‘Time (Autumn 2024)’
oak leaf, cotton thread
13.5 H x 11 W cm
 
I made this piece a few weeks ago. It holds moments and memories of late autumn - days of golden sunshine and nature changing colours, time spent appreciating every curve and detail of one single leaf with the crochet lines reminiscent of the rings of time within the tree itself.
 
Almost ready to be framed and then it cracked.
 
I’m often asked about breakages, which are generally perceived as a loss, a disappointment or ‘wasted’ time. After 17 years of working with leaves breakages are very rare, but when they do happen, they tend to be a sign of an inner imbalance, a reminder to regain my focus, but also an opening for new ideas. Imperfections, cracks and mistakes are part of the work and part of life and nature. They can lead to a recalibration, sparking fresh approaches and deeper meaning.
Over time, mending and readjusting have become major topics in my work and so have the concepts of time and value. What is precious to us, how do we show it and how do we care? How do we value time and how does time add value?

Usually, a piece of work gets mounted and framed as soon as it is finished. But when this one broke, it opened an opportunity to experiment further - cyanotype printing allowed me to add another aspect of capturing the essence of these autumn days by keeping a tangible record of the season’s sunlight on the leaf I spent so much time with.

The actual crochet oak leaf will remain with me, in my personal collection, as a special memory of this point in time, but the sun prints of ‘Time (Autumn 2024)’ multiply the soul of the piece, allowing its story to expand and reach beyond the original - a tangible connection to the warmth, the light, and the fleeting beauty of those golden autumn days.