It is on the increase in the UK and the protected Atlantic oak woodlands of the west coast of Argyll, Scotland is an ideal location for lichen, liverworts and now Lyme disease. A warming climate is to blame as the culprits are ticks that now are not easily killed off in warmer winter weather.
Video Poetry
MIning my sister's memory
Geology is a useful metaphor for dementia – the bed rock is the oldest and longest lasting memories, gradually reducing through substrate to the surface – the newest memories are the first to disappear.
Awash at sea with my sister
The beauty of the endless motion of the sea and it sounds and one of the many moments of shared humour that makes my sisters Alzheimer's bearable. I choose to take the happy laughter we had together at this stage.
My Sister's Brain
Understanding the cause of Alzheimer's and the impact of dementia helps me deal with the devastating loss of my sisters memory. I treasure every moment I manage to have with her considering she is in Australia. The video of the seemingly silent storm was taken when we watched it together from Cowes in Australia on my last visit and was such a strong visual metaphor for this terrible disease.
Fortunate Isles
La Gomera is one of the volcanic Canary Isles off the dry west coast of Africa. They were called Fortunatae Insulae (Fortunate Islands, or Isles of the Blest) in ancient Roman accounts. The high summit ridge has a number of rocky fingers which are remnant cores or plugs of volcanic activity on the island. The rest of the island has been eroded into steep ravines down to the sea and a dry desert like landscape. The mountainous ridge catches the rolling Trade Winds and traps moisture that often shrouds the peaks which are home to the Canarian Laurisilva woodlands. This is Garajonay National Park a world heritage site since 1986 because of its rare sub tropical woodlands
Red Coffin
Loss of vision can enhance our sense of hearing and amplify sound. In a wild woodland setting at night in the White Mountains, New Hampshire, entombed in a tent, this heightened awareness of my own vulnerability and fear reached pitch fever.
Flow
The blanket peat bogs of the Flow Country whose name derives from ‘flowes’, the Scots word for wet peat bog, is itself derived from ‘floi’, Old Norse for wet or marshy. Stretching across Caithness and Sutherland in the far north of Scotland this vast expanse of blanket bog comprises a complex set of interlinked pool systems and micro features that hosts an important biodverse flora and fauna but also plays a vital role in our defence against the effects of climate change
Swift Manoeuvres
Watching gangs of Swifts feeding at sunset is like watching air combat manoeuvres (ACM)- the tactical art of moving, turning, and situating one's fighter aircraft in order to attain a position from which an attack can be made on another aircraft - namely insects. They are incredible flyers that rarely touch the ground - sleeping, eating, bathing and even mating on the wing, They are also the fastest birds in level flight, with an impressive top speed of 69mph. Swifts are on the red list of the UK Conservation Status Report due to loss of nesting sites in old buildings. The Circular Economy would enable more of these old buildings to be retained and repurposed while keeping nesting sites for these most acrobatic birds.
The Great Eucrite
Ardnamurchan peninsular the most westerly point in the UK. Its volcanic centre is most notable for its place in developing ideas on how magma is emplaced in the upper continental crust. The gabbroic “Great Eucrite” is the finest example of a ring dyke. This video poem is inspired by the volcanic heart of Ardnamurchan its impact on the landscape as well as other great events that impacted on the communities who lived there.
Humans share 50% of their DNA with trees
My entry into the off page exhibition of visual poetry that had a successful and busy opening on Thursday 16th March in Glasgow. The piece is a development from previous work around the importance of trees are to humans.
This collection of mini video poems explores this bond with our chlorophyll fuelled woody perennial relatives.
Deeper
Humans share 50% of their DNA with trees - there is an awareness of this connection when we are in a woodland that can give us a sense of wellbeing but also something more than that. It may be a primal link to the importance of trees to our ancestors for shelter, food, warmth and the connection with the seasons, the cosmos and belief systems. Trees are also a repository of information wrapped in years of growth rings that unites us with the past. With that comes both a sense of awe as well as fear of the known and unknown that we can still experience now.
Deeper is the final part of my video piece included in the Off Page exhibition celebrating visual poetry - opening night 16th March 5-8pm at Many Studios 3 Ross Street Glasgow G1 5AR