Beach Collection I, 2008
Dimensions variable
Pre-loved tapestry wool.
The latest project finished is Beach Collection I.
A collection of crocheted and felted pieces inspired by the colours and shapes of detritus found on the beach. Also included are pieces from my driftwood and shell collection. The seed in the top right hand corner is from an Araucaria sp. tree, probably Araucaria heterophylla, the Norfolk Island Pine. This giant pine has been planted along the beaches of Sydney.
The collection was made from tapestry wool, part of a needlepoint kit called A Spotted Gloucester Sow and her Piglets, found in my local Red Cross shop and bought for $2.
The palette is a combination of coral, shell and driftwood colours.
Only one row of the sky had been completed.
Why do we find multiples collected, ordered and arranged so compelling? It's a puzzling compulsion. The Royal Botanic Gardens here in Sydney is a massive collection of plants from around the globe. It's herbarium is full of preserved plants, collected over several hundred years, and scientist studying them.
Three Araucaria spp. from my own herbarium, (ca.1990s.)
To my knowledge, there are only five or six species of Araucaria in the world, including A.heterophylla (Norfolk Island Pine), A.bidwillii (Bunya-bunya pine), A.cunninghamii (Hoop pine). We have three species growing on the east coast of Australia and another, A. araucana (Monkey puzzle tree), is native to Chile. Another member of the Araucariaceae family was discovered in 1994...... Wollemia nobilis (Wollemi Pine), This has been described as a living fossil. It's genetic make-up has remained unchanged for millions of years. More proof that Australia, South America, India, Africa and Antarctica were once joined to make the super-continent Gondwana. Collecting and classification is much more than sorting and ordering. The process can answer questions about the bigger picture.
