A blend of Romanticism and a research driven ethos, Evie Rose Thornton’s practice bridges the gap between viewers and the natural landscape, untangling ecosystems that structure every aspect of the environment around us. By nature, her work is interdisciplinary, as she responds organically to the research she undertakes, allowing the information to direct the line of enquiry and inform her material choices.
Her work recognises the imminent threat of climate change and aims to posit potential futures that consider a more symbiotic way of living. Her practice crafts intimate and philosophical encounters between individuals and non-human life through the creation of artworks that are intended for habitation by the natural world, emphasising the need for balance and reciprocity.
Approaching the landscape through a scientific lens, she avidly researches climate change literature, books, articles and scientific journals, seeking out collaborations with environmental scientists and research institutes to deepen her understanding of ongoing transformations and humanity’s responses. Drawing on the emotional tenets of Romanticism, this notion of care and compassion for the landscape is central to her values and her practice.
These sculptural works are a response to research into mussels and oysters as a source of blue carbon and the role they could play in protecting the coastline from sea level rise and flooding. Among a myriad of benefits, mussel and oyster beds have the potential to affect wave attenuation, taking the energy out of the sea and lessening the damage caused to dunes and flood defences. The steel works echo the curves of the oyster and mussel shells creating curves and lines for the mussels to attach to. The ‘Yellow Butterfly Buoy’ sculpture reference the historical garments that fishwives of Newhaven, Edinburgh, used to wear when they sold mussels and fish at the markets. This work is a nod to Scotland’s history, and a look into the future, where it is possible to create new homes for mussels and help to limit the damage caused by climate change.
This installation is an exploration into natural coastal sea defences and their potential to limit the destruction caused by sea level rise and climate change. The focus is on root systems that naturally bind the coastline together and provide habitats for wildlife and plant life. By creating an immersive installation I want to emphasise the ecosystem that lies beneath the surface, the unseen landscape that is vitally important in the fight against the threat of anthropocentric climate change.
This installation is an exploration into natural coastal sea defences and their potential to limit the destruction caused by sea level rise and climate change. The focus is on root systems that naturally bind the coastline together and provide habitats for wildlife and plant life. By creating an immersive installation I want to emphasise the ecosystem that lies beneath the surface, the unseen landscape that is vitally important in the fight against the threat of anthropocentric climate change. This was part of a collaboration with Microsteria.
This installation is comprised of approximately 2000 sapling trees, including Corsican Pines,Norwegian Spruce and Alder trees, provided by Intelligent Growth Solutions and their hydroponic vertical farming towers. This work is an ode to science, human invention and a celebration of the relationship between people and their landscapes. These saplings have the potential to alter our future for the better through lowering CO2 emissions, proving shade, and creating thriving new ecosystems for plants, animals, insects and fungi collectively, whilst simultaneously acting as avisual reminder of our human responsibility to take care of our world.
“Air & Light” is a monument to sunlight. The intention of this artwork is to suspend a moment in time, capturing the burst of sunlight on the horizon at golden hour and bathing the viewer in warm soft light through reflections cast on the golden surface of the brass. The title is named after the chapter “Air & Light” in The Living Mountain and refers to both the representation of light through the material and to the negative space surrounding the artwork. Although the sun is essential to our survival, this work is a tribute to the beguiling, ephemeral, intangible nature of light and the way it saturates the air and dances on the surfaces of people and landscapes alike.
Public art work permanently installed at Dundee Botanic Gardens. It is an exploration in into ghost forest phenomenon, where sea level rise saturates the coast with salt, killing off trees and leaving their stumps as totems of climate change. These trees are foreshadowing a potential future without immediate change. They are also meant to serve as sculptures for nature, as they create areas of respite for birds, away from human interaction, and will slowly rot away providing habitats for insects, fungi and moss to thrive on. The focus of this work is on the idea of hope.
Public art work displayed at Tentsmuir, Fife, Scotland. Inspired by the buoys on Broughty Ferry beach, I made colourful mam-made "buoys" meant for interaction with the public. The aim was to encourage people to stop and take notice, break a train of thought to take a moment and fully appreciate the awe of the landscape. This culmiated in a documentary of interactions, displayed in Dundee University.
Sculptural drawings, exploring sea level rise and the threat of salt intrusion on our coastal regions.
Steel & wooden frames set in the landscape. Temporary interventions creating 3D compositional studies. Inspired by James Turrell's "Sky Window", these frames act like viewfinders used in landscape painting, allowing people to see compositional values within the landscape, carved out by the artist. It is a look into the artists eye, what they look for in the landscape and the tools they use to decode the visual information. These works aim to highlight the way in which artists think, creating a dialogue between artist, viewer and the landscape, allowing a rare look into how each aspect interacts with the other. Whilst the frames are static, the landscape within the frame has the potential to evolve and change, creating new compositions with every change of season and light.
Film masterclass run by Gair Dunlop. Film prompts: German Arthouse Cinema, there's no-one else but me. Original music by Michael Owers.
