The Magical Garden
During my residency at Marchmount Estate, I developed a site-specific body of work titled "The Magical Garden." This collection includes self-portrait and portrait photography presented as diptychs, sculptures, and an upcoming film, all inspired by the enchanting Walled Gardens and surrounding landscape of Marchmount Estate.
The primary focus of this project is to explore the deep connections between women and natural spaces. Motivated by the beauty of the Walled Garden and Glass Houses, I delve into women's relationships with nature, highlighting our intrinsic connection to the environment.
Within this body of work, I navigate the dynamic relationship between two main characters: a mother and her daughter. Through wearable sculptures made from natural materials sourced from the Walled Garden, these characters blend into their surroundings, symbolizing unity with nature.
The environment influences their emotions and interactions, acting as a mirror reflecting their growth and the complexities of their bond. Ultimately, this work evokes wonder and reverence for the natural world while encouraging reflection on how human lives are interwoven with the larger ecosystem. By exploring the dynamics between mother and daughter, or between childhood and adulthood, I aim to convey that we, like nature, are constantly evolving shaped by our experiences and relationships.
Installed in the Walled Gardens and Glass Houses of Marchmount Estate, the work merges photography, wearable sculpture, and film into a single, immersive meditation on women's relationship with the natural world.
What the work is made of.
- Natural materials sourced from the Walled Garden
- Botanical elements gathered from the surrounding landscape of Marchmount Estate
- Generous contributions from the Marchmount garden team
Marchmount Estate, in the Scottish Borders, provided the setting for this residency. The Walled Garden and Glass Houses — with their centuries of cultivation and layers of botanical life — became both the source and the subject of the work. Surrounded by this cultivated yet wild landscape, the project explores how place shapes identity, and how the boundary between body and environment can dissolve through presence and material. The estate's gardens acted as a living collaborator: every wearable sculpture was made from elements gathered on site, rooting the work deeply in its location.
- Hugo Burge Foundation
Botanical Residency, Hugo Burge Foundation Marchmount Estate, Lower Powerhouse, Duns, Scottish Borders, TD10 6YQ August 2024 Photography, sculpture, and film by Olana Light. Materials sourced from the Walled Garden, with generous contributions from the garden team, and gathered from the surrounding landscape of Marchmount Estate.