In the winter of 2019/2020 I created a series of floral installations adorning fireplaces in houses around the city of Detroit. Some of the fireplaces were working and helped to heat the homes being lived in. Others had been out of commission for years. With this series I explored the element of fire and ways in which we interact with it. I examined our utilitarian ways of harnessing fire and how they have evolved throughout civilization, our relationship to the sun as the life-giving center of our solar system, and our ceremonial relationship to fire. Humans have and continue to use fire as a means for warming, growing, and cleansing. Stopped in my tracks by the pandemic in Spring of 2020 I am yet to complete the last of this series which explores wild fires. As soon as I have finished the series, images of the final install will be included here. Each fireplace installation was accompanied by a different event gathering friends together. Some of the images here captured a wider glimpse of the gathering, others are simply a snapshot of the botanical décor.

Photos by: Mark McClelland