This (permanently unfinished) piece is influenced by my time spent hiking in the Amazon, trekking in boots that didn't fit me through rain and mud and feeling the pulse of the earth beneath my feet. There are groves of lemon ant trees you can find in the rainforest where no other plant grows - not so much as a weed or single other species. In the native language, Kichwa, these groves are referred to as "supay chakra" - meaning "the devil's garden." Devil's gardens get their name because locals believe that an evil forest spirit, Chullachaki (meaning "uneven foot, single foot" in Kichwa) lived in them. Biologically, the reason nothing else grows is that the ants systematically poison all of the other plants. What's particularly interesting is that these ants don't have formic acid, like most of their cousins - they have citric acid, which is why they taste like lemon! I have sat in the devil's garden and eaten that living, bitter fruit. The experience lingers. . . . . . #illustration #drawing #sketch #idea #memory #figment #mythology #legend #lore #devil #supaychakra #concept #process #devilsgarden
