Linnean Society

We partnered with The Linnean Society, London’s historic botanical association, as part of London Craft Week. Collaborating with furniture maker Alfred Newall, we created 'Herbarium Cabinet' as a contemporary take on cabinets designed to house and preserve plant specimens. We applied individually handpainted botanical studies onto the cabinet in a decoupage technique, inspired by the walls of Carl Linnaeus’ bedroom in Hammarby, Sweden. Paying homage to a design lineage that runs from naturalist Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778) to botanist Carl Lindman (1856–1928) and designer Josef Frank (1885–1967), the piece celebrates the synergy of art, craft and science. The cabinet was displayed in the Library of The Linnean Society, with corresponding botanical specimens from Linnaeus’ own collection exhibited alongside the piece. Tess hosted a Botanical Drawing workshop in the Library as part of the collaboration.