Joseph Hooker - naturalist, traveller and more

Sat 12 November 2011 - Mon 09 April 2012

This exhibition in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art displayed paintings, letters, photographs and sketchbooks by Sir Joseph Hooker, from the collections at Kew.

Archive material relating to Joseph Hooker (Image: RBG Kew)

Exhibition: Joseph Hooker - naturalist, traveller and more

Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (1817-1911) was one of Kew’s most distinguished Directors yet this exhibition showed that Hooker was a significant figure in more ways than already recognised. This exhibition, in the centenary year of Hooker's death, was arranged in three sections demonstrating Hooker’s wide range of achievements, travels and relationships, revealing a man who was more than just a Director at Kew. A large part of Hooker’s original art, from Kew's Illustrations Collection was also included in the exhibition. The paintings were displayed alongside letters, photographs and sketches from Kew's Archive Collection.

Rhododendron hookeri by Joseph Dalton Hooker (Image: RBG Kew)

Biography

Hooker trained as a doctor in Edinburgh, but his principal interest was in botany. Between 1839 and 1843, he travelled as assistant surgeon and botanist on HMS Erebus, visiting many places including Madeira, the Cape of South Africa and the Antarctic. Subsequently, he journeyed through northern India and Nepal (1848-51), surveying the flora there and sending back specimens to Kew. Among them were many previously unknown species of rhododendron, some of which can be seen in Kew's Rhododendron Dell. His book The Rhododendrons of Sikkim-Himalaya was followed by two volumes of Himalayan Journals and The Flora of British India. Hooker's work attracted the attention of Charles Darwin and helped to link Darwin with Kew.

In 1865, he succeeded his father Sir William Hooker as the Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. His contributions to the Gardens included the T-Range glasshouses (since superseded by the Princess of Wales Conservatory), the first Jodrell Laboratory and the Order Beds, where the plants are arranged according to the Bentham-Hooker classification. Also during his regime, the artist Marianne North donated hundreds of her paintings of wild plants from around the world and provided a gallery to house them. The Marianne North Gallery is located next to the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art.

Sir Joseph Hooker retired from Kew in 1885 and his role as Director was taken by his son-in-law, William Thiselton-Dyer (1843-1928).

More information

'Botanical Trailblazer' - article on Joseph Hooker from Kew Magazine, Spring 2011
'Adventure and discovery around the world with the plant hunters' - Library, Art and Archives Blog
Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker - a centenary celebration - A one day conference at Kew on 9 December 2011
Sir Joseph Hooker - Botanical Trailblazer - new publication by Kew
Earliest European view of Everest found in Kew Archives - A sketch by Joseph Hooker, thought to be one of the first recorded views of Mount Everest, is on display for the second time this year in the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art as part of the current exhibition.