Holly Somerville


Holly Somerville is an Irish botanical artist, illustrator and teacher. She has worked for Trinity College, Dublin, and produced the botanical illustrations for the seventh edition of David Webb's An Irish Flora.

Career

Born Holly Nixon in Dublin and went to St Columba's College, Dublin. Somerville has lived in the Glen of Imaal for the past 13 years. She and her family live in an 18th-century farmhouse in Stratford on Slaney where she also paints in her studio overlooking Lugnaquilla mountain.
Somerville was educated at Oxford where she completed a master's degree in Plant Sciences at Somerville College. She then completed her education in Edinburgh College of Art with a BA in illustration and photography. Post college in 1994 she was employed by the department of botany in Trinity College, Dublin to assist with specimen illustration. This led to her botanical illustrations for the seventh edition of David Webb's An Irish Flora. This work on botanical illustration brought her commissions from universities across the world. She later taught botanical watercolour at Trinity Botanic Gardens in Dartry.
Somerville is involved in Bloom, the gardening event held each year in the Phoenix Park.

Exhibitions

Her work is on display in The National Trust, and Trinity College, Dublin. She is a Fellow of the Ballinglen Arts Foundation, Ballycastle, County Mayo.

Awards

2015 Somerville won three medals for her work in Bloom.

Personal life

Holly was married in 1999 to James Somerville with whom she has three girls: Beatrice, Poppy and Eliza. Eliza is the oldest and appeared in the film School Life, by Neasa Ní Chianáin and David Rane.