Findi Flooshki

A screw grass seed lands on moss and attempts to penetrate the crust.

An attempt to come to terms with the inevitable damage caused by (even justifiable!) curiosity.

A lichen study that evokes waves on a shore. 'Outgoing tide' refers to the many human centred challenges to lichen survival.

A study on the behaviour of water on moss.

An observation about the ageing demographic and lifelong devotion of lichenologists / bryologists / mycologists in research institutions around the world.

A metaphor of invisible barriers to success.

'Ship of the desert' meets another great traveller - vagrant lichen.

A playful study of light and shadow in common crust assemblages.

A common assemblage of moss with twigs and seeds. Crust can prevent invasion by foreign plant species.

An observation about competing interests in the study of soil crusts.

A disturbingly real prospect if biological soil crusts are destroyed.

A metaphor of an artistic residency in a scientific institution.

There are around 150 species of Xanthoparmelia lichen in Australia, which can tolerate only low levels of disturbance.

Frozen moisture in the uppermost millimetres of soil spill pebbles into sunlight. Crusts tolerate some of the most extreme conditions.

Even with a hundred years of experience in the most extreme conditions, crust is helpless in the hands of innocent curiosity.

Manila folders and paperbark at ANBG. Some of my earliest visual inspiration at Black Mt.

An original concept drawing in which an artist's grave announces the same message as all preceding scientists who contributed knowledge during their lifetimes. Now all graves stand in the same mute quarter, only to be colonised by lichen and perhaps also visited by those who remember.

(graphite on Arches paper 36cm x 44cm)

After Edvard Munch's famous painting titled 'Der Schrei Der Natur'. In my version, a spent snapdragon seed (Antirrhinum majus) screams from a bed of moss and lichen. I discovered this scene quite accidently while weeding and was compelled to share the parallel.

(graphite on Arches paper 78cm x 58cm)

After Frank McCubbin's sketch titled 'Found' in which a man cradles a young girl who had become lost in a wild Australian forest. In the paradigm to which I am witness, older scientists cradle the last of botanical species in the same forests.

(graphite on Arches paper 44cm x 36cm)

This work references a famous painting completed in 1866 by Gustave Courbet. the original work pays (outrageously direct!) homage to the origin of human life. My fascination with biological soil crusts renders the theme differently although with equally strict adherence to the values of Realism.

(graphite on Arches paper 78cm x 58cm)

This work envisages a time when lichen is cultivated in space, in order to pave the way for higher plant and animal life on other planets.

(polymer clay on wood with metal leaf and alcohol ink, 58cm x 30cm x 36cm)

Made from recycled materials, this work was inspired by a scene I encountered by lying on my stomach with a hand lens. Sometimes, human scale experiences is the only way to raise awareness of microscopic stories.

A symbolic crust illustrating that every organism has its own time span. If left to develop at its own pace, it will have a chance to make an important contribution to its community.

(polymer clay on glass: 4hr - 42cm / 60min - 20cm / 15min - 15cm / 5min - 12.5cm / 3min - 10.5cm)

A 'tunnel book' of biological soil crusts. Each 'page' represents a deeper layer of crust. From top to bottom: leaf litter, lichen, moss, fungi, pebbles and a final consolation. We will not be around to witness the worst consequences of the destruction of biological crusts. We shall experience a lesser personal impact much sooner.

(aluminium, 60cm h x 40cm w)

A 'tunnel book' of biological soil crusts. Each 'page' represents a deeper layer of crust. From top to bottom: leaf litter, lichen, moss, fungi, pebbles and a final consolation. We will not be around to witness the worst consequences of the destruction of biological crusts. We shall experience a lesser personal impact much sooner.

(aluminium, 60cm h x 40cm w)