'Inroads'
Steel rods, polyethylene foam sheeting

Based in Northumberland, Karen Rann has worked on commissions and residencies in rural locations and farming communities in Britain as well as abroad. In the wildflower meadow itself she is has created a pattern with light foam ‘slabs’ which hover above the wild flowers. During the course of the summer, the meadow will grow to meet the floating shapes, creating a trail on the tip of the wild flowers which will then fall away again by autumn.

The motif created is a replica of the spiralling rows of plant cells as they reproduce and grow outwards (primordia), an event occurring all around in the meadow. The “spiral arms” of cells draw attention to the scientific desire to control and manipulate nature through genetic engineering, raises the question of ethical boundaries.