Ryn Miller’s Pressed Botanicals

Whether a leaf from a beloved backyard tree or Queen Anne’s lace from a baptism arrangement, the Alabama artist creates pressed botanicals that celebrate nature and preserve moments in time
Artist Ryn Miller
The artist at her dining room table, reviewing a suite of pressed botanicals

About five years ago, Ryn Miller was pregnant with her son and spent most afternoons strolling her 2-year-old daughter around their neighborhood in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. They would usually end up at a neighbor’s yard where Miller’s daughter played with a beloved cat and Miller would sit and rest under a ginkgo tree. The Selma-born artist was captivated with the tree (apparently ginkgos are in short supply in Selma). She and her daughter often collected leaves to trace and etch. The following year, when Miller’s husband made her a wooden flower press as a birthday surprise, Miller began pressing botanicals in earnest.

Though she offers a number of pieces for purchase, she loves helping clients with personal projects like preserving Queen Anne’s lace from a baptism arrangement, a daisy chain of clover picked by a little girl, or a Japanese maple leaf from a backyard.

“Everyone has a connection to the plants around them.” — Artist Ryn Miller

Her work echoes the invitation of nature itself—to slow down, pay attention, and appreciate the beauty in our midst. rynmillerbotanicals.com

Ryan Miller's pressed botanicals
A larger frame holds fern fronds, which Miller painted gold. The smaller piece is a pressed fatsia leaf. The tone and color of the leaves can change over time, giving the pieces a warm, aged patina.
Ryan Miller's pressed botanicals
A collection of Ryn Miller’s pressed ferns, lily leaves, and Queen Anne’s lace

Photography by Mary-Keeley McAllister Photography