Infrabotanica - Sculpted Garden
Artist Statement
"Infrabotanica" delves into the delicate interplay between nature's resilience and fragility, capturing the ethereal beauty of botanical life through a fusion of ancient inspiration, unseen frequencies of light, and contemporary technology. Emerging as a natural progression from my earlier series, Infra Realism, which revealed the vibrant existence of plant life amidst Palm Springs’ harsh desert terrain, this project takes the exploration of unseen energies to a new dimension.
Guided by curiosity, I sought to uncover whether flowers emit infrared light. Using a full-spectrum camera and meticulous focus stacking techniques, each photograph is an amalgamation of over 100 shots, all featuring flowers that I planted in my garden. Shot under artificial infrared light used for security cameras, the flowers appeared transformed, emerging as delicate porcelain-like sculptures, their textures and forms taking on an otherworldly quality.
To complement this transformation, I replaced their original blue background with AI-generated imagery that mirrors the porcelain style of Wedgwood Jasperware. Historically, Jasperware often depicted classical mythological figures and floral scenes, preserving them as timeless reliefs. I hope that this nod to Jasperware imbues Infrabotanica with a sense of timelessness, framing each flower not just as a fleeting moment in a garden but as a preserved relic, like mythological muses immortalized in stone.
The interplay between AI and traditional aesthetics mirrors the essence of the project itself, a convergence of past and present, natural and artificial, seen and unseen. I hope that the works can invite viewers to consider how nature is depicted in art across time and show a human desire to preserve, transform, and reimagine the beauty of nature.
