A few weeks back, I was asked by a kindly soul if I could write something about getting into photography. I was flattered, stunned and a little bit terrified by the request. Why? Because despite shooting photos on and off for over ten years, I know virtually nothing about the art form. One of the… Continue reading Freezing Moments: Some Words On Taking Photographs
They met above the tallest fir in the forest. The encouragement that I've received from you wonderful people who read my blog has helped to spur me on today. It's been an extremely challenging 1st of January. Emotions that I thought I'd buried, resurfaced and I didn't know how to push them back down. I… Continue reading They Met Above The Tallest Fir In The Forest
Befana Belsnickel The Witch & The Fox While I'm not particularly happy with the last three images of this project (I've been feeling uninspired and frustrated the last few days and it's felt difficult to create) The Witch & The Fox has a particular significance for me. During it's creation, I was thinking of all… Continue reading The Last Of The Darkest Days – Befana, Belsnickel And The Witch & The Fox
I was very small when I first read the story about the Christmas Ghosts, and I've encountered dozens of different versions in the thirty odd years since I first scared myself witless with it. The tale haunted me then, and I find it just as gloriously chilling today. The story I'm going to share with… Continue reading The Darkest Days – Christmas Ghosts
Something that I've discovered during my Darkest Days journey, and that I haven't been able to stop thinking about, is the age old tradition in Scandinavia of leaving food out for the dead on Christmas Eve. (I know mince pies aren't tradition in the Far North but I didn't have any pepparkakor or lutefisk to… Continue reading The Darkest Days – Feeding The Dead
While researching into Jack Frost, I found out that if you didn't praise the art he left on the window panes, you'd have to face his wrath...which could involve being led astray in sub zero temperatures. This led me to create the following poem. It's a very rough first draft, so please bear with me!… Continue reading The Darkest Days – Jack Frost
'...she was a creature of ice and snow and could not survive the warmth she felt in her heart. With the faintest sigh, she began to melt. As they stepped from the forest into the rays of the sun, Lel went to hold Snegurochka but, as he did so, her feet melted beneath her; she… Continue reading The Darkest Days – The Snow Maiden
Tonight the animals speak. (A poem is in the works...!)
And...it's back to Finnish lore. I think I first heard about Nuuttipukki (it's impossible for me to write Nuuttipukki without referring back to Google search to make sure I've got it right.) when a member of the Folk Horror Revival Group (Not in? Come join! It's the best place on the internet!) posted some fabulous… Continue reading The Darkest Days – Nuuttipukki
Celebrating the strange and the shadowy, the damned and unseen 