Drought Patterns

Salal is an evergreen indigenous plant to southwestern British Columbia. Its leaves turn brown only after periods of relatively extreme heat and drought, such as we experienced in the summer of 2021. I was struck by the strength and resilience - as well as the warm earthy tone - of these browned leaves, and wondered how they might symbolize a call for gentler ways of imposing ourselves on the land.

Grids often imply rational structure and order, yet here the drawn and sewn grids are more organic, less imposing; they work with and around the forms created by water and plant life, acknowledging their grace. The watery stains are created by tea, hinting at common human rituals and practice. My question has been how we might go about these practices more thoughtfully and with greater awareness of how they inevitably impact the land.

Salal leaves, tea, thread, pencil on watercolour paper