Offa's Dyke Cyanotypes and Paintings

In July 2021 I was part of a relay team that ran the length of Offa's Dyke Route, a huge linear earthwork structure started in 785 which runs 182 miles along the current border between England and Wales. I collected pebbles on route to document the landscape I ran through. The resulting work is an exploration of map lines, pebbles, memories they hold and the void left when removed from the landscape.

Acrylic and Ink Pebbles

I painted each pebble I collected linking the map lines I followed on route.

Making Cyanotypes

I used the preternatural qualities of the Cyanotype process to explore the ethereal qualities of the pebbles. Casting shadows to tell their hidden secrets.

Offa's Dyke Cyanotypes

The resulting Cyanotypes link together the route and the pebbles. White shapes the embodiment of spaces left in landscapes they once inhabited.

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Single Pebbles

Each pebble became familiar. Single cyanotypes offered an opportunity for them to tell their story, secrets seeping out from the ghostly outlines.

Tablecloths

The importance of socialising at the end of each day of running is represented by the use of a tablecloth. Each cloth embedded with the cyanotype image of the pebbles.

Postcards

Giving is beneficial to wellbeing, 12 cyanotype postcards were left on the Offa's Dyke Path to keep or pass on. Pebbles entrusting their stories to others.