2015
A
Circular Walk
Artist Book
Collagraph plates,
glass, steel
My aim is to
capture the experience of walks made on Dartmoor and along the
South West Coastal
path. Crucial factors are that of scale, immersion, texture,
repetition,
fragmentation and movement, through the development of images that
capture the
‘embodied’ fragmentary moments of my walking experience. As I walk
I become aware of
the shifting light, my eye catches patterns, small details, a
gnarled tree bark,
small tufts of grass blowing across a field, a blue tit darting from
a blossoming
hawthorn bush. I observe the changing seasons in the hedgerows,
bare brown in the
winter and bursting with new growth in spring. I feel the wind in
my hair and the sun
on my face. I smell the sea, the scent of pinecones or wild
garlic. I walk,
pause, reflect, listen, touch, take notes, and make prints.
Manifesto for an Artist Explorer
Plan a walk.
Make a walk a week, choosing different times of the day.
Repeat a walk and observe what is different,
Leave something to be collected next time.
Jot down impressions and observations
Pause every so often to collect an object, make some marks, write some
words.
As you walk breathe the air, stop, listen, just be.
Tread lightly leaving minimal trace.
Use the senses
Be aware of the spaces in between things.
Practice a soft gaze, a relaxed awareness to tune into slower,
unconscious ways
of knowing.
Make artwork that responds to the walking experience.
(Adapted from original by Karen House)
Rosie Kearton
2009
