NB: This painting can be secured now. It is on show in John Dyer’s ‘Spirit of the Harvest’ Exhibition at the Eden Project and will be shipped after 9 February 2026, or sooner on request.

In ‘Jungle Bananas, Costa Rica’ John Dyer, Eden Project’s Artist in Residence and an official Artist for the Earth with Earth Day, painted directly en plein air in the hot, humid atmosphere of the Caribbean rainforest. Surrounded by towering banana plants — the world’s largest herb — the artist captured the immediacy of the harvest where local farmers use machetes to cut down heavy bunches of fruit beneath the dense canopy.

Dyer’s brushwork is expressive and fluid, describing the arcs of giant leaves and the rhythm of human movement, while flashes of scarlet and black mark the presence of tropical birds. The rainforest floor teems with life: butterflies drift across the undergrowth, beetles scuttle through leaf litter, and even large bird-eating spiders appear amongst the shadows. The surface of the canvas glows with colour, painted in the very heat and humidity that defines this extraordinary environment.

Bananas and plantains are a cornerstone of tropical diets, eaten daily across Central America and vital to nutrition, livelihoods and international trade. In Costa Rica, this crop sustains families and connects the rainforest to the wider world through global export, making it one of the most important foods on earth.

This original painting is both a celebration of biodiversity and a cultural record of the banana harvest. Collecting a John Dyer work is to invest in the vision of Cornwall’s best-loved artist, while bringing the colour, energy and vitality of the Caribbean rainforest into your own collection.

Item Information

The painting is featured in the book 'Painting the Colours of the World' by Kate Dinn.

Discover John Dyer's Rainforest Art Amazon Indian Paintings

Artist Information Links

John Dyer has painted in many locations including Borneo and the Amazon rainforest in Brazil.

Artist Chronology I Paintings in Public Collections I View John Dyer's Latest Paintings