words + pictures from the studio of Joan Colbert
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There have been many surprises in the ongoing research on poisonous plants for the As Potent as a Charm series. Not the least is the number of common landscape/foundation plantings that add a hint of danger to the structure of the garden, such as this threesome of familiar shrubs:
A Deceptive Welcome
Rhododendron, Rhododendron
Pleasant Valley
Yew, Taxus baccata
Be Still
Oleander, Nerium oleander
Tags: as potent as a charm, botanicals, linocut, oleander, poison, printmaking, relief print, rhododendron, yew
Part of the fun in researching botanical poisons for As Potent as a Charm, was coming across bits and pieces of information, quotes and symbols. Tiny prints and commentary are gathered here in a collection of nine little pieces. There’s a crown for the Queen of Poisons (Aconitum) and a dagger to mark a botanical poison; Belladonna for dark, alluring eyes or castor oil to brighten the whites a la Cleopatra; the atropine dose from my hound’s recent surgery and intriguing quotes from disparate sources, including Agatha Christie’s comment on her frequent method of (fictional) murder: “I prefer to poison them.”
Tags: as potent as a charm, belladonna, castor bean, linocut, printmaking, relief print
Black sheep and skeletons in the closet . . .
even the plant world has its share of family secrets, eccentrics and deviants.
Consider the family Solanaceae, commonly referred to as either the nightshade or potato family: members of this unwieldy clan run the gamut from the meek to the murderous. In each of the six Solanaceae prints the virtuous shares space with the disreputable.
Look for mandrake (Mandragora officinarum) and the potato (Solanum tuberosa), deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna) and Petunia, henbane (Hyoscyamus niger) and eggplant (Solanum melongena), bittersweet (Solanum dulcamara) and tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), along with tobacco (Nicotiana) and chili pepper (Capsicum). With about 2,690 additional species, the history of the Solanaceae family’s interaction with humans is one of dramatic trial and error, malevolence and goodwill.
left to right:
Loves Me Not
Deadly Nightshade, Atropa belladonna
Petunia
Deceitful Charm
Jimson Weed, Datura stramonium
Chinese Lantern, Physalis alkekengi
Bittersweet
Woody Nightshade, Solanum dulcamara
Tomato, Solanum lycopersicum
Scuttle
Mandrake, Mandragora officinarum
Potato, Solanum tuberosa
Best Laid Plans
Henbane, Hyoscyamus niger
Eggplant, Solanum melongena
Smokin’ Hot
Tobacco, Nicotiana tabacum
Chili pepper, Capsicum
Tags: as potent as a charm, botanicals, linocut, printmaking, relief print, Solanaceae
As Potent as a Charm
BOTANICAL
bad seeds
black sheep
& skeletons
in the closet
While there is little that is whimsical about poisoning, there is definitely plenty of drama and mystery in horticultural mishaps and misdeeds. Lovely plants may be leading double lives; happy blooms and tasty vegetables have cousins that are downright deadly. Herbalists differ on the merits and dangers of various herbs. The fascinating stories from botanical history, folklore and science invite and inspire imagery.
The ongoing series, As Potent as a Charm, explores the malevolent side of familiar plants in a collection of black and white linoleum block prints. Although the concept is botanical, allusions to dark tales and malfeasance hint at a narrative within each visual representation.
The series title, As Potent as a Charm, is a phrase taken from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story, Rappaccini’s Daughter. The title character, Beatrice, tends her father’s botanical collection of lovely, yet lethal plants. While ‘as potent as a charm’ refers to the specimens, it could just as well describe Beatrice who, as the story progresses, becomes just as lovely and lethal as the flowers she nurtures.
Tags: as potent as a charm, botanicals, linocut, Nathaniel Hawthorne, poison, printmaking, relief print
Oh, the holidays – even they are fraught with pretty poisons! The crow sits patiently under the mistletoe, Viscum album, in Biding Time – hoping for a kiss? Among the mistletoe lore and legend this riddle (author unknown) caught my fancy:
a riddle
I lived my life between the worlds
Neither earth nor sky would call me child
The birds were my companions
The wind and rain my mentors
Daily I grew in power and strength
‘Til snatched out of time by the trickster.
answer: mistletoe
Tags: as potent as a charm, crow, linocut, mistletoe, printmaking, raven, relief print
Took a break from malevolent botanicals to print up some book-themed cards for The Learned Owl in Hudson, Ohio. Featuring an owl that is both wise and whimsical, cards will be available individually and in sets.
Tags: books, linocut, owl, printmaking, relief print
Three of the prints in the As Potent as a Charm exhibit will feature common landscape plants (see perilous plantings for line drawings) who keep their toxicity well hidden. The proof print above is of a Rhododendron in A Deceptive Welcome.
The block in progress shows the ubiquitous Yew, Taxus baccata, in Pleasant Valley; Oleander, Nerium oleander, guards the gate in Be Still.
Tags: as potent as a charm, crow, linocut, Nerium oleander, oleander, printmaking, raven, relief print, rhododendron, Taxus baccata, yew
There is nothing like a carton of postcards to bring reality into focus: As Potent as a Charm will open in just a month!
Tags: as potent as a charm, linocut, printmaking, relief print, the box gallery
There is a latecomer to the Solanaceae family prints – the group of five has expanded to six. The ‘table’ prints can now form a triptych, with the addition of Deceitful Charm. This piece includes a sphinx moth fluttering around a mysterious pairing of Jimson Weed, Datura stramonium, and Chinese Lantern, Physalis alkekengi.
Tags: as potent as a charm, Chinese Lantern plant, Datura, linocut, printmaking, relief print, Solanaceae
Fanfare, please . . . Angel’s Trumpet, Brugmansia suaveleons, is finally printed and ready to be framed for inclusion in my upcoming exhibit, As Potent as a Charm. The fanfare because the sketches were complete in August!
Tags: angel's trumpet, as potent as a charm, Brugmansia, linocut, poison, printmaking, relief print
