WASHINGTON, DC.-The Corcoran College of Art + Design presents Botanical Treasures of Lewis & Clark, an exhibition of more than 60 works of art – including graphite drawings, watercolors, oil paintings, sculpture, jewelry, quilts – created by artists associated with the Corcoran’s Botanical Certificate program especially for the show based on observations of flora identified by Lewis and Clark. The exhibition will be on view at the Corcoran Gallery of Art from through July 9, 2006.

Under the visionary direction of President Thomas Jefferson, Meriwether Lewis and William Clark set out in May 1804 from St. Louis on a quest to find the elusive Northwest Passage and collect information about the land and people in the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase. During their two-year journey, they gathered information that revolutionized our understanding of North America’s natural history and shaped the course of westward expansion.

“The wealth of botanical samples meticulously collected by Lewis and Clark was one of the most important contributions to the science of their day,” said Leslie Exton, curator of the show and Associate Professor at the Corcoran College of Art + Design. “As artists, we hope this exhibition of contemporary botanical art pays homage to the historical significance of that collection.”

Based on direct observations of plants collected or described by the explorers, the works of art in this exhibition represent a contemporary perspective on American botanical art. The exhibition will also feature original plant specimens on loan from the Lewis and Clark Herbarium at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia and will coincide with the Bicentennial exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History celebrating the return of the explorers in 1806 and “American Originals,” the city-wide celebration in Washington, D.C.

“The Corcoran’s Botanical Art and Illustration program launched in the spring of 2004 in partnership with the United States Botanic Gardens and provides students with an in-depth focus on traditions, techniques and history of botanical art and illustration,” said Christina DePaul, Dean of the Corcoran College of Art + Design. “We are thrilled to showcase the work of our Botanical Art and Illustration program and be a part of this nationwide celebration honoring two of America’s greatest explorers.”

A brochure about the show, along with additional educational materials, will be available during the exhibition. The exhibition was curated by Leslie Exton, Associate Professor and Director of the Corcoran’s Botanical Art and Illustration Certificate program, in collaboration with Jan Denton, artist, and Wendy Cortesi, artist and natural science photographer.