The Séance
Approx. 40x30cm linocut, carved and hand-printed for an exhibition titled 'Phantasm' at Colours May Vary, Leeds. Prints available on my Etsy.
I really love the concept that we have always been searching for something else. There are cave paintings dating back 10,000 years that have been recorded as depicting the concept of an afterlife. There is so much art surrounding 'Humankind's attempts - metaphysical, mythological, scientific and popular - to imagine, respond to or find meaning in the mystery of death.' (Will Self, 'Death: A Gravside Companion' 2017)
The exhibition title could be interpreted in a number of ways, but I chose to look down the path of séances. Mediumship gained popularity during the nineteenth century, when ouija boards were used by the upper classes as a source of entertainment. Investigations during this period revealed widespread fraud, with some practitioners utilising techniques seen in stage magicians' performances - and the practice began to lose credibility.
The whole idea of people trying to pull the wool over their audiences eyes by claiming to contact the dead inspired me to create this lino. I like to think of it as a fraudulent séance gone horribly wrong, when a malevolent spirit really does appear, possessing the host and leaving the guests paralysed with fear.
