Artist in Residence in Cornwall (part II)

In this second blogpost about my art residency in Cornwall we go straight to Eden Project. This former clay mine with no soil or plants left is now transformed into a beautiful global garden with massive covered biomes.

This educational charity project in Bodelva explores ways of living more sustainably. By its programs and gardens it demonstrates and inspires positive action for our planet which I wholeheartedly support.

It all started back in 1999 when the plans were made to create a biodiverse garden in the crater of a former clay mine. It was impressive and moving to see how they've transformed this barren landscape into a green paradise. Nature is stronger than we think and there's always a second chance.

One of the biomes is the home of one of the world's largest indoor rainforests with a huge amount of typical plants and trees. There's even a real waterfall crashing through the rainforest.

One could even get to the top of this biome on the Wobbly Bridge through the treetops. This was such a fun and unforgettable experience!

I was lucky to visit Eden Project during a botanical art exposition. Throughout the whole garden there were botanical paintings of flowers and plants which were growing at that time. Some artists were at work and I enjoyed how they so accurately painted these wonderful flowers in watercolour.Could I have imagined a better day?!

Let's continue our journey to the Mediterranean Biome with a complete other temperature and atmosphere. Gardens for warm and dry temperatures with colourful and scented flowers in full bloom. What a sensation! I immediately was transferred back to the south of France where we have had wonderful holidays when our girls were little. The scent of lavender holds lovely memories for me.

I fell in love with these lovely coloured and delicately shaped poppies!

Typical mediterranean plants and even the Protea flower could be admired. This day at Eden Project was an overload of flowers and greenery. A true delight for my botanical heart to spend time in this exquisite and biodiverse garden, especially because it's made in a china clay crater.

We now continue our journey to Charlestown, a famous harbour village where some scenes of Poldark (and other movies) have been filmed. It really looks authentic and I completely understand why this is a popular film set.

Traces from the china clay industry are also found in this charming village. Like this clay chute which is used to load the clay onto the ships.

Another lovely harbour village is Fowey where I wandered through the narrow streets and watched the small boats. I visited some nice shops; a cosy bookshop and the independent shop of Molesworth and Bird with their stunning hand pressed seaweeds prints.

In Fowey I took a small boat that brought me to Polruan where I walked a part of the South Coast path. I was overwhelmed by the wide views and all its fantastic beauty. What a pure and magnificent coastline!

Around every corner of the fickle path I had another view. And the water was painted in sparkling shades of turquoise blues, looking so smoothly in comparison with the dramatic cliffs.

I especially loved the combination of these wildflowers with the sea in the back. What a wonderful combination!

Being here took my breath away and filled my heart with so much joy and peace. I definitely felt fully alive and this quote by Esther de Waal came into mind. It perfectly sums up the purpose of my residency here in Cornwall.

´If we fail to find the time to stand back,

to give ourselves a break,

a breathing space,

we are in danger of failing to be fully alive,

to enjoy that fullness of life for which we were created.´

Quote by Esther de Waal

My words and picture do no right to the amazing beauty of Cornwall. One should just walk there and be immersed in this endless wide landscape. But I hope you can enjoy some glimpses through my pictures from a distance too!

Together with Wendy Rolt of Art Residency Luxulyan where I stayed, we visited some Cornish artists during the Open Studio days. How lucky was I!

As an artist, I mostly work alone in my studio so it's just encouraging to meet other artists and talk about our art and lives. One of the artists I visited was Natalie Toms, who's also a botanical artist working in a cozy studio. I felt quite connected to her decoration and natural treasures, as you can imagine!

‘Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful,

or to believe to be beautiful.'

William Morris

This quote on one of her old cabinets is also one of my favourite quotes!

The other studios I visited had artworks made by various techniques such as etching, ceramics, painting and sculpting.

I can only look back on this 2 weeks of art residency with a grateful heart! I was blessed with the hospitality and friendship of Wendy, beautiful and calm surroundings, abundant and pure nature to my heart's content, wonderful and exceptional sunny weather (don't forget we're in the UK!), a cozy shepherd's hut, fantastic sunsets, cups of fresh herbal tea, charming villages, silence and birdsong and a notebook full of inspiration of ideas.