Story behind the art of Lucy Martin

Curious Allies: Mutualism in Fungi, Parasites, and Carnivores

The Fifth New York Botanical Garden Triennial

Lichens of the Pygmy Forest

Cladonia sp., Hypogymnia imshaugii, Hypotrachyna sinuosa, Hypotrachyna sp., Lecanora sp., Lobaria anthraspis, Lobaria pulmonaria, Parmotrema sp., Peltigera collina, Vulpicida canadensis

When I choose a subject to paint, I go for a hike. I wander in the forest, looking not only for a specimen, but for a place. I love to be in a forest, or an open oak woodland, or on a rocky mountainside. I love the feeling of the place: the light and shadows, the moisture in the air, the trees, burned stumps from an old forest fire, rocks, dead leaves. I find a place, and I look at how a mushroom or lichen or plant inhabits it. Even when I paint just a small twig with lichen on it, I have a sense of that twig as a little world of its own. This show, Curious Allies, is all about the interdependence of different organisms. So, to me, it seems most natural, and even crucially important, to show my subjects in their natural habitat.

Near where I live in Northern California is a pygmy forest. This is a region where the shallow soil is underlain by an impermeable layer of rock which plant roots cannot penetrate. The trees may be hundreds of years old, but remain very small, rather like natural bonsai. In this forest, one of the most common species is pygmy cypress, Hesperocyparis pigmaea. These trees have wonderfully twisting limbs with bark in shades of dark red and gray that peels in strips. Because they are so old, they are home to many different species of lichen— lichen is generally slow-growing. The many species on just a few trees in my painting is not an exaggeration; these trees are a wonderland of diverse and beautiful lichens.

I do not paint in a “photographic” way. I look carefully at the place I plan to make a painting of. I photograph it, and the species I will focus on, before collecting any that I can. I generally make studies of these in my studio before starting on my composition. The painting will not be an exact representation of what I saw in the forest. Rather it will be a composition faithful—in this case—to the structure of the trees, the way the lichens grow on them, and the background of the forest. Though I always strive to remain scientifically accurate, I think of my work as botanical art, rather than scientific illustration. 

I have painted scenes in this pygmy forest several times before. This time, I worked especially to convey the mysterious and delightful feeling of being in a miniature forest, and the lovely dim light that shines through the dense branches and foliage.

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Read more about this artist's work: 26th Annual