ABOUT

In these images of strange or perhaps prehistoric plant forms I try to invoke a sense of the Victorian botanical records but with an edge of magical realism.

The age of discovery with its fascination and curiosity about our world produced a vast library of scientific illustration which was very artistic. I am intrigued with the concept that some of the life forms catalogued then no longer exist. I wonder about the other specimens which were never catalogued and perhaps perished. Along with these perhaps there were many other species from the Jurassic period, for example, which became extinct along with the dinosaurs. It is plausible they left no fossil record due to their delicate structures. These plant forms must have been larger and more fantastical than any extant exotic fruits on earth today. In contemplating the fact that these species were irrevocably destroyed by either environmental or evolutionary conditions I am left with wistful nostalgia and fascination for what could have been. Unlike our Victorian predecessors who were amazed by nature and its vast magnificence we have become jaded caretakers who seek to squeeze every last ounce of monetary gain from its harvest.