William Blake died singing. As his life faded and body stilled, the echo of his voice would have lingered, his final breath outliving him as a resonance, firmly planting itself in the bodies and minds of those attending the deathbed.

When we make, we flow out beyond ourselves, become tendrilled things like a nervous system, bodily and feeling, questing into the half-known. We become inside out, baring far more than our skin, revealing what is underneath and inside; a secret, red underworld where thought meets flesh. It is a terrific intimacy, to have somebody encounter our undersides, to see where imagination pools and spills out to occupy space outside the borders of our bodies. But a terrifying act can also be a need. There is something that must be said, though we may not know immediately what it is, and so we turn ourselves inside out and distill the electricity into the work that we must make, creating new bodies as we go. The breath extends outside the breather, the created flows beyond the creator and something is spoken. Sung.

This new body of work by Nooka Shepard is about imagination, how it spreads and sings to those it encounters. It is also about remembering; following the tide of breath back into the body of the breather, and to flow out once more with a knowledge of oneself.

Nooka’s new body of work, pieces on paper and board, and intricate, articulated puppet-like wall hangings, are inhabited with spirit and life.

Join us for the opening celebration of the exhibition on Thursday 26th November, as ever all welcome.