→ Islands / Collage

Heaven is an island.
So is Hell.

Islands have ever harboured our conscious fantasies and unconscious projections. They evoke escape, solitude, refuge or captivation. Figuring in the myths and stories of cultures all over te world, there are bleak, veiled islands of the dead, or islands of the blessed, eternally fertile, their trees dripping honey. There are islands of loneliness and exile, magical islands inhabited by fabulous beings, islands where shipwrecked find solid ground and unexpected adventure.

Intensly fascinating to the imagination, islands evoke split-off portions of consciousness, animated by psyhce's watery depths. They represent isolating secrets, the accumulated sediment of remote memories, taboo desires, dissocated trauma. ... Islands may express insularity as alienation, self-absorption or inaccessibility, but also a state of introversion, a blessed retreat from inundating stimuli, or the capacity to stand alone.

The Book Of Symbols

This collection of monotype collages represents research on the topic of islands I did during my art residency at Casa Tagumerche on La Gomera island.

Based on these collages I have created a series of riso prints and called it 'Echoes of Gomera', chanelling the untamed spirit of La Gomera. These prints reflect its rugged, natural beauty through a bold, semi-abstract collage style. Each piece captures the essence of the island’s dramatic landscapes—from the sweeping winds to the craggy contours of ancient lava flows. Employing a monotype process, I accentuated the angularity and rich textures of my subjects. The primary use of black, interspersed with striking flashes of fluorescent colours, lends a moody, almost mystical quality to the series, evoking the deep shadows and unexpected bursts of life on the island.

All prints below: A3 Limited Edition
Paper: Munken Design, Lynx Rough Natural White 170 GSM
Year: 2024