Cherish

22" x 17.7"/56 x 45cm

Oil on aluminium panel

2023

SOLD

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We are irrevocably intertwined with the earth and nature, which is complex and multi-layered, in ways we cannot begin to understand. We must cherish and support all life, and not just the cuddly and pretty species, because all life is valuable and has a part to play in our existence and in the balance of nature. Rooks tend not to be popular birds. They're one of the less attractive of the Corvid family, and farmers often dislike them because they eat crops. But rooks are highly intelligent and intensely social animals, who form life-long pair bonds. I often listen to them gently 'talking' to eat other, as they sit on the wires above our house. They may eat some crops, but they also dig for the pests in our lawn. They are an integral part of our ecosystem. In Celtic mythology they were the symbols of wisdom and adaptability: something of which we are now in great need.
I have placed the halo of flowers behind the rook to show that they too are sacred. The flower is an allium, which symbolises, amongst other things, unity and patience. By painting the rook and halo inside Ayda's body, I am trying to say that all nature must be carried within us, and cherished as a part of life.