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    In ‘Of the Oak,’ a Magnificent Tree at Kew Gardens Gets an Immersive ‘Digital Double’

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    All images courtesy of Marshmallow Laser Feast, courtesy of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, shared with permission

    In ‘Of the Oak,’ a Magnificent Tree at Kew Gardens Gets an Immersive ‘Digital Double’

    May 30, 2025

    ArtDesignNatureScience

    Kate Mothes

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    “We believe in the power of stories to tickle senses and shift perceptions,” says Marshmallow Laser Feast, an experiential artist collective merging art, extended reality (XR), and film into large-scale, immersive exhibitions.

    MLF’s latest work, Of the Oak, situates a monumental, six-meter-tall, double-sided video of the titular tree in London’s Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The piece focuses on the garden’s Lucombe oak, portraying a “digital double” using real-world data.

    Photo by Barney Steel

    MLF collaborated with researchers from Kew to create a vibrant, scientific rendering, blending advanced technologies with artistic imagery. The team stitched together thousands of images, used LiDAR to map the tree’s form with laser pulses, CT-scanned soil samples, employed ground-penetrating radar to trace the root system, and recorded a series of 24-hour soundtracks.

    “Of the Oak is a celebration for the oak tree as a living monument of vital ecological relationships and species interdependence,” MLF says. “It is an invitation to witness the oak as a keystone in the web of life, majestic and unassuming, stretching its branches skyward and its roots deep into the soil, embodying both quiet strength and boundless generosity.”

    Visitors can access a stunning digital field guide on their phones or via desktop from anywhere, featuring a series of meditations that “tune into the invisible bond between humans and trees.” The app also includes an interactive species guide highlighting the diverse range of birds, insects, fungi, and other inhabitants that rely on oak trees for survival.

    Of the Oak continues at Kew through September 28. Marshmallow Laser Feast is also currently presenting an immersive, seven-room exhibition titled YOU:MATTER at the National Science and Media Museum as part of Bradford 2025 U.K. City of Culture. See more projects on the collective’s website.

    Photo by Sandra Ciampon

    Photo by Barney Steel

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    • 113 Shares129 Views

      in Art

      Gregory Euclide Explores the Anthropocene in Verdant Mixed-Media Collages

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      “Torn Spin” (2025). All images courtesy of the artist and Hashimoto Contemporary, shared with permission

      Gregory Euclide Explores the Anthropocene in Verdant Mixed-Media Collages

      May 12, 2025

      ArtNature

      Kate Mothes

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      Smeared, flattened, and rough around the edges, Gregory Euclide’s mixed-media collages explore nature through the lens of human experience. Organically meandering outlines suggest shallow reliefs; foraged prairie botanicals complement human-made materials; and abstracted landscapes emerge from drawings, photographs, ripped paper, paint, and more.

      “The artist tears and layers these elements to build a new pictorial space which more accurately resembles the way he takes in the land,” says a gallery statement for Assembled Lands, Euclide’s solo exhibition opening later this week with Hashimoto Contemporary.

      “Torn: Double Sun” (2025)

      Breaking down his observations of nature into its fundamental parts, Euclide merges overviews of trees, shrubs, meadows, and the horizon with the intimate details of leaves or branches. One might approach his subject matter through the lens of the Anthropocene, which describes our present era of accelerating changes to the environment due to humans’ unrelenting impact.

      Each collage (previously) merges recognizable forms and terrain with abstract shapes and compositional spirals or whorls. The effect toys with perception and our understanding of relationships between flatness and depth, land and sky, and nature and ourselves.

      Assembled Lands runs from May 17 to June 14 in New York City. See more on the artist’s website.

      “Washed Up On The Beach 2” (2025)

      “Plat Map” (2025)

      “Torn: Silhouette” (2025)

      “Random Invader Memory” (2025)

      “Torn Landscape Spun” (2025)

      “Torn: Forest Silhouette” (2025)

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    • 150 Shares169 Views

      in Art

      Charles Gaines Maps the Meanings of Ancient Baobab Trees in Meticulous Charts

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      “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #4, Maasai”
      (2024),
      acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen. All images © Charles Gaines, courtesy the artist and Hauser & Wirth, shared with permission

      Charles Gaines Maps the Meanings of Ancient Baobab Trees in Meticulous Charts

      February 17, 2025

      ArtNaturePhotography

      Grace Ebert

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      Since the 1970s, Charles Gaines (previously) has been charting the sprawling, unpredictable forms of trees onto numbered grids. He began with walnut trees in 1975, which he photographed while barren and then plotted onto hand-drawn graph paper.

      A leader in the Conceptual Art movement, Gaines’ works ask viewers to explore the relationships between what something appears to be and what it means as it shifts from one context to the next. He also argues for a greater divide between subjectivity and aesthetics, instead emphasizing culture’s immense role in shaping our experiences.

      Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #4, Maasai” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen


      In his ongoing Numbers and Trees series, Gaines continues to chart differences. During a 2023 visit to Tanzania, the artist photographed majestic baobabs, which form the basis for a collection of triptychs that entwine the magnificent specimens with colorfully numbered grids. Gnarled trunks and spindly offshoots both layer atop and are masked by Gaines’ sequences, all viewed through sheets of plexiglass.

      The baobab is known as “the tree of life” for its longevity, myriad roles in preserving the savanna ecosystem, and ability to host entire habitats within its canopies. The specimens are often associated with folklore and myth and in the era of climate disaster, are some of the casualties of unrelenting drought. Depending on location, epoch, and community, the trees can serve a wide array of purposes and hold a multitude of symbolism.

      Icons of the African continent, baobabs also connect to histories of colonialism and slavery. In this context, they’re distorted and mediated by both Gaines’ organizing principles and the acrylic panes. “What you bring to the image, adds to the image,” the artist says.

      Numbers and Trees, The Tanzania Baobabs is on view from February 19 to May 24 at Hauser & Wirth West Hollywood.

      “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #7, Makonde” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Keith Lubow

      Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #7, Makonde” (2024), 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Keith Lubow

      “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #3, Tongwe” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen

      Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #3, Tongwe” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen

      “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #2, Zanaki” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Keith Lubow

      Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #2, Zanaki” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Keith Lubow

      “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #5, Rangi” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen

      Detail of “Numbers and Trees: Tanzania Series 1, Baobab, Tree #5, Rangi” (2024), acrylic sheet, acrylic paint, photograph, 3 parts, 95 x 132 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches. Photo by Fredrik Nilsen

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    • 138 Shares189 Views

      in Art

      Lush Growths and Classical Architecture Converge in Eva Jospin’s Meticulous Sculptures

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      “Forêt” (2024), wood, cardboard, 94 1/2 x 133 7/8 x 19 3/4 inches. All images courtesy of Mariane Ibrahim, shared with permission

      Lush Growths and Classical Architecture Converge in Eva Jospin’s Meticulous Sculptures

      November 16, 2024

      ArtNature

      Grace Ebert

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      Rather than position herself as an observer of landscapes, Eva Jospin imagines humans and their environments as one. The Parisian artist carves intricate forests and stately architecture subsumed by vines and craggy cliffs all from humble cardboard, accentuating the corrugated textures to add depth and intrigue.

      In her Chicago debut at Mariane Ibrahim, Jospin presents a series of freestanding sculptures and wall works that invite the viewer to venture into her large-scale, yet incredibly intricate worlds. Titled Vanishing Points, the exhibition gestures toward perspective and the ways subtle details and contemplation can shift how we see.

      “Forêt troglodyte” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 72 1/2 x 59 x 31 1/2 inches

      As with earlier bodies of work, Jospin’s paper sculptures and vivid, silk tapestries draw on classical styles and the 18th-century tradition of follies, architectural structures designed for decoration. These often ornate buildings could be found in many Baroque gardens, which took human mastery over nature as an imperative.

      The artist’s works instead depict a convergence between the manufactured and the organic. In the six-foot tall “Forêt troglodyte,” for example, vines crawl down from a ceiling embedded with shells and sea sponges. The exquisite vault stands parallel to a similarly shaped cavern, occupied by trees rising from a rugged bluff.

      Jospin walks viewers through her process and studio in the video below. If you’re in Chicago, see Vanishing Points before January 25.

      Detail of “Forêt troglodyte” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 72 1/2 x 59 x 31 1/2 inches

      “Capriccio” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 76 3/8 x 41 3/8 x 21 5/8 inches

      Detail of “Capriccio” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 76 3/8 x 41 3/8 x 21 5/8 inches

      “Jardin Constantine” (2024), silk thread, silk canvas, wood and cardboard frame,46 x 96 7/8 x 4 inches

      “Jardin Constantine” (2024), silk thread, silk canvas, wood and cardboard frame,46 x 96 7/8 x 4 inches

      “Petit Bois” (2024), wood, cardboard, 28 x 34 1/2 x 9 1/4 inches

      “Treille” (2024), silk thread, silk canvas, wood and cardboard frame, 100 3/4 x 69 1/4 x 4 inches

      Detail of “Forêt” (2024), wood, cardboard, 94 1/2 x 133 7/8 x 19 3/4 inches

      Detail of “Treille” (2024), silk thread, silk canvas, wood, and cardboard frame, 100 3/4 x 69 1/4 x 4 inches

      “Labyrinthe” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 41 x 39 3/8 x 27 1/2 inches

      Detail of “Labyrinthe” (2024), wood, cardboard, and mixed media, 41 x 39 3/8 x 27 1/2 inches

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