Imagine a Forest
Exhibited 2016
My artistic journey began with this series of paintings. My love for ecology and art was channeled into drawings and paintings that I created over a course of two years. Each work was informed by research gleaned from scientific papers, tracking connections in nature— predator & prey, pollinator & disperser, consumer & producer. At times I felt like a detective, finding connections between unlikely species such as a fly whose adult life lasts twenty-four hours and a Black Rhino!
Looking back now, my quest for connections in nature seemed to mirror my own life. Having immigrated to the Southern tip of Africa, I was finding my own connections to the people and land that would sustain my then new life here.
— WORKS —
For Imagine a Forest, I used a variety of mediums. The works began with pens—ballpoint, isographic and fineliner and by 2015 I progressed to painting with acrylic inks. You can read more about my process below.
Cape Leopard 70 x 70 cm | 2016
Mountains Are Alive In The Ocean 70 x 90 cm | 2015
Fall of the Myth 1 56 x 75 cm | 2015
Fall of the Myth 2 70 x 93 cm | 2014
Ambush In The Corridor 65 x 67 cm | 2015
Give It Words To See 70 x 50 mm | 2014
Amidst The Lattice Of The Reef 50 x 67 cm | 2015
Day The Snow Came To Town 50 x 70 cm | 2014
The People In The Forest Are Not Us 53 x 70 mm | 2014
— Species Lists —
I don’t think I have ever read as many research papers as I did for my paintings in this body works. To draw or paint a species next to another I had to find a scientific evidence that connected them. This could be as a form of nutrient exchange, so any documentation of poop contents were gold to me. Sometimes the connections could be a little more cryptic, like the ecology of fear, that shapes the movement and behavior of prey species in a territory based on a predator movement patterns.
— Imagine A Forest Publication —
I wrote a little about the research that I did to create these works. Together with Quick Brown Fox Design, we created a publication with images and words that allow those interested to delve a little deeper into these artworks. In hindsight, I am still proud of the effort, even if some of the writing is a little naïve. I have since stuck to drawing and painting. I respect the craft of writing and like to leave it to those who can wield words with wit and wisdom. While the book sold out, I think I may have a few copies knocking about somewhere.
Exhibition 04/2016
6 Spin Street Gallery, Cape Town
