Mary Philpott
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My work is inspired by Nature that surrounds us: by the birds at the feeder, the mice scurrying in the grasses, the deer that lift their head to gaze at the walker in their forest and the ravens croak.
It is inspired by the commonplace activities of our Natural World. Within that world, if you are very quiet, and be in that place, you might come upon the liminal spaces that tie our world to the world of Myth and Folklore. Reading is my most treasured activity and I draw much of my inspiration for my work from novels, as well as the writings of Thoreau, cultural ecology of David Abrams, Robert McFarlane, Peter Wohlleben and Roger Deakin as well as poetry from William Blake and Ted Hughes (to name a few). With a degree in Art History, my world became filled with inspiration from historical painting such as the Symbolists and Pre-Raphaelites, as well as a love for children's Book illustrations from the Nineteenth century. Gothic architecture, and Medieval Tapestries fill the world with such beauty and Narrative that cannot but inspire. I studied Art History at the University of Guelph, with Medieval and Classical Studies as a direction. A brief study at McMaster Uni in Anthropological Archeology, when I found clay and studied at School of Craft and Design at Sheridan, concentrating on Ceramics. With a Residency at Harbourfront Studios, teaching workshops and classes, I started my own studio in Stratford which focus is on Handmade Tile. My studio is now in Uxbridge in the countryside, and in the process of building the new studio nestled into the edge of the Forest. |
AVAILABLE ARTWORK
