Sphagnum walk

To mark the end of this project and thank the various people who have been involved I organised a walk where we looked at different mosses and sphagna, swapped stories and facts about sphagna and Sphagnum skyense in particular.

Looking closer with a hand lens

Maolios Caimbeul read us his poem about a rock that we passed on our path.....

A Stone by the Way

Not gneiss but a great lump of basalt

which fell thousands of years ago

from Grianan nam Maighdean and down Leathad na Caillich,

and now lies by the edge of the path above Loch Hasco

scrubbed by the elements’ untold years.

Like something living, bright and shining,

covered by a multi-coloured film of life,

brown and yellow and red moss,

and algae of all kinds gripping you like a skin.

And though we all know you’re dead,

of the dust of the earth, you support what’s alive,

the film of life that surrounds you,

and draw me to you like a magnet

every day I pass, renewing the whims of memory

that come with age, a symbol and sign

by the way, inspiring thought and thoughts

all like a transitory layer of moss

on the surface of stone,

a stone anciently from the stars

and which will long outlast us

carrying the colour of life.

Clach ris a’ cheum

Chan e gneis a th’ annad ach cnap mòr basalt

a thuit na mìltean bhliadhnaichean air ais

bho Ghrianan nam Maighdein ’s sìos Leathad na Caillich,

thu nis nad laighe ri oir a’ cheum os cionn Loch Hàsco

air do sguabadh le bliadhnaichean nan sian.

Thu mar nì beò soilleir, soillseach,

le lìon bheatha ioma-dhathte gad chòmhdach,

còinneach dhonn is bhuidhe is dhearg,

is algae de gach seòrsa cho dlùth riut ri craiceann.

’S ged tha fhios againn uile gu bheil thu marbh,

’s de dhust na talmhainn, tha thu nad thaic dhan nì tha beò,

dhan lìonraidh bheatha tha gad chuairteachadh,

’s thu gam tharraing thugad gach latha thèid mi seachad ort

mar mhagnait, ag ùrachadh magaidean na cuimhne

a thig leis an aois, nad shamhla ’s nad shoidhne

ris an t-slighe, ’s a’ brosnachadh smaoin is smaointean,

a tha mar sgannan còinnich diombuam

air uachdar cloiche, a’ chlach a thàinig o chian

às nan reul, ’s a mhaireas fada às ar dèidh

a’ giùlan fiamh na beatha. 

Sphagnum skyense

With the help of Nick Hodgetts, a bryologist (botanist specialising in mosses and ferns) we found some Sphagnum skyense in a new location for him. This sphagna was found in 1987 on Skye, hence the name, by the Norwegian Kjell Flatberg. We discussed the fact that nothing eats this plant yet it is home to many specific flora and fauna, and that it was alive at the same time as the dinosaurs were roaming Staffin and leaving their footprints on the shore.

 Amidst sun, hail and snow we had a picnic - the 34 buns representing the number of different species of sphagna in Scotland and the tablecloth had images of Sphagnum skyense printed on it using peat.

The variety of Sphagna...

The delicate variety of Sphagna, begining to notice for myself the huge range of this wonderful species.
Seen with magnification these unassuming plants show the rich structures and forms used to grow in these difficult conditions. These plants have mastered the art of survival, when dried out they can survive without water for long periods and then come alive when water becomes available again.

beautiful and soft to touch....
always coexisting with lots of other mosses
 
Sphagnum acts as a sponge holding 20 times its dry weight of water

Sphagnum is what makes peat - it forms at 1mm a year - so 1m is 1000yrs old, the weight of the plant growth compressing the layers beneath.

The different spahgnum species forms a rich tapestry of living colour in the bog;red, orange, yellow, pink, green, ochre, brown, copper, red.

In Edinburgh again...

Edinburgh print workshop

Visiting again to try and print a series of things, peat stories, photographic separations of Sphagnum and some text, thinking about the layering of colours something I have avoided with using peat.

Being in Edinburgh I notice moss where it grows and makes use of places other plants can't manage as in this wall head beside the Water of Leith.

prints gathered together

This seems to sum up the special properties of this plant - printed using peat.

I have been looking through, selecting ones that are ok and signing them, very like finishing photographs properly, quite satisfying.

I like the balance between the delicate line of the actual grass (purple moor-grass), the drawing and the colour block, something which screenprinting can do well.

This print uses peat as the ink and I like the white space below - I originally planned this for a smaller piece of paper but felt it needed the space. Four different sphagna pencil drawings then reversed in photoshop in order to give the peat more prominence.

Sphagnum in its own place

It rains, it rains quite a lot, we often just have damp air, grey and laden with moisture. This is the ideal habitat for the mosses that live in Scotland, especially on the west coast. Scotland is known worldwide for the mosses and bryophites that flourish here.
On a grey windy dark day you can look amongst the heather and discover carpets of bright greens, yellows and reds, these belong to the many different species of Sphagna we have in Scotland (34).

Often the differences between species can only be seen up close, with a hand lens or even under the microscope. For me I am interested in noticing the general feel and different appearances in the landscape for the different species, but it is also interesting to see the changes during the year with a specific plant. When there is no water the plant dries up becoming white or pale green and just waits for the rain. Some sphagna hold 90% water! 

There is a whole mini ecosystem of single celled organisms, plants and animals which live only on the surface of and inside the waterlogged cells of Sphagna.

assessing the prints

Back on Skye I have had time to assess the prints, looking at all the work that I have done;
some, like this direct print of the bog moss, I had originally thought didn't work, now it think there is some potential.

