Marion Smith, Sculptor

United Leaves belongs to a series of works inspired by seeing a pencil drawing in Sketching the Universe, an exhibition at Dundee University in 2010, the exhibition highlighted artists’ responses to the work of Sir D’Arcy Wentworth Thompson to mark the 150th anniversary of his birth. The drawing was Study for Orpheus by George Dutch Davidson (1879-1901) one of the leading artists in Dundee’s Celtic Revival movement. It’s the design for decorative panels for Thompson’s study at Dundee University where he was the first Professor of Biology. At the time I sketched the two trees that frame the drawing and took notes. In 2012, I was thinking about using my sketchbook material, but didn’t have enough information. I got in touch with the MacManus Gallery in Dundee and they kindly sent me an image of the drawing. In United Leaves I was able to combine imagery that I developed from D’Arcy Thompson’s theories on radial co-ordinates in On Growth and Form with my version of one of trees in George Dutch Davidson’s design for Thompson’s study in Dundee.