Megan Baker- Orchid Room — Martha's Contemporary

Megan Baker

Orchid Room

August-September 2022

Orchids are some of the oldest flowers on the planet, with the earliest evidence dating back 112 million years ago to the Early Cretaceous Period. Found on every continent and in every climate, and with 25,000 known species, they are also one of the most adaptable plants too, making them not just one of the oldest but also the most modern flowers known to us. An orchid’s unique root structure allows them to absorb nutrients from the air rather than soil, pulling in the mess of life around us for centuries, spiraling through its blooms and flowering despite its changes. With a life span of 100 years, parallel to that of a human, the Orchids are our ancestors, watching us build and crumble over and over again, collecting our memories within their perfectly constructed structure, then re-rooting anew. They’ve outlasted our most incredible man-made wonders; the tallest buildings will fall before the Orchid ceases to bloom. An ode to the truly indestructible architecture of life - built to endure, designed to evolve.

Megan Baker's work muses over the quiet connection between humans and orchids. With a background in architecture, she examines these unique flowers through the lens of design and structure, showcasing their deeply rooted story past the superficial blooms we've all come to love and celebrating the layered composition they build themselves within. Instead of viewing the orchid as an accessory to the human experience, she asks “Who are we to the orchid?”.

***Orchid Study No. 3***
**22" x 30"**
**Mixed media collage, graphite, watercolor, pen**
**2022**

***Orchid Study No. 4***
**22" x 30"**
**Mixed media collage, graphite, watercolor, pen**
**2022**

***On Ice***
**8"x10"**
**Deep matte print**
**2022**

***Before/After***
**8"x10"**
**Deep matte print**
**2022**

***Balance***
**8"x10"**
**Deep matte print**
**2022**

***Float***
**8"x10"**
**Deep matte print**
**2022**

***Eternal Orchid***
**11"x 23"**
**Resin, faux orchids, 35mm lm negatives, cut colored acrylic, beetle wings, buttery wings, wire mesh, metal chain, bubble wrap**
**2022**