Up to the mid-nineteenth century, Londoners visited Camberwell for its rural tranquillity. In this work I imagine a return of that rural leisure to Camberwell Green, with fashionable visitors engaging in staged pastoral activities.
I am interested in how nature is controlled, arranged and prettified, as in Fragonard* painting, where the countryside becomes a decorative backdrop. Here, however, the materials are local pavement weeds collected from the SE5 area rather than cultivated flowers. I invited people to make floral arrangements using these weeds, rather than the flowers planted by the council in flowerbeds.
These unwanted plants were presented as floral arrangements and offered as prizes in a raffle-style competition.
The work draws on traditions of country fetes, including the best floral arrangement table, while using plants that are usually pulled up and ignored.
In keeping with the theme of Chutney Preserves “The Rot”, the materials are presented as part of a playful competition structure.
