absence to liberation

Click on this image to see it larger.

I made these years ago and just stumbled across them again. Sometimes it's nice to revisit old work and see that although the physical qualities of the work may be quite different, there are themes that reappear time and time again.

banana chips

A parcel from an old student, Huda Abdul Aziz, arrived the other day... Thank you!

chained books

From 'Books & Printing' by John Cutforth. Blackwell's Learning Library 1978.

off camping!

the 17 rooms theory revisited

Last year, in this old post I wrote about a friend saying that I was like a house with 17 rooms. Yesterday when I cleared a cupboard for the car-boot, I came across this in a folder of drawings I made when I was a kid. 17 rooms indeed. Fancy that.

billow

ganseys & knit-frocks

'Excuse me. Do you remember any knitting like this?'
'I should think I do - my Granny knitted hundreds.'
'Can you tell me anything about them?'
'She only knitted for her own. They were masterpieces and they were all different. She knitted a hole in the front…'
'What for?'
'For the pocket watches. All her boys had one (jerseys). Uncle Willie lost his, couldn't find it anywhere and Granny was mad. She had a stall every week at Rock and Padstow markets. Twelve months after, Granny saw a man wearing Uncle Willie's jersey. "Here", she said, "you' got my boy's jersey on." "I hab'n," he said. "Yes, you have," she said, and called a policeman to arrest him. "How do you know this is your boy's jersey?" the policeman asked. "You make'n lift up his arms," said Granny. "You'll see I knitted a 'W' under one arm and an 'S' under the other and my boy's name is Willie Steer - what's his?"

Image and text: Cornish Guernseys & Knit-frocks, Mary Wright, Polperro Heritage Press, 2008.

I find myself back at names. And despite trying to turn my head away from using the sea as source material for my work (it's a bit obvious isn't it, if you're based here, by the water) this, and the previous post about sailors gold earrings are intriguing. They make a comfortable pair.

mariner's law

'Do you know why sailors wear gold in their ears?' Uncle asked me. 'It was the law, long ago, that a sailor had to have on his person enough gold to bury him should he wash ashore. So the seaside folk wouldn't be out of pocket at the funeral expense.'

Ahab's Wife, or The Star-Gazer, Sena Jeter Naslund, The Women's Press, 2000.