I started Stamped by Nature with the idea of running a community project to raise awareness about the importance of our native UK plants and fungi. These species are vital to our ecosystems, but they're often overlooked and not thought to be as exciting as exotic plants or as interesting as charismatic animals. 

I wanted to create a project that would encourage people to appreciate the nature that surrounds them and to learn about the plants and fungi that people across different communities felt a connection with and why. And so, the idea to run a creative project that highlighted the beauty and interesting parts of these species was born.

Now, as somebody who's not particularly good at drawing or art myself, I knew I would need to deliver this project in a way that would be feasible for me to achieve. Therefore, I decided to develop a worksheet where people could draw, sketch, paint, collage, write or use another creative medium to create an artwork of their favourite UK plant or fungi. This project was to be collaborative, and so I opted to use a collage of 'postage stamps' to create a larger work of art. People would be able to draw a species of their choice in a template, and I could shrink them down to be part of a collaged map of the UK. The use of postage stamps worked to express the idea that people stamp their mark on nature, but it stamps its mark on us too. Stamps also often highlight connection, another key theme of the project.

Before I could really begin getting stuck into the project, I needed a way to fund it. I applied for the Royal Botanic Garden Kew's competitive Grow Wild youth grant and was fortunate to be selected among 20 people across the UK. The project could officially begin!

I began by developing some resources to help people learn about different species in the form of fact files; it can be difficult to pick just one species so this would provide guidance for those that wanted it. 

I then reached out to different community groups who kindly agreed to let me run workshops with them. These included North Wales Wildlife Trust’s youth forum, North Wales Africa Society, and GISDA’s LGBTQ+ youth groups. There was also an option to submit artworks online for those that were unable to access these workshops. In providing this option I hoped to be as inclusive as possible and to learn about the species that people from different places in North Wales appreciated. I was pleased to receive a few submissions here, including from a group of young people from Parkfields in Flintshire!

The artworks created by members of the community either through online submissions or in the workshops were brought together to create the art piece that you can see below. 

It took a few tries to get things right, and I even had to make the stamps even smaller as I received so many lovely pieces of art! In total, there were around 125 unqiue designs, and over 250 stamps all together! Each stamp was carefully arranged and meticulously trimmed to form the final image of a map of the UK.

The artwork itself represented a range of themes and idea that emphasise the significance of these species to biodiversity and conservation in the UK and the importance of community in environmental movements.

Map design:
Highlights the national significance of native plants and fungi and the diversity of species found in the UK.

The stamps:
Stamps often highlight important cultural aspects of a country and represent connection between people due to their association with letters. Similar themes are implied in the artwork with the use of a stamp design.

Community artworks:
Showcase how nature has stamped its mark on people. Since the artworks have been interpreted by people in different ways, it also highlights how people can stamp their mark on plants and fungi.

Answers to why people chose certain species:
Evidence how plants and fungi connect us. Many of us share a connection with certain plants and fungi, even if it’s as simple as enjoying their colour.

I chose to store the answers given by project participants in a way that highlighted their value, so I created a stamp album similar to the ones traditionally used to store stamp collections. This stamp album was created entirely from recycled materials, including cardboard, paper, a mix of old paints, and thread to bind the pages. By creating the album from these materials, I hoped to highlight the idea that you can create lovely things by respecting the environment and reducing waste. I also selected some artworks with similar reasons or themes into a short video to highlight some of the main reasons that people chose certain species. You can watch it below.

I finished off the project with a one-day exhibition at Penrhyn Hall in Bangor where members of the public could come to explore the results of their creativity and hard work and enjoy some tea and cake. I also knew it was important to recognise the Welsh language, after all the Welsh language is a vital part of life in North Wales and we all work together to support the environment. I made sure to provide the main interpretation texts for the exhibition bilingually to promote this idea.

To spread the joy further, I also gave away native wildflower seeds and a postcard featuring the final artwork to all project participants who visited the exhibition or who took part in the in-person workshops. This would serve as a reminder of their participation in the project. 

I hope that this exhibition allowed people to recognise the significance of collective and individual action in protecting and appreciating native UK plants and fungi, and that people enjoyed seeing their artworks on display.

Thank you to everyone who took part in the project and came along with me on this journey, including Kew for funding this project as part of their Grow Wild national outreach programme and North Wales Wildlife Trust for their support of this project.