I've been inspired by Eastwood ever since botanist Peter Raven, who had the good fortune to meet Eastwood at the CAS as a child, made me aware of her. Joyous and adventurous, brilliant and kind, her personality shines in her papers, scientific work, and the memories of those whose lives she touched. As always with these pieces in progress, it was a delight to think about her, her life and her legacy while at work.
There are wonderful images of Eastwood throughout her adult life. I chose the larger one below, which was taken around 1910, because I loved both her expression and that wonderful period hat. The smaller image below captures Eastwood examining the earthquake's fault trace near Olema, CA in 1906.
The plant I've used here is Fritillaria eastwoodiae or Eastwood's fritillary. In my collage, the bottom label acknowledges her standard botanical name.
It felt odd to incorporate a book about birds in a collage about a botanist, yet something drew me very strongly to this cover. As I worked I realized that its wing-feathers and eggs seemed to speak of the role that teaching and mentorship played in her legacy. "My desire is to help, not to shine," she is quoted as saying; certainly, she helped hatch and nurture many "baby birds" in the scientific community.
The plant I've used here is Fritillaria eastwoodiae or Eastwood's fritillary. In my collage, the bottom label acknowledges her standard botanical name.
It felt odd to incorporate a book about birds in a collage about a botanist, yet something drew me very strongly to this cover. As I worked I realized that its wing-feathers and eggs seemed to speak of the role that teaching and mentorship played in her legacy. "My desire is to help, not to shine," she is quoted as saying; certainly, she helped hatch and nurture many "baby birds" in the scientific community.
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| Alice Eastwood, pioneering botanist. Sources: Eastwood photograph Eastwood observing earthquake fault Fritillaria eastwoodiae, permissions pending The Home Life of Wild Birds, 1901 (book cover), permissions pending |