The Jill Smythies Award

A medal and £1,000 to a botanical artist for outstanding, diagnostically relevant, published illustrations

Established in 1986 by the late Mr B E Smythies FLS, in honour of his wife, the late Florence Mary Smythies ("Jill"), whose career as a botanical artist was cut short by an accident to her right hand. Awarded to a botanical artist in recognition of excellence in published illustrations in aid of plant identification, with the emphasis on botanical accuracy and the accurate portrayal of diagnostic characteristics.

Nominations are now closed. Nominations will re-open in summer 2026. If you are interested in making a nomination and would like more information, please contact nominations@linnean.org.

Nominees

• The Jill Smythies Award is open to any botanical artist of any nationality or age.
• The nominee cannot, at the time of nomination, be a member of Council.
• The nominee does not need to be a Fellow of the Society.
• Self-nominations are not accepted.
• Nominations cannot be made by a family member of the nominee.

The artwork submitted must be outstanding botanical art that is an accurate portrayal of diagnostic characteristics and an aid to identification. It should include:

• The subject matter may include algae, fungi or plants.
• The submitted work should include two or more items of the same taxonomic group for comparison (not necessarily from the same publication), so there is a diagnostic element to the illustration.
• The works submitted must be published botanical illustrations. In order to assess botanical accuracy, it is important that each illustration must be submitted with the relevant text accompanying it.
• Digital work is eligible.
• Submissions should include a minimum of five examples of the nominee’s work, from at least two publications. These can hard copy, pdfs, or links to Open Access journals They must be accompanied by the relevant text describing/referenced by the illustration.

The submissions should exclude:
 

• Illustrations that do not portray diagnostic features, such as flower illustrations that are merely artistic or illustrations en masse of seeds or fruit.
• Illustrations of cultivars of garden origin.

Format of submission:

Due to the Linnean Society’s lack of access to many electronic journals, examples of work should be provided either as hard copy or as PDFs, at the candidate's (or nominator's) expense. Please do not send online links to pdfs, unless the journal is Open Access.
 

Diana Carneiro

'From observing plants, I have come to understand that every being on Earth carries the secret of life within. As a botanical illustrator, I aim to raise awareness—especially among children and young people—about the need to preserve and restore the environments on which our existence depends. To the scientists and artists of nature who shape the history of this honourable institution, my sincere thanks.'

Diana Carneiro is a Brazilian artist and botanical illustrator based in Curitiba. Initially training in the biological sciences in 1968, she spent 25 years teaching science and biology before turning to botanical art full time. Later studying painting, she graduated from the School of Music and Fine Arts of Paraná in 1992. A 1997 Margaret Mee Foundation fellowship took her to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, where study with artist Christabel King deepened her commitment to botanical illustration. Working in watercolour and pen and ink, Diana has produced approximately 400 descriptive botanical illustrations, including newly discovered species. Her work appears in journals worldwide, and she trains illustrators through the Centro de Ilustração Botânica do Paranáthe (Center for Botanical Illustration of Paraná or CIBP), of which she is a founding member.