I was invited to show work at Fannie & Fox’s, The Dead Good Show. An ‘Exhibition where various artists explore the theme of death, with the aim of encouraging the beginning of a dialogue’
I don’t work to themes but this particular theme already runs through out my work on many levels so preparing for it has been a wonderful opportunity or maybe just the kick I needed to get me thinking about what I do.
Over the last month or so I have painted dead birds, sorted out my bird skull collection, started reading and hunting for poetry hoping to find my words in the mouth of someone with more skill than I have. I’ve been painting, drawing and writing in my sketchbooks. I tried to make something fit but it wouldn’t. I really didn’t know what I was going to put in this show.
Then I realised the work I had in my Open Studio and The Poly Summer Show this year has hardly been seen and is made for this show. And eventually I stopped worrying too much and let stuff happen and curiously I ended up in my garage last week making something new. I was throwing away all the words I’d gathered over the years, thinking its time to move on and find new words, but I couldn’t quite throw them away, yet. Instead I started collaging them and layering them with wax and resin.
All those words are gone now but I have one last poem.
“Poetry is what happens when nothing else can.” – Charles Bukowski
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