Through the microscope, envisioning another world away.

The honours project of Max Ross is looking into plants and the rolling landscape of Scotland, where he finds himself. He is specifically interested in the microbiology of how plants live and grow. The research he has conducted by using a macro lens and a microscope informs the organic sculptures crafted from porcelain clay. The organic life seen under the microscope is a form of escapism, and this escapism is what Ross is capturing in his sculptures. “The more you look the more you see”. The sculptures also have themes of life and death. The cracks in the leaves and where the leaves have been snapped or torn represent the decay in real plants. This is something Ross was very interested in when he could see the living decay of plants through the use of research. “Without death, there isn’t life”. This plays into the balance of life and death captured within the sculptures.