We’re thrilled to add 2024 Regional Artist in Residence Claire Krüeger’s piece, Blank Penance, to our collection. Now hanging in the Visitor Center, the piece highlights some of the Bernheim-sourced native plants that Claire used in her dye exploration. The five flags or pennants in the series are dyed with pigment from the plant it depicts: Jewelweed, Ironweed, Queen Anne’s Lace, Goldenrod, and Tickseed. The plant portraits are embroidered with synthetic yarn, with commercially made dyes. Over time, the naturally dyed backgrounds will fade, leaving behind only a synthetic simulacrum of the plant. Through her work, Claire invites the viewer to consider the questions:
Will we fight to retain the organic, or are we satisfied with an imitation? Do we struggle with the natural because it means accepting that everything eventually ends?
From the Artist:
When all hope is lost, I turn to the earth. My work is based in process, in examining and embracing the steps and stages involved in making. My personal practice has shifted to include geological and botanical materials, and place itself has become a grounding element in my art and my life. During my artist residency, I created a large sampling of dye from plants that grow in Bernheim Forest; a catalog of color from the land. Five of these plants were used to dye for Blank Penance.
My experience at Bernheim felt like time outside of time. I started by creating my own routines but eventually fell into the rhythm of the forest. I spent long days paying attention as the light changed in predictable patterns. I had my spots to watch the sunset and I learned the birds that clustered and sang at each. By surrendering to this natural space, I was freed from the burdens of my daily life.
This immersive natural reality rejuvenated my commitment to my own practice. The new body of work I created during this time encompasses the experience of deep reflection. I am grateful to all the creatures of the forest who guided me. It was a gift to leave the constructed time-crunch of humanity and be a visitor of the land.
