Floral Relief Art
Plaster reliefs are an old art form made new again with the use of real flora. Plants are pressed into clay, which collects all the intricate details and textures, and then removed, leaving behind an impression to which plaster is then poured. Working with live plants and clay means that each piece is truly one of a kind and allows the viewer to appreciate the uniqueness of a single flower or leaf, as even when working with several of the same species, no two will ever press the same.
Wiregrass Everlasting currently offers floral reliefs in a variety of shapes and sizes made from flowers cut in the artist’s home garden or ethically collected from roadsides. Wedding bouquet preservation and commissions opening soon.
The Artist
Betsy Harris is a native Floridian and naturalist who grew up along the waterways and woods of Northeast Florida. Her passion lies in promoting and preserving the remaining fragmented pieces of the south’s botanical heritage, specifically the native flora and natural communities that provide the Southeast Coastal Plain its distinct ecological character.
In her free time, she can be found wandering Cary State Forest admiring wildflowers, roaming the banks of the Suwannee River, or exploring the intersections of the environment and humanities through papermaking, printing, weaving, and wildcrafting with local plants. She fell in love with floral relief making after crafting reliefs to commemorate the passing of a loved one for her family.
She co-created and has operated Surf Asylum Surf School since 2015.