MARIE SELBY
The Marie Selby Botanical Gardens invited me to come down to their garden in Sarasota, FL to document their unique collection that features epiphytes. They heard about my work from my exhibit at The Academy of Natural Science in Philadelphia in 2011. The list of plants developed with Education Director Jeanie Perales, Botany Director Bruce Holst, and Horticulture Director Mike McLaughlin, represented plants found in both Selby Gardens and Florida. I spent a few days in this garden collecting and pressing specimens, and a few days exploring the city of Sarasota collecting objects and ideas related to the culture of Florida. I then returned to my studio to delve further into each plant’s life history, ecology, medicinal uses, folklore, and wildlife value from both a historical and contemporary point of view.
“Florida Fantastica” was exhibited at the Gardens in January 2013. The work from that show is now part of my Plants of Florida series.
Typically these projects are commissioned, but I have also planned projects in regions that are of particular interest to me and found local working partners. Commissioned projects begin with my meeting on site with an organization’s naturalist or botany director. Together we determine the theme of the project and a list of plants central to the story being told. Read More...