Peonies & Tulips Still life II, edition 3/50 Photograph

Award winning, London based botanical photographer Kaylie Mountford studied at UCA, Surrey going onto work with photographer Nick Knight & SHOWstudio. Heading into a busy career specialising in botanical photography, print design & illustration. Known for large scale photographs and bold designs exploring the depths of tones and layered structures within plants & flowers making them centre stage in her work. ‘Flowers tell a thousand stories, from their life and role as a natural formation through to how we have interactive with and used them over our existence. We surround ourselves with them, using them symbolically, medicinally, in perfumery, in art and simply for their sheer beauty and the joy that they bring, when fresh through to their decay. Their transiency represent the life cycle that we go through in a way that we can observe and comprehend’ Her layered compositions are intense and striking, often leaving no space between the viewer and the piece, merging you into a world where botanical shapes and structures take over. Mountford explores personal responses to life, inner thoughts and direct cultural experiences conveyed through the use of structures, forms and colours found in nature. The maximalist style expresses the overwhelming nature of the world around us and how we process it. The large scale prints echo the layering found in the still life paintings of O’Keefe and photographer Imogen Cunningham and are often dark with sinister undertones drawing you into a world where nature is the definitive being.