Claire Burbridge

In 2010, I went back to drawing after many years of sculptural enquiry. Drawing was my primary medium at the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, Oxford University. Starting with observational sketches that evolved into larger-scale works, I select the natural world as my subject, as I live surrounded by Nature in Southern Oregon. Observed at close range, it contains many strange, fascinating and abstract forms.

My works aim to draw attention to the mysteries of the physical world. Wishing to convey my understanding of the underlying balance and cycles of undisturbed natural ecosystems, I have employed the pictorial device of interlocking circles drawn beneath the forms. This conveys a sense of cohesion and alludes to the invisible intelligent matrix that enables the seeming chaos of Nature to be held in perfect balance - birth, death and rebirth all occurring at the same time. This also imparts a formal quality to the drawings.

The marks are made up primarily of lines and pointillism. This seems fitting because our physical world is made up of waves and particles, whether animate or inanimate. Each drawing is a natural evolution from the last. I work for about a year immersed in a particular subject, watching it evolve through the seasons. Although I learn a lot about the subjects of my drawings, the facts are not a dominant feature. These are not strictly botanical illustrations.

Through the handling and observing of the forms, information reveals itself to me in wordless fashion. My studio is now home to many dried fungi, lichens, dead insects and bits of trees. These all fascinate me as they continue to change through the process of decay. I am particularly interested in small forms like mushrooms, because they exemplify the multiplicity and complexity of Nature, hidden as they are beneath the earth for most of the year. I strive to depict a vibrant universe, one that speaks of forms decaying, from which new organisms emerge.

https://claireburbridgeart.com/

Claire's artwork illustrates Fritjof Capra's Slow Read in the Sep/Oct 2024 issue of Resurgence & Ecologist.