During the ‘Snowpocalypse’ of 2008 I harvested ‘ice leaves’ from the plants around my neighborhood. I kept them in the freezer and sent them to Nova Scotia for a show about landscape.

Related events and exhibitions:

The Frontier is Here, Inverness County Centre for the Arts, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, 2009

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Rose City Garnish is inspired by a chunk of the Lowell Glacier, (from the southwestern Yukon), that my dad kept in the freezer.  Every time there was occasion for a glass of whiskey with friends, he would chip pieces from the specimen, a mass of ice that had been frozen for thousands of years. Each drink was garnished with the taste of another time and place.

I moved to Portland this year and wintered far from my own northern Canadian habitat. My new neighborhood is full of unfamiliar botanical varieties: Rhododendron, Illex, Magnolia, Laurel, Azalea, New Zealand Flax, Bamboo and Rose.  My home on North Borthwick Avenue has a giant Monkey Puzzle Tree growing in the front yard, one of many brought to Portland by a Chilean delegate for the 1904 World’s Fair.

During the final month of 2008, the ‘Snowpocalypse’ that hit the pacific northwest brought a five-day stretch of sub-freezing temperatures, as well as a December-record 18.9 inches of snowfall. Snow covered all manner of bush, leaf, sprig and tree. Leaves were molds and plates. The ice became a relief, or print, and the mini multiples were my popsicles.

Rose City Garnish is a collection of ‘ice leaves’ harvested on Dec 22, 2008 in anticipation of your wild-crafted cocktail.  Like early explorers who sent exotic trophies home, you are invited to sample this souvenir.  Each ice leaf is a charm, a cryogenic tinge and a botanical collaboration with your surroundings.

Hannah Jickling, 2009

Portland, Oregon

On August 2, 2009, during the opening reception for The Frontier is Here, ask the bartender for a Rose City Garnish, (available while supplies last).