Weathering the Storm – What We Carry: The Magpie Series

About the work

Mixed media on board. Ink, Acrylic, gold leaf

Framed in black wood —26 x 31 x 1 cm. (10.2″ x 12.2″ x 0.4″ )

Weathering the Storm explores endurance in the face of upheaval — the quiet resolve required to remain standing when conditions are unpredictable and the ground feels unstable. The magpie appears alert and grounded, positioned within a shifting environment that suggests movement, pressure, and change.

Layered colour, spray paint, and expressive mark-making build a sense of atmosphere rather than place, echoing emotional states as much as physical weather. The bird becomes a symbol of steadiness: not untouched by the storm, but shaped by it.

This work reflects on resilience as an active process — staying present, adapting, and holding one’s ground rather than seeking escape. Within What We Carry: The Magpie Series, the piece speaks to survival not as triumph, but as quiet persistence.