Egyptian Book of the Dead Exhibition

Just been out to see the exhibition of the Egyptian Book of the Dead at the British Museum before it closes in a few days time.

Really busy in the exhibition, slowly queuing to look at the work in the first few rooms, rather tired when I got to the final room, which was a shame because there were not many people there.

It was a moving and intense experience, I am always cagey about exhibitions involving spiritual practise and human burials. I think that remains like mummies should not be on display and returned to their homeland. There was one such mummified body as part of the exhibition, but the main features were the texts of the Egyptian rituals surrounding death.

Some beautifully illustrated texts that took my breath away, something about the power of such painting as part of a ritual and religious context that lead the work to have a power of communication. Visitors there were really paying attention to the texts and reading all the notes and small bits of translation.

Going through the rooms, the images started to add up, the patterns of the symbols repeated. I made quick sketches of some of the birds as I went round.


I started to have more of a sense of the connection between these Egyptian rituals and Buddhist rituals and even thought about the surviving Christian rituals of confession and the Last Rites, but generally here we have lost the rituals surrounding death. Glad I did make the exhibition though, I can see some of the symbols becoming part of my work.

Beyond Words Exhibition and Elephant Parade

Saturday 15th of May is the opening of the Waltham Forest Arts Club exhibition Beyond Words. Our new venue, since the Changing Room Gallery will be closed for redevelopment, is in the Red Room in the arts and theatre pub, Ye Olde Rose and Crown in Hoe street Walthamstow. info about the venue here

I have put in 2 pieces of work, one artists book called Bird and one mixed media piece a bird light with words written on it.
Arts Club website here

There have been dozens of painted elephants appearing on the streets of London over the last week or so. They are a fundraising installation for the charity Elephant Family info here

They have been painted by famous designers and artists and I have been photographing them as I go out and about.

For Woman's Day and signs of Spring.

I have been thinking about a series of images and texts for Woman's Day and experimenting with spray painting and printing some paper.

The series is called True Romance, this is the first piece that looks at the issue of equal pay for woman. I was surprised to find that equal pay was first enshrined in the 1950s and to see the discrepancy that there still is especially in part time work.
It amounts to another huge tax on woman's earnings.

Out and about over the last few days it seems that tentative signs of Spring are finally emerging. It has been a long and cold winter this year and the daffodils are still not out fully here in London. In St James park the crocus were just out and daffodils just starting to flower. There were quite a few people out in the park and seagulls , ducks and geese on the water.