STORY BEHIND THE ART OF MARGARET BEST

Weird, Wild, & Wonderful

Second New York Botanical Garden Triennial Exhibition

2014 - 2016

Bulbous Airplant

Tillandsia bulbosa

What could be more curious than a chameleon-like epiphyte that resembles an octopus and offers shelter to ants?

In San Diego in 2008, I met Jeffrey Kent, a biochemist and professional bromeliad hunter and pollinator. To help me complete a series of paintings, Jeffrey allowed me extensive access to his significant personal collection of the remarkable Bromeliaceae family. I believe most of the visually striking bromeliads to be a good fit for an exhibition of the weirdly wonderful and extraordinary, but the Tillandsia bulbosa was one of the most fascinating that I encountered. It was so small in comparison to most of Jeffrey’s enormous, sculptural specimens that I almost missed spotting it. The leaves curl inwards to form a straw-like tube that grows wildly in all directions in an oddly twisted and contorted way. When in flower, some of the green leaves become a brilliant red colour to assist in attracting hummingbird pollinator. How often do leaves serve to draw birds and insects to the plant? 

I live in Calgary and this painting is the only one that survived the massive and catastrophic flooding in Alberta in June 2013. I had brought it up to my studio to measure for my ASBA submission. It was placed behind an armchair out of sight and collecting dust, and I forgot to take it back down into storage again in the basement. Of the ten weird and crazy bromeliad paintings in my series, two had been sold earlier and of the rest, this was the escapee!! So my celebration of nature overcame the ravages of nature.

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Read more about this artist's work: 15th Annual International