Janine Mackintosh
Where biodiversity meets visual arts…
“Our native biodiversity has been pushed, quite literally to the edge, driven out past the edges of our communities and for some species, to the edge of extinction. There’s a tragic disconnect between most people and the bush – it’s to be feared, it’s dry and scratchy, harbours dangerous animals, is fuel for fires and you can easily get lost in it. But I want people to see how incredibly complex and unique our biodiversity is, and in turn, inspire them to conserve it. So the beetles, eucalyptus leaves and I collaborate, to make a window showing people the marvellous things that are happening at the edge.” – Janine Mackintosh
Janine Mackintosh is a visual artist who creates unique assemblages using found natural materials, mainly collected from her heritage bush property on the wild south coast of Kangaroo Island. She began her art practice by employing the techniques of museum plant collections but her pieces have since departed radically from tradition. Three times winner of the People’s Choice Award of the Waterhouse Natural History Art Prize, her primary motivation is to highlight conservation issues through her preservation artwork.
