About The Project
This body of work centers on recording the plant life found within the Sawmill Slough Preserve, which is a 382-acre wetland and woodland habitat situated on the campus of the University of North Florida in Jacksonville. Within this relatively small footprint are areas of blackwater swamp, mesic flatwoods, marsh, pine forest, and scrub forest.
I utilize the lumen printing process to create a unique record of the flora samples collected within the preserve. In the tradition of Anna Atkins, a British botanist and photographer who created aesthetic typologies of plant specimens during the 19th century, I am creating a catalogue of many of the plant specimens found within the preserve. Like Atkins’ cyanotypes, the lumen printing process results in imagery that is neither purely scientific, nor purely aesthetic, which pushes the boundaries of both science and visual art..