The Heavenly (In)Visibles

Using textile art to explore how the spirituality  of nature informed the poetry of Mary Oliver (1935-2019)

An art exhibition exploring the spirituality of nature in the poetry of the American poet, Mary Oliver (1935-2019) opens on Tuesday 23^rd June until 1^st July at the MTU Gallery at 46 Grand Parade, Cork.

‘The Heavenly (In)Visibles is part of Patsy Atkinson’s MA by Research in which she materialises the poet’s deep reverence for the natural world and her gentle call to notice nature with wonder and in a contemplative way.

In keeping with Oliver’s creative  processes, Patsy uses slow, meditative and nature-based processes, including ecoprinting, paper-making, monoprinting and plant-based natural dyeing.

The artworks in this exhibition echo key themes that emerged through Patsy’s thematic analysis of Oliver’s poetry:  presence,  interconnection, attention, animism and transcendence.

Her research also incorporated a collaboration with contemporary poets. Thirty poets responded to her interim works with original poems rooted in her research topic. These will also be shown at the exhibition, along with a poetry film about the embodied process of hand-making.

It is Patsy’s hope that her exhibition nurtures awareness of how empathetic engagement with the natural world and its spiritual energy can be a catalyst for creativity and for sustainable, contemplative art-making  during this time of ecological peril.