Wallum banksia flower (Banksia aemula), 2020

Oil based ink on 225gsm acid free paper

210mm x 148mm

Banksias are an all-time favourite of mine. I even collected some to add to the bouquets that were presented to the Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex when they visited K'gari (Fraser Island) in 2018. When they are in season you often see the cobi (native bee) buzzing around them gathering the dripping honey. 

The Wallum Banksia, or Banksia aemula, can occur along the coast from Bundaberg down to Sydney. Their bold and beautiful flowers are icons of Australian flora and they stand out in the bush, unlike the other wildflowers that I photographed. This was the only 'mega-flora' I saw while walking that day and I couldn't resist taking a photo. Lino printing lends itself well to capturing the sharp edges of the leaves and the fine filaments of the flower stamens.

I have included the scientific name with these prints because common names can be applied to similar plants leading to confusion. To find the scientific name we used the Mangroves to Mountains 2nd edition by Glenn Leiper, Jan Glazebrook, Denis Cox & Kerry Rathie and the Noosa Native Plants website.

To purchase a hand-printed limited edition of this print visit www.rosebarrowcliffe.com