Alessandro Candido

Brazil

Born 1990

Alessandro Candido is a Brazilian botanical artist and biologist based in Curitiba, Paraná. He studied Biological Sciences at the Centro Integrado de Ensino Superior in Campo Mourão. In 2015, he received the Margaret Mee Artist Scholarship and was recognised in the Illustraciencia competition. The following year, he undertook specialist botanical illustration training at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, under renowned artist Christabel King. In 2024, he completed an artist residency at the Oak Spring Garden Foundation in Virginia, USA.

Since 2016, Candido has promoted botanical illustration in Brazil through his artistic practice, teaching and education, combining scientific knowledge with traditional techniques to emphasise botanical accuracy and plant diversity. He is currently Director of the Centro de Ilustração Botânica do Paraná (CIBP), where he expands access to botanical art education and supports emerging artists. The centre offers fully funded scholarships for a two-year botanical illustration programme. Through his work, Candido aims to raise awareness of Brazil's rich plant diversity and highlight the role of botanical illustration in scientific understanding, environmental education and plant conservation.