Homesick Swifts.

I haven’t had much time of late to ‘blog’ but finally some time and also something to say.

I started reworking some old prints, which has led me to a new series of work on small pieces of paper. I call these works; books, but they are books in the loosest terms. Literally, loose pages. Designed to look like they are torn from the pages of a book. Impermanent, throw-away and if they are discarded.

However, this isn’t the only association I want this particular book to have, I am printing pages on very thin Japanese rice paper. This is because I want the quality of the paper to reflect the qualities of a Swift; a bird that is not only incredibly light in weight, (Swifts only weigh a few grammes) but also spends it’s whole life on the wing, constantly moving and soaring the skies, but not only that, Swifts are also a migratory bird and are in another constant movement between continents. Between homes. I hope that by combining images of migration patterns, maps and my own drawings of swifts in flight, as well as the lightness of the paper that I hopefully start to communicate the story of these birds.

Here are a few pictures from today’s work, it’s work in progress and I look forward to seeing it grow over the next week or so.

I’m also starting a dry point etching of a Jay this week, as well as finally finishing a lino cut of a Rookery that I started months ago.  As well as Letterpress training on Monday!  A lovely poet friend of mine has also give me some words about Swifts to use, I will again post a few pictures and a few words on the process.

Tomorrow, a rare day off.

Please feed the birds.

Martha

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