During a 2009 artist residency in Berlin, I worked on large mixed media works of plant forms that I collected throughout the city. In the summer, Berlin is a lush, green place with flowers everywhere. In the midst of all this fecundity, there is also the weight of history captured by architectural remnants of past times. This is a very textural city. Ubiquitous posters layer on top of each other along with stains, mold, graffiti and stickers. I find beauty in this chaotic layering which becomes a metaphor for the city itself. Overall, the Schattengarten series is an attempt to explore my own internalized response to the environment and people of Berlin and Germany.