Moon

As 2020 unfolded, I increased my interest in the nature of time. How our days and then months flowed by in some ways but could often feel like eons in just a few hours. I like to consider the pattern of months and seasons and how we observe the moon often connects with this.

I looked out of my home at the natural world around us, the Moon played an increasingly important role for me. It became a companion. I looked out for it, tracked it around the skies, smiled when I caught a glimpse of it. The satellite and companion for our whole planet, but also, for that moment of pure, silvery, ethereal light it was selfishly just for me.

I found myself wishing I had made a regular artwork around the appearance of the full Moon but felt that really it should have begun from the start of the calendar year. And so in January 2021 I did.

I heard a beautiful poem by Imtiaz Dharker about a time of grief, inviting the Moon for dinner, and it graced the table as the moonlight glinted on a glass. This really resonated and spurred me on.

I planned to create a circular drawing with pencil and black fine liner at the full Moon in each month of 2021.

'It may hold different content, it may be abstract or expressive, but it will always be with simple media and on paper. There are other contributing factors which I can develop at a later date but for now I am enjoying opening up a new avenue of research, documentation and expression.'

My project has continued since. I was fortunate to be able to show the 2021 drawings in my solo exhibition 'Time and Tide' in 2022. The following is an extract from my artist statement.

'Observing this natural marker of time, I am sharing a way in which the moon has become companion, and a reminder, for taking a moment to reflect on many things, including for me, the value of drawing and pausing for calm. The drawings also recognise the passage of time and the reconnections many people have made to the natural world in recent years and how this connects us on a wider level'

In 2022 I developed a series of postcard Moon Drawings along a similar premise to the 2021 series but on a smaller scale and explorations with ink became more prominent. In 2023 I was unsure whether to keep going but decided to keep a small concertina book to capture a little moonlit sky for each full Moon. I still found this restorative and it allowed me to keep up the conversation. This year in 2024 I have continued with a series of small square paintings reflecting my feelings or observations of the sky each full moon. I have also been working on a project which links Moon and Grids called #495Moons. You can follow the progress of these on my Instagram account @jess.egan.art

A little more on the Moon Drawings in this Blog post.

2024 Full Moons Jan - Aug