Story behind the art of Jessica Daigle

Curious Allies: Mutualism in Fungi, Parasites, and Carnivores

The Fifth New York Botanical Garden Triennial

Ghost Pipes

Monotropa uniflora

One early autumn day, while my husband, my son and I were walking in the backwoods, my husband and son made a discovery among the leaves. A bright spot caught their attention, nestled under a tree in the shadows. As we drew nearer, I could see two small delicate flowers huddled together. Upon my closer inspection, the striking little flowers revealed their buttery soft, nearly transparent white petals with beautiful pale pink stems. They stood out dramatically against the backdrop of dried brown leaves surrounding them. My research revealed the identity of this plant as Monotropa uniflora, commonly known as ghost pipe, a rare and delightful find.

The mystery of how the ghost pipe thrived without sunlight intrigued me. Initially, I speculated that it might function similarly to many fungi, a saprophyte obtaining nutrients from dead and decaying plant matter. However, further research uncovered a more fascinating survival strategy. The ghost pipe obtains its nutrition from the stolen sugars of mycorrhizal fungi, which have a symbiotic relationship with various plants. The fungus attaches to plant root systems through its hyphae threads, allowing plants to absorb additional water and nutrients from the soil. In exchange, the plant provides sugar from photosynthesis for the fungus to survive. The cunning ghost pipe parasitizes these hyphae threads, diverting sugars back to itself, making it quite the parasitic swindler!

Eager to capture the essence of this intriguing plant in my artwork, I aimed to depict not only its unique flowers but also its ability to thrive in a sunless environment. The focus of the painting was on anchoring the flowers into the ground amidst surrounding plant debris. I used two distinct approaches in painting the scene.

First, I painted the flowers and stem of the ghost pipe. This required an extremely delicate and light touch. I chose a wet-on-wet watercolor painting method that allowed me to create seamless transitions of color while utilizing the natural white tones of the paper to fill in the rest. Once the form and color were developed, I added very faint, delicate details to the flower and stalk.

Secondly, I addressed the leaves and the stick in the painting, which required a richer range of color, texture, and age to the forms. I used a drybrush technique to concentrate the color. I overlapped several layers of drybrush color dots to develop a rich transition of color throughout the leaves and stick form. Careful consideration was given to the composition to ensure the ghost pipe remained the focal point amidst the surrounding plant debris.

The Monotropa uniflora proved to be a fascinating subject to explore, discover, and depict in art. Despite its small and delicate stature, its parasitic nature adds an element of intrigue and complexity to its existence.

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Read more about this artist's work:25th Annual