Prohibited Pleasures

A poem written by Megan Wallace, the talented founder and editor of Spectrum Zine, an online publication testing the boundaries of where queer feminism can go. The words were inspired by Rossetti’s Goblin Market, a literary gem in erotic poetry that is swathed in metaphor.

I created three panels illustrating the poem that are intended to be read in a cycle- endlessly repeating.

As we walked hand-in-hand and silent,
basking in the streetlamp’s judgmental glare,
I would watch the interlocking shapes of our shadows
keeping time on the pavement.


~
Later, I traced eternity with my eyes shut,
following the outlines of your body
as we lay in the wrinkled sheets
of my single bed.


~
And now,
I will lay my body down,
As offering
As sacrifice
As feast.


~
I will stretch my legs out
as wide as they will go
I will wrap my arms around you
to form a bridge
between then and now

Check out Megan’s beautiful Instagram- @_go_fish

This work is featured in the newest edition of Spectrum- https://spectrumfeministzine.com/2017/02/13/our-new-issue/

Acies Sigil

I always sign off my drawings with a little mark, and to be honest I usually edit it out when it’s all finished, but it’s a therapeutic ‘yes I am happy with this’ act to scratch in my initial. In my pieces for my unisex clothing brand, Acies Co, all apparel has a tiny sigil, a branding that shows its been hand-made. In this drawing I played around with colour, and surprise, surprise used mustard as a backdrop. The sigil came from a drawing class in which I was told I was ‘uptight’, I had to create something that represented my energy is a single mark. This angular form represents my stressed and anxious self, and although not abstract or expressive it really does sum me up!

Check out origami screen-printed goodness here- Aciesco.etsy.com

Has anything changed?

I’ve been experimenting with using dotted background to give my characters a bit more of a grounding, sometimes I feel they’re floating away in space with no solid thing to tether them to!

Writing quotes around the edges of pieces also creates a frame, this piece reads – ‘He spoke so softly as he held me. “I’ve missed your voice.” In the morning I asked if anything had changed. “No.”‘

My flatmate coined the phrase jollancholly- and this drawing is on that theme. Everyone has been told they’re not wanted, in many different contexts, but each time it happens it still snags just the same!

Free Falling

What you’re looking at here, is grade A procrastination! I doodled two falling ladies after peeking at a distant friend’s Instagram in which her new style of illustration, with dynamic and animated women are going down a storm. People always bounce off each other, and I’m proud to say I now have a group of people that I can send my work to, and they send theirs to me.

A collective in the truest sense of the word, sponsors creativity and builds lasting friendships.