Cityscapes are fluid and dynamic. Neighborhoods, streets, and city blocks showcase the economic climate and architectural trends of the day. Dwellings and front gardens mirror the impulses of their inhabitants.
Seattle is changing rapidly. Buildings are being razed to make way for new construction. Entire neighborhoods are altered, often with their unique personalities lost forever.
During daily walks in my neighborhood I witness how my local landscape is being permanently altered by this new construction. Contemplating the changes in our landscape, I realized that the displacement of modest homes also destroys the unique and historic “greenscape” of our neighborhoods. Most new homes are unveiled with a footprint that swallows the previous garden or with perfectly manicured, monochromatic front yards. Established heirloom plants, trees, and flowers are uprooted forever.
I am drawn to the established gardens of Seattle. I’m curious to understand the botanical imprint that previous generations have left on our local landscape and capture existing gardens before they disappear.
Over the last 5 years I have been collecting botanical specimens from the homes on my street. Each is rendered as a black and white ink drawing on 4x6 postcard sized paper. I chose the paper size to elevate the images to a format that is most often associated with travel documentation and small scale storytelling.
My project has gone through bursts and droughts as I have navigated life priorities and tragedies. I keep returning to the project to create more postcards. My goal is to document a botanical specimen from each home on 27th Ave NE between Blakeley and 75th Ave by late fall 2023. The close of the project will correspond to the end of the growing season.
PS. A couple of homes have been razed and gardens uprooted since the project began, emphasizing the historical significance of the project, however small and hyper-local.
