This exhibition has toured from its initial prestigious opening at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History (where it attracted over 100,000 visitors) to take up residence at the Jackson Foundation Gallery in Cornwall, a large new environmentally informed art space near St Ives.

Featuring new and unseen paintings and sculpture as well as material from the touring exhibition, this body of work explores and celebrates the diversity, role, importance and current plight of bees and other pollinators.

Acknowledging the dangers faced by British bees, Kurt Jackson has spent the past few years exploring the world of pollinators, producing a collection of pieces that are also informed by his grounding in the sciences and his experience as a beekeeper in Cornwall.

Bees (and the odd wasp) in My Bonnet brings this body of work together and includes both plein air and studio pieces embracing an extensive range of materials and techniques including mixed media, large canvases, print making, sculpture and film.

In collaboration with two charities working for the bee, Friends of the Earth, the B4 Project [Bringing Back Black Bees] – whose patrons include Eden Project creator Sir Tim Smit and Glastonbury Festival founder Michael Eavis CBE – as well as Cornwall Wildlife Trust the show presents Jackson’s art alongside fascinating and informative displays of their invaluable work. Along with the latest scientific research into the hazards facing bees, such as neonicotinoid pesticides and habitat losses, the exhibition offers a reflective and empirical view of British bees and wasps.

“My interests in the natural history of bees and wasps goes back to my youth,” says Kurt Jackson. “ As a student reading Zoology at Oxford University I joined an expedition to the Venezuelan Amazon and brought back half a dozen [thought to be new to science] wasp specimens with drawings and information about their nests..”

“This is a wonderful opportunity to view the excellent work of a contemporary artist whose art is concerned with the natural environment. Combining Kurt Jackson’s pieces with current science chimes with ambitions to reflect different approaches to natural history …..the interface of art, science and nature.”  –  Professor Paul Smith, director of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History