23. Martha Iserman

Illustration | Painting

Martha Iserman is a mythic nature artist who reimagines folklore through the lens of natural history. Her watercolours and oils depict flora, fauna, and liminal habitats as sites of transformation and symbolism.

Blending alchemy with ecology, she creates worlds that suggest the unseen narratives linking human culture to the living landscape.

Martha’s studio feels like a naturalist’s cabinet crossed with a painter’s workshop. Microscopes, sketchbooks, and paints are surrounded by pinned insects, feathers, and botanical clippings. Works in progress—mythic watercolours, detailed oils, and alchemical sketches—create an atmosphere of experimentation where science, folklore, and imagination are given equal space to shape her practice.

"I create art to reveal the hidden stories in nature. My work bridges science illustration and folklore, showing how plants and animals carry myth, memory, and meaning. Through painting, I explore transformation and symbolism, inviting others to see the natural world not only as fact but as a living, imaginative narrative."

— Martha Iserman