Beautiful Weeds - Plants in the Wrong Place
The term ‘weed’ is not a scientific term. Weeds are plants which humans have decided are in the wrong place and deem pests.
“[When] a plant gets out of control in cultivated or pasture land, it becomes a weed. Many are vegetable pariahs; they have had a bad time, and hence have developed characters which enable them to resist annihilation. Some are especially injurious, and tenacity of life and noxiousness may be combined in the same weed.” from The Weeds of New South Wales, Part 1. J.H. Maiden, 1920
Weeds are poetic: they are often shared between countries, they are tenacious survivors and they are often intricate and beautiful plants that mostly go unnoticed. Despite their reputation, there is no denying that they form a part of the landscape.
In these works I choose not to edit out the weeds, instead showing their admittedly problematic co-existence with native plants. Real life is complex and messy, our environment is also complicated. I want to celebrate that beautiful diversity.
'Beautiful Weeds of Canberra' 2017. On display at ANCA Gallery, Canberra for solo exhibition "Naturescapes"
"My Weeds are Your Weeds are Our Weeds" 2017. Exhibited in New York, Canberra and Kyoto. Depicts weed species shared by all three locations.
Detail from "My Weeds are Your Weeds are Our Weeds", American Pokeweed. 2017
"Blue Passionflower" 2016. Yuzen on organza.
"Weeds in the Landscape" 2017. Eucalyptus and chemical dye on silk.
Wild Fennel Stencils 2017. These are the katagami stencils I cut to make the work "Along the Murrumbidgee". They are just a tool in the process but they are beautiful too. Depicts Wild Fennel, which is a weed in Canberra. On display at "Naturescapes" solo exhibition, Canberra, 2017.