Gabriela Piwar

The Wetland Glimmers in Pink is a visual record of an encounter with a cross-leaved heath—a plant under strict species protection in Poland that is threatened with extinction. It is a story about a fraction of the observed plant life and its gradual imperceptible disappearance.

The light pink colour of the flowers, turning into brown in the course of blooming, symbolises transience and rebirth and reflects the fleetingness and fragility of existence. Inside the withered perigonium, fruits develop, and seeds within them will soon spill out and be scattered throughout the wetlands. It is in the seeds that the hope of new life lies.

The aim of the degree piece is not only to express delight in the beauty of plants, but also to sensitise recipients to the disappearance of species and to emphasise the importance of protecting natural ecosystems.