Studies: After Robert Thornton: A Series of Visual Studies Constructing a Conversation Between Past and Present

Robert Thornton, Temple of Flora, and the practice of Printmaking

Robert Thornton’s Temple of Flora dates back to 1807 when it was published as the third act of A New Illustration of the Sexual System of Carolus von Linnaeus, considered yet to be one of the greatest books of all time with regards to the documentation and illustration of flowers. The book contains dozens of botanical illustrations by Thornton, made using methods such as aquatint, etching, stippling, and mezzotint. Studies: After Robert Thornton is a research project rooted in Thornton’s work and exploring ideas of modernity and reflection on the past. By reinterpreting Thornton’s images using a more contemporary form of printmaking, I construct a conversation across centuries about the medium and how we use it to capture the natural world around us—an act that becomes more desperate and radical every day in the face of the climate catastrophe.

All prints in this series are 4-color 11” x 14” silkscreen prints.