Scott's and Ilma Stone's The Mosses of Southern Australia. In 1974 she was appointed University Botanical Artist to paint every known speciea of Banksia. Her love for Banksia's has continued throughout her life, and with the publication of Volume III of The Banksias she has completed this gigantic twenty-five year task.
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THE AUTHOR - Alex George |
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It is entirely fitting that Alex George, known Australia-wide as
the "Banksia Man", authority on Banksias and author of more
than fifty botanical papers and books, should write the text
for the three volumes of The Banksias. No-one in the world
is better qualified to do so.
He is renowned for his work with Australian wildflowers
and in particular his unsurpassed knowledge of banksias.
His interest in banksias began as a child when he climbed
banksias in the bush behind his home near Perth.
While studying botany at the University of Western Australia, George worked with another banksia enthusiast, Charles Gardner, at the Western Australian Herbarium. At that time he did much travelling throughout the state, collecting, studying and photographing plants, many of which were new species.
Although he did not discover any new banksias, he named fifteen species, six sub-species and eight varieties. In 1968, when he was Australian Botanical Liaison Officer at Kew Gardens in London, George studied the original plant specimens collected by Sir Joseph Banks during the 1770 voyage to Australia. |
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In 1981 he was appointed as Executive Editor of the new Flora of Australia with the Bureau of Flora and Fauna in Canberra and also published a revision of the whole genus Banksia. Three years later, he published The Banksia Book, now in it's third edition, a comprehensive volume begun by Fred Humphries and Charles Gardner, both of whom passed away before its completion.
Alex George was appointed by Monash University to the Banksia Project in 1977 and has acted as botanical advisor as well as writing the text for the three volumes.
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