Words with Iris July 2021

It had been months since Iris and I connected, both of us have had a busy year. It is always so grounding to hear her voice carefully analyse the photos I have sent her. We stray into other topics then work our way back to my work. She set me a task; to make five of the same objects over a 9-day period and I felt strangely relieved to have a rigid path set for me. I determined to use a variety of materials and work as quickly as possible not agonising about the work just making and moving onto the next piece. Excellent, why do I not do this all the time??

The result was a mixed bag but as Iris predicted it provided a platform for discussion and further making. I wouldn’t say I’m on point with relevance to my initial concept this year but actually that doesn’t matter, sometimes the work dictates direction and we follow the breadcrumbs on the forest floor until the gingerbread house comes into view.

Iris has set me a new task while she is in Maine on Deer Island doing a residency there. Between moving house, cardboard boxes confront me at every turn, and the arrival of my first grandchild (a home birth to which I have been asked to attend) I will attempt to produce work! I guess we all fantasise about having clear space ahead in which to produce work but life with its attendant dramas presses on relentlessly.

Heart # 2, linen, silk, sterling silver and steel pins 120 mm x 130 mm 2021. ‘Her heart had become a pincushion’

Heart #1 Copper and raw silk, 80 x 90 mm

Heart #5, taffeta, raw silk, sterling silver, cotton, steel pins, 85 x 100 mm.

Heart #3, ebony, cotton, 85 x 45 x 55 mm.