Ghost Pipe Triptych
Linocut print
Three shades of midnight blue oil-based print ink on Arnhem 1618 paper
22” x 10”
Edition of 5

This is a study of three clusters of Ghost Pipes in the twilight. Each one was carved from its own block and printed separately, meaning that each of these pieces went through three rounds of printing. That left LOTS of room for error, which is why I only ended up with and edition of five prints total.

More about the Ghost Pipe:

I first stumbled (literally) upon the Ghost Pipe, or Monotropa Uniflora, on a hike in one of my favorite Lake Michigan forests. I was immediately struck by its strange beauty, having seen nothing like it before. Upon learning more about this elusive plant, my fascination with it has only grown.

The Ghost Pipe is a highly medicinal plant, often used for helping with epilepsy and PTSD, and also helpful in times of transition or great loss; it is a healer. It is indeed a flower, though it lacks chlorophyll and instead draws its nutrients from the roots of trees and the fungi between them without starving either; it is a secret and determined survivor. It pushes its shoulders through the forest decay after the rains to stand strong with frail petals among the pines; it is proud and often unnoticed. I have read that some indigenous tribes believed that Ghost Pipes, growing in clusters in the forest, represented the spirits of men who once stood and deliberated important issues on that very land. To me, men standing in circles deciding fates is an old and tired story. I like to think of the Ghost Pipes instead as the spirits of women gathered, rising up from the old dying matter that has always piled above them, sustained by underground networks, to offer beauty, strength, and health.