Rebecca Louise Law (British b.1980) is known for creating immersive installations with natural materials. Preserved flowers have become the signature of her most recognised works. Individually sewn and suspended, viewers are often invited to navigate through them, discovering the diverse forms, colours and textures of each specimen. These colossal works are intentionally equivocal and while themes of symbolism, consumerism, sustainability and life cycles often present themselves, the artworks also provide a harmonious sense of place for rest and contemplation takes precedence.

Law’s wider practice spans painting, print, weaving, glass, pottery and more. Her work explores the complexity of our human connection to nature with the intent to help inspire a deeper appreciation for it.

“The convenience of consumerism has made everything too easy and too fast. The lack of attention to detail and little understanding of where things come from made me want to focus the viewers' attention back to nature. Flowers are my paint and I work with space as my canvas, but as you enter any installation you are taken back to nature’s divine beauty. The human soul needs nature and time to appreciate all that the earth provides. Over the past 16 years, I have collected over one million flowers, re-using every flower I work with. Recently this has allowed my installations to be large enough to have a complete experience of nature. Installations that have completely enveloped the viewer are Beauty of Decay (2016) at Chandran Galley, Life in Death (2018) at Kew Gardens, Community (2018) at Toledo Museum of Art, and The Womb (2019) at Fredrick Meijer Sculpture Park and Gallery”

The persistence of time often provides context to Law’s work. Historically she has experimented with contrasting states; fresh, preserved, decayed. Most recently, Law has documented a year of daily nature observations in diaries – sketches, notes and videos for the exhibition Seasons.

A commitment to sustainability

Approaching installation art as a painter, Law has strived to give each flower as much value as a drop of paint.

“By breaking down the flowers and preserving each head as an element of colour I settled on swapping my paints for flowers. Flowers became a 3D palette that allowed me to paint my expressions of nature in the air.”

Law’s earliest installation commissions saw her transform huge spaces, using fresh flowers that she allowed to dry within the space. No material would go to waste and any short-term installations would be brought back her studio to dry and re-sculpt. Her works were intended to invite viewers to witness materials preserving over time, allowing the viewer to visit an artwork multiple times for a renewed experience. 

Since 2003 Law has been collecting every flower and every remnant of dust left by flowers. She now has a collection of over 1 million preserved flowers exhibiting in the USA, 250,000 flowers exhibiting in Asia and Australia and a collection of over 500,000 flowers exhibiting in Europe. This body of material keeps growing and with each new exhibition an extra layer of flowers is added to the existing material. Any dust left after installing an artwork is swept up, archived and encased in glass frames.

Recent installations have utilised the artists vast collection of materials, amassed over the last 20 years since the start of this pioneering practice, alongside locally sourced materials. The quantity of material has allowed Law to sculpt monumental artworks that can approach extremely sensitive subjects related to nature.

Using a material that is commonly ephemeral and purely decorative has brought many complexities to Law’s ongoing art practice. She remains loyal to the flower, treasuring every petal beyond its material expectation. The subject of waste and commercialism weighs heavily on Law’s heart and she is a pioneer in adjusting the way we use nature.  

Today Law uses flowers grown in a small family run small holding in Normandy as well as growing her own flowers in Snowdonia. If she creates an installation away from home, the institution provides locally grown flowers either from its own grounds or local gardens. 

‘A dried flower holds time. A fresh flower holds a moment, and both are equally special. The beauty of a dried flower is being able to revisit it and observe it as a preserved object of the earth, a perfect form of nature that holds onto its fragility.’

Engaging the community

Recognising her craft as an opportunity to bring people together, Law has invited various communities to participate in the creation of her installations.

‘Bringing all walks of life together to sit down and make something with their hands is rewarding for everyone. I believe that institutions can make art engagement proactive and less intimidating through community-led art.’

Community-based exhibitions include: The Archive, Calyx, Awakening, The Journey, Seasons, Florilegium, The Womb, Captured, Banquet, Community, La Jardin Préservé, and Pride.

notable commissions

‘Pride’ (Skovgaard Museum, Denmark), ‘The Beauty of Decay’ (Chandran Gallery, USA), ‘Life in Death’ (Shirley Sherwood Gallery, UK), ‘Community’ (The Toledo Museum of Art, USA), ‘The Womb’ (Fredrick Meijer Sculpture Park and Gallery, USA), ‘Seasons’ (Compton Verney Art Gallery, UK) ’The Journey’ (Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, USA) and ‘Awakening’ (Honolulu Museum of Art, USA). Law’s work has also been exhibited by Bo. Lee Gallery, Broadway Studio & Gallery, NOW Gallery, The Garden Museum, Nivaagaards Museum and at institutions such as the Royal Academy of Arts and the Victoria & Albert Museum. A book featuring a collection of Law’s artworks to date, released in October 2017, is available to order.