Jessie Arms Botke was born in Chicago, attending the Art Institute of Chicago and studying privately under Albert Herter. Now well-known for her decorative wildlife studies of exotic birds and flora, she began her career as a tapestry designer at Herter Looms in New York. It was during a research trip to the Bronx Zoo for a peacock tapestry assignment that she discovered her love for exotic birds, going on to create tapestries, panels and murals of the subject matter for multiples hotels and homes across New York and California.
In 1919, Botke moved to Carmel-by-the-Sea, California with her husband and fellow artist Cornelis Botke. There they became fixtures in the local art colony, with her husband teaching at the Carmel Arts and Crafts Club where they both exhibited their work. The couple would frequently collaborate on their woodcut prints, signing them "Botke prints."
