Amlgyfrwng - goleuo, dail wedi'u cadwoli a'u pwytho, gwaith coed
Mixed medium- lighting, preserved stitched leaves, woodwork
45x30x20cm
Traditionally it was said that no harm could befall a lost traveller who sought shelter under the branches of a beech, considered to be one of the few truly holy trees in the wood. It is believed that prayers uttered under a beech go straight to heaven.
The beech tree has strong association with knowledge and wisdom. Thin leaves of beech wood are said to have been bound together to form the first book.
I have preserved and stitched beech leaves together to symbolise the binding of past prayers and wishes made over the centuries, as they negotiate gravity, travelling along and entwining the unknottable embrace of the beech limbs on their journey to the heavens in the hopes of future blessings.
With pockets of negative space peeking through, the leaves pose in precarious balance around the limbs, a liminal moment of piety in the passage of time.