BEADED BOTANICALS, 2018/19
toho beads on linen
Beaded Botanicals is a series of seven beaded specimen replicas held by the botany collection of the Museum of Natural History in Halifax, Nova Scotia. These endangered plants of Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia) are intricately replicated to honour each plant. Each plant being is under threat due to development within the territory, reducing its habitat and endangering its existence. During a four-month residency held at the museum Allison completed the Beaded Botanical series. Allison’s practice is centered on exploring the natural world by spending time with each specimen and honouring it by beading it. This series explores making as honouring, beading as ceremony, and thinking through western scientific practices vs. Indigenous ways of knowing. The piece is purposely unfinished to symbolize the near extinction of the species in Mi’kma’ki.
