Travels of William Bartram‚ÄîReconsidered examines the history and culture of 18th-century American naturalists, John and his son William Bartram. Using their travel journals, drawings, and maps, Season 4 artist Mark Dion is retracing the journey of William Bartram, in particular, to northern Florida. Like Bartram, he is collecting things both natural and unnatural, making drawings and paintings of them, examining them, and mailing them back to Bartram’s Garden in Philadelphia. The treasures that Dion finds will be installed in cabinets in the historic home of John Bartram next year.
Dion’s journey started with a send-off from Bartram’s in mid-November in Philadelphia. His travels can be followed online here, featuring monthly video chats, video of daily travels, city stops, photo galleries, audio, Mark’s handwritten journals, drawings and maps that pinpoint where he is.
The exhibition Mark Dion: Travels of William Bartram‚ÄîReconsidered will open June 20, 2008 at Bartram’s Garden.
For more information on the project, visit its website at https://www.markdionsbartramstravels.com. See more photos on the project’s Flickr site here.
