To create the series entitled Amateur Watching at Passport Control (2016-2019), I studied all 195 passport covers currently in circulation worldwide. I dissected the symbolism of coats of arms featured on the covers and identified four major categories: flora, birds, big cats, and weapons. For the series, I isolated each symbol from its national context and drew it true to the source on a copper plate, etched and one copy printed. From Lebanon’s cedar to Mauritius’ dodo,  to Georgia’s lions, and East Timor’s AK 47, the four series of Amateur Watching at Passport Control bring to life this curious intersection between nation and nature.