(Be)Longing
This artwork is inspired by Mary Oliver’s poem, Wild Geese, the words of which are etched across the landscape. I first heard this poem around 20 years ago and it instantly struck an emotional chord. For me, the first three lines of the poem evoke self-acceptance and self-forgiveness. There is a permissiveness to just ‘be’ which, for someone who through introjection, developed a harsh self-critic, a sense of self bound by shame and guilt it provides a cathartic release.
There is also a deep reminder of our shared humanity: that we all can feel despair and loneliness but equally that we are part of a bigger natural world, an ecosystem full of beauty and possibility!
Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown this poem re-emerged into my mind twice: through a poetry exchange in my workplace and then through an art project where participants were invited to share a poem. In contemplating a submission for this exhibition, it therefore seemed a natural ‘muse’."