Charmaine Watkiss
The warriors way: illuminating the antidote and curative, 2026
Water soluble graphite, coffee, pencil, watercolour, watercolour pencil and ink on paper
76 x 56 cm
29 7/8 x 22 in
Framed:
88 x 68 cm
34 5/8 x 26 3/4 in
29 7/8 x 22 in
Framed:
88 x 68 cm
34 5/8 x 26 3/4 in
Copyright The Artist
This plant has its origins in South America and the Caribbean. Physician Dr. Henry Barham in his Hortus Americanus, 1794, noted its medicinal use and the fact that it was...
This plant has its origins in South America and the Caribbean. Physician Dr. Henry Barham in his Hortus Americanus, 1794, noted its medicinal use and the fact that it was also used as an antidote to poisoning. There is a long tradition of using bitters in West Africa (and the Caribbean), and consumed in the correct dose this plant was used as such. Because of the oiliness of the seeds there are stories of Africans in Jamaica making a skewer of them and burning as a candle. In Brazil the oil from the seeds were regarded as a sovereign remedy for rheumatic pain.