Conveniently timed with the foliage season, Emiko Sawaragi Gilbert's show Found in the Forest, LEAVES was scheduled in the Vermont Supreme Court, September 4 to October 31, here in Montpelier. Walking in the forest around her Plainfield, Vermont home, Emiko has collected leaves over many years. It is interesting to think, of all the billions of leaves that she would pass by, how a select few would catch her eye and be worthy of preservation. And of the hundreds that she collected, how a select few came to be deemed worthy of imaging, being blown up on 3' by 5' or 8' paper, and being presented to the world.
Her large scale images of leaves are just stunning. I love their simplicity. Unaltered, pure nature, as they were found. They are so much like Chuck Close's photorealistic portraits, you could give these leaves names. Michael, Mark, Philip, all with nothing to hide, all becoming more beautiful as each of their idiosyncrasies and imperfections are revealed to the world. One of the great gifts of this show is to help us understand how much beauty we are surrounded by every day. How everything is beautiful if you would just stop and really look at every detail of everything. To think that here are just a handful of leaves of the trillions and trillions that are everywhere, of the many more trillions of everything else that is everywhere, all the time, with more surrounding us all the time. If we were to really appreciate each thing, how could we do anything other than be in a constant state of bliss! So thank you, Emiko, for the reminder, in a world with so many sad and distressing stories, of why we should be so happy.
Maple (worm-eaten)
5' x 3'
Maple (worm-eaten)
(closeup)
Big Tooth Aspen; Milkweed; Oak
8' x 3' (each)
Maple
5' x 3'
Maple
5' x 3'
Poplar (green); Poplar (worm-eaten black); Witch-Hazel
8' x 3' (each)
Maple
5' x 3'
Maple
5' x 3'
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