SPRI N G/ SUMMER 2024
Time To Be A Kid
Nature’s Renaissance
Serene Getaways
Stylish Model
Nature Inspires
Wildflower
A Package for
Homes
at Camp
Meadow
Every Occasion
Serenbe
Restoration
Page 13
Page 14
Pa g e 1 7
Lots To Love
Pa g e 2 0
Page 14
INTO THE WOODS
Landscape Inspired Artist-in-Residence Thomas Jackson
A
fter a decade of working in wide open spaces—coastal prairies, beaches, deserts and more—a residency at Art Farm at Serenbe was a chance to get back to where visual artist and photographer Thomas Jackson’s installation practice began: in the woods. The artist is known for his fine art photography that combines landscapes, sculpture and kinetic art. His site-responsive installations, which he creates and photographs on location, pair brightly colored, manufactured materials with the ephemeral beauty of natural landscapes. A Serenbe resident who purchased one of Jackson’s works from Jackson Fine Art in Atlanta suggested to the Art Farm that he might make a great artist in residence, and through a collaboration with the renowned art gallery that coincidentally shares Jackson’s name, the idea was realized in spring 2023. “The essence of my work is juxtaposition. I take [objects] that don’t seem like they belong and bring them into equilibrium with the environment. So much of what we do as humans is try to get nature to conform to us. A lot of the pieces I create do the opposite, mimicking the contours of the landscape, moving with the wind and responding to natural light as it changes,” said Jackson.
When Jackson visited Serenbe, he found lush, sun-dappled forests carpeted in wildflowers, humming with wildlife. After walking 10 miles in one day, he was inspired to create three installations that became four photographs in his “Thomas Jackson x Serenbe” series. “The installations I made at Serenbe feel different from other work I’ve done in recent years. They’re more intimate, more enmeshed with the environments they inhabit. I feel like I’ve tapped into a new range of emotions with these images, thanks to the context of a verdant Georgia forest in springtime,” said Jackson, whose prior locations have included Nantucket; Napinoch, New York and Tiburon in Northern California. The first installation in the woods featured multiple long pieces of colorful tulle that swayed over a lush wooded scenery, and produced two beautiful photographs, “Tulle No. 51” and “Tulle No. 51 (Variant).” To persuade the tulle to move amongst the trees, Jackson borrowed leaf blowers and tapped some volunteer helpers from the community. The second piece, “Tulle No. 52,” also showcased the ethereal fabric; this time, as it danced like fire in the middle of Serenbe’s wildflower meadow. Jackson said when the sun was low in the sky, a magical spotlight came through the trees and illuminated the exact center of the