News > Montane plant art on show at Ben Lawers
Montane plant art on show at Ben Lawers
03/05/2012
Artworks inspired by the rare high-altitude plants found at the National Trust for Scotland’s Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve will be on show at the charity’s Killin office all summer.
The first works by Edinburgh-based artist Anne Gilchrist arrived on Thursday 3 May and have been hung at the conservation charity’s building on Main Street, Killin. The artist will then add to the exhibition throughout the flowering season, aiming to have eight paintings in place by autumn 2012.
The oil on board pieces depict montane flora of Ben Lawers and are 90 by 120 centimetres square in size.
Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve is one of the most botanically rich mountains in Britain, Ben Lawers is widely known for its outstanding range and diversity of arctic-alpine species and vegetation types. It is important for the very large number of nationally rare or scarce montane plant species that it supports, including vascular plants, lichens, and bryophytes. It also has an outstanding diversity of invertebrates with many nationally rare or notable species.
Anne explains what has inspired her to embark on this project. She said:
“In these paintings I am meditating on several aspects of this very special and localised habitat - the tenacity of the plants in a very hostile environment, their sense of community as part of a web of plants, insects and birdlife. I am also thinking about the fragility of their "small world" and our responsibility for protecting it, with the wider implications for our present Scottish and global environmental and climate change issues.
“And of course, I am considering the power and majesty of Ben Lawers itself, and the miracle of the harbouring of such exquisite plants on its slopes and rocks.”
Ben Lawers property manager Helen Cole said:
“Ben Lawers is renowned for its rich botany and this exhibition is a wonderful way of reminding our visitors that these often small and sometimes modest-looking plants are of international importance. As a conservation charity, we are working hard to ensure that the habitats in which they thrive are protected and well cared for, for the benefit of the environment locally, the nation and for future generations.”
The exhibition at the National Trust for Scotland office in Lynedoch, Killin, runs from Thursday 3 May until the end of September and entry is free. Opening hours vary, so check ahead with the office on 0844 4932136.
A selection of works will be available for sale.
For more information on the artist, visit www.annegilchrist.co.uk.
The oil on board pieces depict montane flora of Ben Lawers and are 90 by 120 centimetres square in size.
Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve is one of the most botanically rich mountains in Britain, Ben Lawers is widely known for its outstanding range and diversity of arctic-alpine species and vegetation types. It is important for the very large number of nationally rare or scarce montane plant species that it supports, including vascular plants, lichens, and bryophytes. It also has an outstanding diversity of invertebrates with many nationally rare or notable species.
Anne explains what has inspired her to embark on this project. She said:
“In these paintings I am meditating on several aspects of this very special and localised habitat - the tenacity of the plants in a very hostile environment, their sense of community as part of a web of plants, insects and birdlife. I am also thinking about the fragility of their "small world" and our responsibility for protecting it, with the wider implications for our present Scottish and global environmental and climate change issues.
“And of course, I am considering the power and majesty of Ben Lawers itself, and the miracle of the harbouring of such exquisite plants on its slopes and rocks.”
Ben Lawers property manager Helen Cole said:
“Ben Lawers is renowned for its rich botany and this exhibition is a wonderful way of reminding our visitors that these often small and sometimes modest-looking plants are of international importance. As a conservation charity, we are working hard to ensure that the habitats in which they thrive are protected and well cared for, for the benefit of the environment locally, the nation and for future generations.”
The exhibition at the National Trust for Scotland office in Lynedoch, Killin, runs from Thursday 3 May until the end of September and entry is free. Opening hours vary, so check ahead with the office on 0844 4932136.
A selection of works will be available for sale.
For more information on the artist, visit www.annegilchrist.co.uk.
