“Spring drew on . . and a greenness grew over those brown beds, which freshening daily, suggested the thought that hope traversed them at night and left each morning brighter traces of her steps”. - Charlotte Bronte
Spring during COVID was never been more welcome and more quiet. Ironically against a world struggling with the darkness of a pandemic, nature was been at her vibrant best. Rain in all its different guises fell in the spring of 2020 - heavy downpours flooded waterways and soft life giving showers. Landscapes were lush, green and teeming with life and gardens are abundant and overgrown.
This series of works explores the different guises of spring - tamed in managed gardens, untamed in abandoned untended gardens and the wildness of spring in the Australian bush. This series of abundant, vibrant images has hope at their core- the belief that nature heals and provides us with a vision for a better future. This time will also pass and the future can still be exciting.
All the flowers were home grown, collected from local untended gardens or the wild parts of the artists farm in the Grampians. Everything else has been sustainably sourced - nests blown out of trees, discarded feathers and eggs collected on walks, and hidden in some images the first eggs from young hens.
![Remembrance](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/c896afc3-ffa8-4653-85ef-12b33d97d341_rw_1920.jpg?h=e1f3e4e3478f7be5c323db250489b1c1)
Remembrance
![Hope](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/7bc9a3bf-0609-4e27-8621-0c3479661284_rw_1920.jpg?h=70710b8e1e650bb8518aaa37dbe6f858)
Hope
![Still Life with Iris](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/38d9bc75-1d9e-429a-a9ae-bb1a30a99ef1_rw_1920.jpg?h=69b626b48f99c372797c4138387d2196)
Still Life with Iris
![Still Life with Dwarf Iris](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/92c598bf-883a-4824-9259-9e9d52a985c1_rw_1920.jpg?h=14b9c99cd3abbef7e35a1c16fa6d4a72)
Still Life with Dwarf Iris
![Still Life with Poppies](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/2d3af29a-bc39-43eb-843b-b308a768f07f_rw_1920.jpg?h=adc35649385333969a4c81f5124a5c3f)
Still Life with Poppies
![Abundance I](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/c803b609-929d-4ae6-b461-79db00270372_rw_1920.jpg?h=a62866cc48d3b52eff18df025ab8416a)
Abundance I
![Abundance II](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/dfb1af3b-1f71-4c5e-a3e9-a1352fb6bb8e_rw_1920.jpg?h=1fc11376fbd531a0b8488c5c7ab5da8d)
Abundance II
![Dreaming of Poppies](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/09049727-98a7-46a4-b058-18e7aeea8332_rw_1920.jpg?h=ff095ee4063c934b25f0eb6be1d51ac3)
Dreaming of Poppies
![Reflection](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/22c259de-ff26-4ef4-acb6-37adc5b4ba36_rw_1920.jpg?h=476c93e07f864dd509bde3d17f9c2e05)
Reflection
![Still Life with Nest](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/841adb23-02b2-40a8-8380-7af169c6bc05_rw_1920.jpg?h=7e5d45d1cd36eb137d08027aff201b17)
Still Life with Nest
![Dreaming of Lilacs](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/3fa00b9f-8fc5-49a5-883b-34173015eb9e_rw_1920.jpg?h=a85774989c57f7d6248275e0587ea8c6)
Dreaming of Lilacs
![Still Life with Lilac](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/6b6292ef-fa4e-47ef-b56f-f68464a1aa84_rw_1920.jpg?h=0baba7f4d8da9311f280bf42db3ed1a9)
Still Life with Lilac
![Bathing in Roses](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/445e38c8-5477-4215-b92b-56fef7754929_rw_1920.jpg?h=c7e98a4b3d1803f60f8e132e7ea3df83)
Bathing in Roses
![Abandoned Garden I](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/050d603b-c2c5-469a-97b0-6bd8558c1e6b_rw_1920.jpg?h=b2df19d4db8533fa922a81bc35e0e228)
Abandoned Garden I
![Abandoned Garden II](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/aff43bcf-4169-40bc-90d3-fa6b54801686_rw_1920.jpg?h=6c4bc58e39058a241e03eb7cf92b99fd)
Abandoned Garden II
![Abandoned Garden III](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/6c738f35-2c11-4877-84d8-d2ade323ec2b_rw_1920.jpg?h=cf8a09bfde0a06b95a758fabff37e939)
Abandoned Garden III
![Spring on the Roadside I](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/20c27545-a52f-43d6-bac9-47a891281a5c_rw_1920.jpg?h=e2b6b23c77ab4125e2652576410fc086)
Spring on the Roadside I
![Spring on the Roadside II](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/d7e6f631-dd76-4521-bd4c-b40ab6640b24_rw_1920.jpg?h=90fec52c6a27f59f6c743f34ebc5327c)
Spring on the Roadside II
![Still Life with Mushrooms](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/8d88620f-452b-4026-be21-9da34264febc_rw_1920.jpg?h=554dbea8a5e9433e547246ca810d9907)
Still Life with Mushrooms
![Dreaming of Emus](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/fb18f3a7-47fa-4889-9774-594d2ff8d5a9_rw_1920.jpg?h=a777828fb4e5b86879ea82b9ede5d3e1)
Dreaming of Emus
![Still Life with Two Nests](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/ab7747d6-b099-41d0-a685-b6cb33982582_rw_1920.jpg?h=a0dddfe039e2099657a04fd69ffb0088)
Still Life with Two Nests
![Grampians Wild Spring I](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/38f47ec7-9e22-4d8c-949d-0e4bb0a14d25_rw_1920.jpg?h=f3bf0e58f597ed8c2d3dc096e8004d2e)
Grampians Wild Spring I
![Grampians Wild Spring II](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/a152722e-1a26-44ea-89f6-3f6dcde5a581_rw_1920.jpg?h=7bab6f111573b64678d8be2f174bf126)
Grampians Wild Spring II
![Still Life with Emu Egg](https://cdn.myportfolio.com/c80b2f1b-d678-4f0f-81ff-22dd2485a872/bfae5bdf-4354-4cda-8e49-847e745fe6cc_rw_1920.jpg?h=66d38cdab13c75da91265f5d4fa33572)