BIOGRAPHY

    Roberta Rosenthal, is an award winning artist, specializing in botanical art and Sumi-e Asian brush painting. Her art is created with watercolor, gouache, oils or mixed media for fine art paintings, illustrations and designs. Roberta is a native New Yorker, a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology with a degree in Textile Design and the High School of Art & Design in New York City. Roberta studied botanical art at the New York Botanical Garden, oil painting at the Art Students League, Asian brush painting at the Koho School of Sumi-e and privately with modern Chinese master Jui GuoLiang. Her current studio, Squirrel's Nest, is located in Sullivan County, New York with a woodland garden overlooking the Hudson Valley.

    In 1969 Roberta began her career as an executive in training designer for Macy's Herald Square. In 1971 she was a staff designer at Leo Art Studio. Roberta founded RSR Designs a full service art studio in Manhattan in 1976.  Her fine botanical illustrative editorial art has been featured in The New York Times, on textiles for Croscill Home Fashions and a multitude of textile corporations, postage stamps for the Marshall Islands and the Republic of Palau, illustrated books including Glory of the Garden and Rebecca's Garden, Rosenthal's art has been featured in Fine Gardening, Kitchen Garden, National Gardening, Horticulture and Wine Enthusiast magazines. Roberta has illustrated packaging for products by Coty, Victoria's Secret bath products, stationary for Caspari and ArtScroll Printing, giftware for Sven Jensen, ArtKraft Strauss Sign Corporation and licensed images of Disney for Wendy Gell Jewelry. 

    Roberta has had solo exhibits at the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, Society of Illustrators Museum of American Illustration, the Horticultural Society of New York, the Riverdale Y, Barnes and Noble, Newburgh and the Beck Gallery at Sullivan County Museum. Roberta participates in juried and invitational exhibits at the Society of Illustrators, Catskill Art Society, Catskill Mountain Gallery, New York State Museum, Albany, Asia Society Museum, NYC, New York Botanical Garden, numerous garden centers, restaurants and galleries. Roberta has received honors from Women in Design, a grant from the Bronx Council on the Arts, an honor award from the Asia Society. Rosenthal was given a Mona Lisa Award for her web site. Her watercolor painting of a Cattleya Iwanagara Apple blossom orchid received the Bethlehem Art Gallery Award for Best Painting of 2009 at Artists on the Campus Exhibition, Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh, NY.  Roberta was awarded first and second place for her paintings "Wallkill River" and "Autumn Carp" in Oriental Art Supply's 2010 Summer Challenge Contest.  Roberta's  awards were in the Master/Instructor category. In August, 2011 Robera received first place for "Pines and Stream" in the juried exhibition "Fields and Streams" at the Wurtsboro Art Alliance Gallery.
   
    Her art is collected internationally by private and corporate collectors. Roberta has traveled extensively in the United States, Hawaii, Europe, Mexico, Caribbean Islands and China where she has overseen production of her illustrations and designs and found inspiration for paintings.

    Commissions include logos for the Institute of Ecosystem Studies Cary Conference 2005, Gardening Club logo of P.J.M. Rhododendron Weston Nurseries Hopkinton, MA, Wurtsboro Art Alliance logo and original logo for the Red Eft Gallery. At the Red Eft Gallery she was  consulting artistic director and curator from January - October 2007. Rosenthal's curated inaugural exhibit was featured on Cable News 6 TV in August 2007.

    Roberta is an art instructor at the New York Botanical Gardens Adult Continuing Adult Education Department in the Botanical Art Certificate program where she teaches painting techniques and business practices. Roberta has taught Sumi-e Asian brush painting at Mount Saint Mary College, Desmond Campus, Balmville NY, botanical art at the Wallkill River School Gallery in Montgomery, NY and the Catskill Art Society in Hurleyville, New York, at the Institute for Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY. She offers workshops and seminars for artists and organizations worldwide including Daniel Smith Art Supplies in Bellevue and Seattle, WA. Roberta is a member of the Society of Illustrators, American Society of Botanical Artists, Guild of Natural Science Illustrators, Wurtsboro Art Alliance and the Catskill Art Society.

Roberta served as a board member of the New York Graphic Artist's Guild  and  executive director of their job placement services. Roberta was appointed to Manhattan's Communty Board #5, on the Board of the Catskill Art Society and is an honorary member and past President of the Wurtsboro Art Alliance. Her art has been featured for the benefit of the National Women’s Division American Committee for Shaare Zedek, Jerusalem Medical Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital and Maimonides Hospital in New York.

    Roberta has published several text books Professional Business Practices and Marketing for Artists and Sumi-e Brush Painting. Rosenthal is currently studying Mandarin language arts at SUNY Orange Community College. Roberta earned an intermediate certificate in speaking Mandarin Chinese in Spring 2011.