Leigh Anne Lester's work investigates the birth of genetic modification and its aftereffects. She uses meticulous layering and collaging to mimic the distorting effects of genetic modification. "Although "Adjacent Impression 1.1" may appear as an amalgamated growth, the composition is very much meticulously coordinated. This ecosystem of offspring comes from duplicated, mutated, and mirrored genetic sequences of plant life, appearing almost like a frozen moment in a time-lapse video capturing the chaotic blossoming of life from a petri dish. Walking the line of the familiar and the unfamiliar, Lester finds a niche within the optical illusions of space and shape."

Hayman, Lizza, and Dr. Scott A. Sherer. Thorns & Living Systems: Jayne Lawrence, Leigh Anne Lester, cactusBRA/cactusBARN. San Antonio: University of Texas at San Antonio, page 57




"[Her] personal interpretation of genetic modification, paired with masterful draftsmanship and the incorporation of other media, has brought a 21st-century aesthetic to the long-established botanical drawing tradition." - Patricia Ruiz-Healy, Ph.D.