John Scott is a contemporary Australian artist engaged in interpreting the landscape using both 2-D images and 3-D sculptures to create both abstract, representational and in some cases symbolic forms of art. His practice has spanned close to 40 years. Bridging Nature, science, biology and philosophy.
Learning to listen and feel nature as opposed to just observing the surface landscape led me to deeper visual interpretations and a greater understanding of how interdependent we are within our natural environment.
Often in a fast paced world surrounded by man-made built environments we quickly disconnect from the natural world often leading to a range of mental and biological health issues. The deeper I went into the microcosm of nature, repetitive fractals on a macro-cosmic scale manifested into my oeuvre. I was guided to one specific area, fungus – about 30 years ago of which has recently been my current focus.
Mushrooms are the fruiting body of a much vaster underground mycorrhizal network system interconnecting plant kingdoms through tiny threads called mycelium. These root systems have been scientifically proven to communicate, transport and distribute nutrients to whole forests keeping them healthy. The ant kingdom often stores and farms fungus feeding whole colonies underground. Forests have “hub trees” sometimes called ‘mother trees’ that are powerful distributors of nutrients to plants that are struggling. By studying the health of nature through these complex interconnected systems it reminds me of how interdependent we are with nature including our own health and wellbeing as a species.
