Wilna was born in Limpopo, South Africa and is a self-trained artist. She has attended botanical master classes with Jenny Phillips and James Le Roux. She has exhibited at solo and group exhibitions and has received various degrees of recognition at Kirstenbosch Biennales with one bronze, one silver and three gold medals.

Wilna’s work is permanently housed in many corporate collections and galleries, including the Hunt Institute for Botanical Art, the Shirley Sherwood gallery and the Brenthurst Library and she is responsible for the artwork in the Field Guide to the Orchids of Northern Africa and Swaziland.

Her preferred medium is watercolour and she specialises in indigenous trees, plants and succulents, especially the smaller species that are often overlooked. Although the artwork may appear to be a simple representation as first, closer examination reveals the complexity captured in the fine brushwork and personal technique to show the full beauty of nature.