Marie Linsdell

beautiful panoramic photograph of dense woodland on steep slopes with tall fir trees in a Canadian creek with dappled light

Marie was awarded a BA (Hons) in Fine Art Printmaking from the University of Brighton, before studying for an MA in Print at the RCA.

Her work often reflects her interest in the philosophical and spiritual and is inspired through her Buddhist understanding.

Responding to the ethos of the Arte Povera group (in particular, Guiseppe Penone), she bridges the analogue with the digital with the use of ‘poor’ materials, particularly through the tangible qualities and substance of trees, which are a recurring theme in her work. Materiality and process are fused and layered in range of multi-media approaches, including photography, experimental printmaking, collage, installations and book art.

Marie’s work has been exhibited and published throughout the UK.

evergreen leaf cut with the words 'Emptiness is the true nature of all things'

Sometimes it is difficult to step back from the conditioned existence of our day-to-day life, with its materialism and consumer-led society. My perception of who and what I am, and my place in the universe, is driven by a Buddhist perspective, and I endeavour to create work that holds the essence of this understanding.

My creative practice often begins with photography, capturing a personal perspective and relationship with the natural world – exploring within it the infinite variety and constant state of flux.

I utilise humble aspects of nature, particularly the components of trees, that often go unnoticed and unwanted. Through the intimate process of repurposing, and the tactile nature of making, I aspire to elevate these elements – creating work with visual harmony and balance, offering the viewer an alternative frame of reference.

By bringing attention to seemingly insignificant or overlooked details, my work offers up the opportunity for a different quality of attention - to reconnect with the natural world with mindfulness, to contemplate, reflect and perhaps question what lies within.

‘What I saw when I began, was that the distinction between man and nature is false. Man is part of nature; it is our desire to conserve distinctions that has kept us separate.’

Guiseppe Penone

'The Three Lakshanas', installation, 4m x 2.5m x 2.5m

'Anicca', roses suspended with copper wire, 2.5m x 1m x 1m

'Dukkha', printed mirror, leaves, 1.5m x 1m x 1m

'The Three Lakshanas'

The inspiration for this installation, was the Buddhist theory regarding the three universal truths, or the ‘Three Lakshanas’.

Trees are a metaphor for my spiritual understanding of the world and my place within it, and I believe that our connection to them is deeply engrained in our evolutionary history.

For this installation, I borrow and utilise dying elements - representing cycles of life, inevitable change, and impermanence.

My intention with this work, is to suggest a connection to something beyond the material world - perhaps a glimpse, a realisation or a deepening awareness of the impermanent truth of things.

‘By looking, deeply, we can develop insight into impermanence and no self, and these are the keys to the door of reality. Only when we recognize our connectedness to the earth, can real change begin.’

Thich Nhat Hanh

'Anatta' (video of installation) – The larger section of the installation invites the viewer to take a closer look, to feel at one with the essence of the tree and perhaps capture its lingering aroma in the leaf dust.

Medium:

Installation: screenprint, leaf dust, roses, mirror, leaves

Size:

4m x 2.5m x 2.5m

'4556 miles is nothing', 1.3m x 600mm x 100mm – This installation, a double-sided lightbox, was designed and created for an exhibition in the Southwark Park Galleries in March 2023.

The image (shown above) is a close-up view of one lightbox. Inside the structure are two light boxes, back to back. Each comprises two overlaid transparent photographs. The images are reversed on the opposite side. One photograph was taken in Stanley Park, Vancouver and the other in Battersea Park, London.

'there is no path in the sky', concertina book in slip case, 100mm x 80mm. Edition of 4.

'there is no path in the sky', folded book with slip case, 100mm x 80mm – The small concertina book comprises 9 pages with cut out windows. In each is suspended the image of a leaf, backed with pages from children’s books. The title is borrowed from the book, 'Dhammapada', verse 255. The book, an edition of 4, accompanied the lightbox installation at the Southwark Park Gallery in March 2023.

artistbook haptic installation materiality memory photography print printmaking space time

(untitled), digital print, 600mm x 850mm

(untitled) – Digital print on Kozo paper, 550mm x 750mm, small piece of the tree - suspended.

The dead carcass of a mighty tree lies prone on the beach at Stanley Park in Vancouver.

I visit it regularly, throughout the seasons, whenever I travel to the city.

I often conceptualise its history, imagining what it might have witnessed throughout its extensive life.

In death it exposes the remnants of its former glory, revealing its magnificent surface structure and pattern.

digital digital-image history installation nature photography

(untitled), each approx. 200mm x 270mm. – Two examples of eco-prints created with leaves and flowers.

(untitled), 320mm x 470mm. – Enlarged reproduction of an eco-print, digitally printed on Japanese Kozo paper.

Eco-print, photographed and UV printed on a repurposed aluminium lithographic plate.

(untitled), 210mm x 150mm. – UV print on handmade paper.

experimental printmaking

Eco-prints eventually fade as the colour is unstable.

I photograph them and reprint the images on a variety of substrates.

This is an ongoing series of experiments.

ecology experimental nature photography print printmaking uv-printing

Marie Linsdell

'The Three Lakshanas'

Medium:

Size:

experimental printmaking

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Royal College of Art