Size: 140 x 150 cm
Medium: Acrylic on primed linen
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I first discovered the Nuytsia Floribunda when exploring the landscape in the South of Western Australia in December. This ‘Christmas Tree” was growing abundantly in natural bushland. They have dramatic orange flowers that bloom in the summer months. The locals describe the showy orange flowers as ‘bushfire without smoke’. When heathlands are destroyed to create pastures, the Christmas trees are often left standing because of their beauty. It is a WA icon, but it is also a parasite, believed to be the largest in the world. This tree has blades for slicing into the roots of plants up to 100 metres away. It is indiscriminate as it steals their sap and juice from anything green – grasses, sedges, weeds, vines, shrubs and eucalypts. This mistletoe is very significant to the Noongar people and is considered sacred, a being in which the spirits of the newly dead resided. The roots and gum are edible. Grape and citrus growing farms were also plentiful in the region and I thought the combination of an indigenous food source with introduced lemon tree made for a challenging combination.
