The Serge Hill Project for Gardening, Creativity and Health is delighted to announce the appointment of its inaugural Artist In Residence - Anne McKenzie. A London-based painter, Anne creates botanical banners using pigments bound with honey and gum arabic on handmade Japanese paper. Her work is a calligraphic exploration of natural forms, including plants, trees and flowers.

As Artist in Residence, Anne will run a Botanical Calligraphy workshop exploring the art of Shodo, Japanese Calligraphy for adults on Wednesday 4 June, 10am-2.30pm to coincide with Iris flowering time (book here) and a series of seasonal calligraphy workshops for schools in The Apple House, gaining inspiration and using material from The Plant Library.

During Anne’s year-long residency, she will be brushing banners in the Plant Library, culminating in an exhibition of her work in The Apple House in Spring 2026.

Of her work Anne says:

“My work combines the observational skills of botanical art with the emotional responsiveness of calligraphy. I am inspired by visual meditative traditions: every brush stroke matters, as this focus leads to unselfconscious expression. I Intuitively mix pigments, binding them with gum arabic and honey, and apply the colours to handmade Japanese paper. These materials are a direct extension of the natural world: the paper holds light in a very subtle way and the particles of pigment have a luminous quality which compliments the paper.

My intention is to convey the beauty, delight, mystery and wonder of the world’s precious plants, rendering their image in a sacred, prayerful format that references Shodo. With 40% of the world’s plants at risk of extinction, it is timely to paint these visual prayers. My banners can be hung as stand-alone pieces or arranged in installations - roll-down gardens of paper that play with light and sway gently in response to the breezes created when moving through them.”

Serge Hill Project Director, Sue Stuart-Smith says:

"We are delighted to have Anne as our first artist in residence at the Serge Hill Project. Her artistic approach is a unique way of slow looking and attending to the form and beauty of plants, so that the process of creativity itself becomes an act of meditation"

Anne McKenzie earned her Post Graduate Diploma in Art Therapy at Goldsmith’s, University of London and her Bachelor of Fine Art at Rhodes University. Her years of living in the global culture of London have allowed her to study a variety of meditative traditions, which inform her practice. Anne has exhibited in London and is a member of Design Nation and Find a Maker. Anne is also featured in the Homo Faber guide.