The Grandma Drawings

'The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living' is the name Damien Hirst gave to his 1991 shark in formaldehyde piece. These words (more than the work itself) seem to have stayed with me, and replay in my mind whenever I try to think about death.

How do you comprehend death? After my Grandma died in May I chose to try and understand that she was no longer here, through a series of drawings.

The role that drawing has in my life gained new significance three years ago, when I became a parent. Now drawing is also an opportunity (sometimes the only one) to think over and process things properly. Though not particularly looking forward to it, I knew I had to make these drawings in order to face grief.

Some of my drawings made while under hypnosis involve telling Devin the sensory associations I have with the proposed subject of my drawing (i.e my son), which he then relays back to me while placing me under hypnosis, priming me for the drawing. Devin pointed out that I could try this by myself too, it would not be hypnosis, but could build a similar framework for a drawing.

And so remembering this, I sat alone one day and I though about Grandma; white hair, flowery swimming costume, the colour peach, crying with laughter, soft skin... I wrote these down to cement them for me. Then I drew.

 

 

Stroke