This past winter I visited the Redwood Forest near Warburton, Victoria. It was a magical, surreal place that felt like it was out of a fairy-tale. Giant redwood trees that soared to the sky, planted in symmetrical lines. In every direction you looked, you could see perfect lines of towering trees. The Californian Redwood is the tallest species of tree in the world. Here they have grown to 50 metres, but it is hard to imagine that with some more time on their side they can grow to 150 metres high.

The section of forest is made up of 1476 redwood trees, and when you are in it, it feels immersive – even the sounds of the outside world are muffled. The Redwood Forest was planted in a clearing in the middle of native forest. The Aussie bush and native trees surround these towering giants, almost enveloping them in a hug. Looking up was breathtaking, yet looking down was also mesmerising. The forest floor was scattered with leaves, and when I peered into the dense surrounding native bush, little worlds of moss and mushrooms grew at the base of trees and ferns. The native forest feels far more wild and natural and contrasts against the perfect lines of redwoods. Walking trails lead to the nearby Cement Creek and Yarra River (the paths were unfortunately too muddy for me).

Whilst I was there I thought about the people that planted the trees. The seeds or saplings, so little in a cleared section of forest. They would have known that they never would have seen the trees stand that tall. At first I thought that perhaps they had been planted with the thought of future generations enjoying them…But it turns out they were actually planted as a research program. The Board of Works planted them in the 1930s as a hydrology research program on how non-native trees effected canopy interception. The research was eventually abandoned, yet nearly one hundred years later people are enjoying the mysterious and breathtaking beauty of this place which is now heritage listed.

As an artist I couldn’t help but be inspired by the beauty and rareness of such a place here in Victoria. I am always in awe of trees that have stood tall for nearly one hundred years. It reminded me a little of how I wished to create something that would stand the test of time (of course, on a much smaller scale). That is why I wanted my limited edition prints to be the quality that they are, with archival inks and paper so that they too, will last for one hundred years and can be enjoyed by future generations. I seek to capture nature on paper for one hundred years, but if you go into a forest, it is right there in front of you. It truly was a remarkable forest to visit.