Illustrating Kew with Anushka Tay

A couple of weeks ago, I joined the Post-Grad Community team and a small group of fellow postgrads on a trip to Kew Gardens. Guided by illustration workshops with Anushka Tay, it was the respite I didn’t know I needed.

The day began with an insightful guided tour around The Museum of Economic Botany, providing us with an interesting glimpse into the historical significance of plants and their economic importance. It also held examples of endangered crafts, like a donated salmon trap basket and hand carved walking sticks.

We learnt about the intricate relationship between plants and culture, as well as the dangers of importing and consuming Chinese medicines in ignorance. In many areas of China, knowledge of medicinal plants is passed down generations, with trusted herbalist stores built off years of reputation. Often Chinese medicines sold outside China, don’t have this wealth of knowledge to use the plants accurately. Ginseng, for example, a very popular herbal remedy in the US, comprises of hundreds of species, some of which can have adverse effects.

Christine Leon’s work at The Museum of Economic Botany is dedicated to the correct identification of Chinese medicinal plants and their materia medica. The museum holds her collection of endangered species, also available digitally on the Kew website