Ahmed, Amanda ( - )

She completed a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Art (painting) at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA), Melbourne University, in 1994. Upon graduating, she was a sessional lecturer for two years at the VCA in the painting and drawing departments. She had an installation-based art practice and has exhibited regularly in artist run initiatives as well as commercial and state galleries. In 2003 Amanda completed her Bachelor of Letters (Hons) at the Centre of Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies, Monash University. During this period she began attending botanical art classes at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne.

In 2011 Amanda completed her Master of Fine Art by Research at Monash University. The title of her MFA was Botanical illustration: drawing in the space of nature which was a study of the flora of the foreshore between Mornington and Mt Martha and its historical relationship with the landing in 1802 of Matthew Flinders and his team from the HMS Investigator. Her submission included a thesis and solo exhibition.

Amanda has worked on projects such as 'The Eternal Order in Nature: the Science of Botanical llluslration' which coincided with the XVlll International Botanical Congress in Melbourne. She has been a regular exhibitor al 'The Art of Botanical Illustration' in Melbourne and 'Botanica' in Sydney. Other notable exhibitions in which Amanda has exhibited are 'Capturing Flora: 300 years of Australian Botanical Art' and 'Vignettes', both of which were held at the Art Gallery of Ballarat. Since October 2016, Amanda has been teaching botanical art at the Geelong Botanic Gardens.

Source: Extracted from: 'Flora of Australia - A Botanical Art Worldwide Exhibition', published by the Botanical Art Society of Australia, Canberra, May 2018
Portrait Photo: Extracted from the artist's own website: http://www.amandaahmed.net in 2018