Altar Cave vii // Toormore // West Cork // UV5
Cyanotype and sea water on paper.
285 x 210 mm
August 2023

One scorching morning in West Cork we drove through Ballydehob and Schull and further west into a looming sea mist that muted the light of the day. We stopped at Altar, the rocky coastal site of a wedge tomb dating to around 2500 BC. The place milled with tourists exploring the rocks and shoreline surrounding the site. We followed a path through the scrubs and climbed down onto the stones that were smooth and wet from the tide. We found a small cave in the rock and tucked ourselves in there for the day as the sun burned off the mist.

We spent a glorious few hours there in the heat from the rocks and the shade of the cave. We swam in secret out of view of anyone else and painted cyanotypes onto paper. We experimented with dye heavily diluted with saltwater and multiple exposures that layered colour and form. We trailed seaweed and paintbrushes across paper hoping to capture a bobbing sense of reflected glare. The paintings from Altar are captured fragments of light. They hold the glint of the midday sun on the water’s surface and the diffused light that blooms through the coastal gloom. Browse the limited series for your favourite.

Each piece is mounted on 300gsm acid free watercolour paper and is ready for framing. Price excludes shipping. Pieces can be shipped to most places worldwide. Please select EARTH SPUN LIGHT shipping option.