RHS Orchid Portraits

This selection of paintings shows the truly wonderful variation in shapes and patterns in the Orchidaceae family. Can you spot flowers that look like insects, or other animals?

Beautiful though they are, these portraits are not simply painted as pretty pictures. Each painting forms an enduring record of a particular plant that has gained an award from the RHS Orchid Committee.

The Orchid Committee meets on a regular basis to consider and assess new orchids in cultivation. Awards are made in the following range: First Class Certifi cate (FCC), Award of Merit (AM), Preliminary Commendation (PC) and Botanical Certificate (BC).

A photograph of Nelly Roberts (1872-1959), the official RHS orchid artist from 1897 to 1953, from Louis M. Boyle’s Out West: Growing Cymbidium Orchids and Other Flowers.