Some work involved printing on glass, these are old glass shelves from a shop display, I printed five different drawings of different sphagna onto different size glass sections, using peat only - the results are even more subtle than I had expected, which I like as it expresses something about this plant - you need to look to notice it

Some prints which I thought would work just didn't - like this one using inks I wanted to balance the block of colour with the delicate drawings of different plants, but the whole composition doesn't hold together - subtle changes in printing, the lines being a bit thinner (than the photocopies I was using to imagine it) the colours being very slightly different - ......

printing again

There has been a bit of a break; I had  short residency in France in November and my trip down in December was thwarted by snow, but now I am back in Edinburgh and seeing how much I remember about the whole process. Before coming down I had prepared a number of pieces ready for printing, I am experimenting with many different things: using peat itself, trying inks and mixing colours, layers, drawings, photocopies, using the computer etc. etc.
The atmosphere is great in the workshop; calm working environment, helpful advice if you need it. The one thing I thought I knew how to work with, the peat, turned out to not work so well this time.

satisfying when it works

view under the screen 

screenprinting further developments...

the draw of the empty notice board - i can't resist it 

Visit during Oct, I feel that I am begining to understand the process and method of working. It is a real pleasure working in the print studio, just a pity it is such a long journey and so much else to get to grips with! I am getting the hang of the buses, having the correct change to hand, walking dark streets in the rain, finding where to park and learning my way round the city by foot and by car.
I managed to print a series using peat, I find the colour and texture most beguiling. I am experimenting with using straightforward photocopies of the plants, drawings, flat colour, photographs... I need to refine it a bit now that I can see the effects that each gives.

marks on the floor edinburgh printmakers

This time I managed to see a couple of exhibitions at the Ingleby gallery and at the Royal Scottish academy. I really enjoyed the 'Mystics or rationalists' http://www.inglebygallery.com/exhibitions/mystics-or-rationalists/ at the Ingleby gallery exhibition - this made excellent use of the existing space within the building. I found it was a really stimulating mixture of artists and their work, lots to think about as well as physically engage with.
I also enjoyed the RSA exhibition, Residency: 11  http://www.royalscottishacademy.org/  which showed work done at various residencies around scotland, the variety is great.

looking down the microscope

The cell pattern in the stem leaf is distinctive for Spagnum skyense so I have taken some photographs with a friend on Skye  http://www.robertarnold.co.uk/  at different enlargements through a microscope. These are really inspiring, the wonderful patterns and botanical systems at work in these simple organisms is mesmerising.
Interesting fact - Sphagna have a distinctive animal life which is solely associated with them, living both on the watery surface and within the water filled cells.

Screen printing trials....

Screenprinting using peat 

I have been trying to use the skills that I learnt earlier in the summer, remembering each process and the correct sequence, learning to handle the large screen safely, washing correctly etc., there is a lot to learn.
There is a lovely atmosphere at the Edinburgh printmakers,  http://www.edinburgh-printmakers.co.uk/, everyone working away quietly, calm focused concentration. Everyone is extremely helpful and supportive. I find it hard to break off for lunch or tea, being so engrossed.
I am also trying to use peat itself for screenprinting which I have used before but only in my own studio, not with all the correct equipment which makes it a lot easier. I have mixed it to the correct texture and have been surprised how even delicate text and drawings can come out. Lovely clear colour with depth.

I was surprised how much I can get done once the screen is ready and was able to organise a visit to the library and herbarium meeting Dr.David Long at the Royal Bottanic Gardens Edinburgh, http://www.rbge.org.uk/ which was extremely interesting. Looking at the samples of Sphagnum skyense in the herbarium and finding out more about this sphagna.

Isotype of Sphagna skyense at the herbarium

sphagnum research....

"There is nothing on earth like this moss for it has its own special appearance, nor does anything quite like it spring up in damp, swampy places"
this is the translation from the latin of the introduction to the 1880 book 'The Sphagnaceae or peat-mosses of Europe and North America' by R.Braithwaite

Beautiful etchings from Braithwaite book

Variety of Sphagna from around my house

I have been reading in the library at SHH headquarters in Inverness, Great Glen house, researching about this moss and learning to identify it in the field and becoming aware of the huge diversity in the landscape. Learning to see anew.

Interesting fact - There are 34 different species of Sphagna in Scotland

Interesting fact - The cells of Sphagna fill with water and then dry out when there is no water, in Herbaria one sample of Sphagna 80 years old came back to life when water was added in order to look at under the microscope.

Sphagna on the lightbox 

visual delight @ edinburgh printmakers

I attended the summer school in July for a week learning screenprinting and the relevant photoshop skills. I found the building and its contents visually stimulating and couldn't help myself from taking a few pictures. This was an excellent introduction to the techniques and processes involved in making prints. As usual I have far too many ideas to explore.

new world revealed 21 june

On the longest day I went out with Nick Hodgetts, a bryologist specialising in Sphagna, in order to get an insight into the range and variety of mosses and sphagna which are abundant on Skye. We were looking for Sphagnum skyense a particular sphagna which was found and indentified on Skye in 1987 and has only been found here. It is not so easy to identify for myself, but I got a real insight into the rich, colourful world of these lower plants.

Sphagnum skyense left on the day and right how it can look!

Sphagnum at the Quiraing June 21st

the fairy kingdom

was revealed to me today

a new world opening 

beneath my feet

I was engulfed, enchanted

you can return if you

don't eat or drink -

just look and wonder

magnified times twenty

moss and sphagna became

rich displays of intricate, extravagant form

leaf cells, hooked shapes

flowing forms of water

delicate curving lines

abundant complexity

in pink, yellow, green

I emerged for breath, wondrous 

and looked around

at the unchanged rocks and scree