“No matter where we live our heritage and connections to the world are unique. They are rich and ever changing because we choose what we wish to bring with us into the future. Our decisions inform who we are and more importantly who we become.” Maggie Barker

Born in North Ayrshire, I spent my childhood within site of the most Southern of the West Coast Isles. Even then I was under the spell of the misty grey mountains over the water. Their profile was that of a sleeping warrior. Without knowing it I was already building connections to the traditional stories and Celtic way of explaining the world around through the topology of the land.

After thirty happy years in the fenlands of East England I now live in the Outer Hebrides. You could say the mountains, sea and peaty moors have at last all come together as sense of belonging in the thin places and intangible connections to the environment and people of Lewis.

UNESCO describes this sense of belonging as Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) and the value that belonging to community brings. In my art I try to drill down into the beauty of the landscape, the vulnerability of its people to weather and the Atlantic and the traditions and language that makes this a special place. UNESCO places value importance on maintaining community links. Globally the pace of change has accelerated and I am invested in how we react to this. We must move with the times and some parts of traditional life must be allowed to wash away as their relevance wains. However, it is still possible to sense the bond in small communities. There are cultural values and connections, a wealth of knowledge added to by countless generations of Islanders. We all have a choice what we let go of and what we value enough to bring with us into the future.

Favourite references

My copies of the following are opened most days. They are only a small representation of the wonderful work representing connection to the Outer Hebrides.

culture land language :

The Gaelic Language,song ,poem and tale by John Murray

Soil and Soul by Alastair McIntosh

Dark Stuff, stories from the peatlands by Donald S. Murray

Into the Peatlands by Robin A. Crawford

Sacred Earth, sacred soul by John Philip Newell

Western Isles Folk Tales by Ian Stephen

Tobar an Dualchais at https://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/