Beatrix Potter was born in England and lived there all her life. She is known today for her wonderful children's stories, especially Peter Rabbit. From childhood, Beatrix was an avid student of Nature. She drew and painted all the animals she could find, and loved painting mushrooms. Her two strongest interests were always being in the natural world and painting what she saw there. Beatrix filled many sketchbooks and kept a journal all her life.

Beatrix was financially self-supporting at a time (early 1900s) when women were not really supposed to be. With money earned from her books she eventually bought land and became a farmer.

During her later years she was widely respected throughout England as an expert on fungi (a mycologist).

She was also a respected watercolor painter; she painted many landscapes and over 270 watercolors of mushrooms (see below).

Like many artists, Beatrix began with a sketch, and finished later in watercolor