STORY BEHIND THE ART OF CAROL WOODIN

Weird, Wild, & Wonderful

Second New York Botanical Garden Triennial Exhibition

2014 - 2016

Muir Listens

Banksia sp.

I was in California last year visiting the Berkeley Botanical Garden, and was excited by the arrangement of their collection according to geography, as well as the variety of plants that can be grown in that moderate climate. Banksias have always been a fascinating plant, but one I’d only seen in images, mostly paintings, the most memorable being done by Celia Rosser of Australia. Berkeley had an incredible collection of Banksias, and this one was especially mesmerizing. The first thing about it was its anthropomorphism. It looked like a raggedy-haired head with nose and ears! After laughing at it, I started to look closer. The grayish threads behaved like hair in the sun, even though having a very matte surface so many colors were reflected in the greys. The leaves swirled every which way and were yellower on the undersides than the tops. There was a lot of fun stuff here.

Once I got home I worked out a design, making the most of this plant’s many assets. I stretched a piece of vellum over a prepared board, and began to lay down the many layers of color it takes to bring up color and detail. Often, in my mind, a painting becomes associated with the book I’m listening to while painting it. For example, a very dramatic and detailed green and gold orchid relates to a Graham Greene novel, the two being completely incongruous. However, while painting this Banksia, I was listening to a biography of John Muir. It came to represent Mr. Muir, surrounded by sinuous leaves, with his full head of grey hair and beard, looking forward with his ears open, tuned in to the sounds of the forest!

"When I discovered a new plant, I sat down beside it for a minute or a day, to make its acquaintance and hear what it had to tell" - John Muir

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Read more about this artist's work: 16th Annual International