Ice Plants, mixed
media on board, 12”x12”
Last week, on one of those perfect California days, a friend
and I headed south from San Francisco for a little day trip — stops at a few
beaches, lunch in Davenport, jam tasting and a walk through some redwoods. The morning started at Pescadero State
Beach where the surf was breaking on the rocks below the bluffs, sea lions
bobbing just off shore and ice plants, lots of ice plants – the thick mats of
ice plants that were planted years ago in an effort to combat erosion. They are an invasive species that
naturalists are now battling to remove. When the U.S. Postal Service issued a California stamp
in 2008 it featured an image of Big Sur with ice plants in the foreground. I am sure the Postal Service would
never have anticipated the stamp would be controversial.
Like them are not, ice plants are part of the California
landscape. With that in mind I
strived to capture their palette.
I also used a pattern that referenced a patch of ice plants without
attempting to be too literal. And,
even though I understand the problems posed by invasive species, I confess to a
certain fondness for ice plants.
Ice Plants will be
shown in my Collagescape
exhibit opening in August.
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