Suffolk and the Sea
Taking a break from polar travels this month (oops, should have been last month!) as projects closer to home have been in need of attention, but Antarctic sketchbooks will resume soon. For those who have been asking when the book about the trip will be published, I’ve made a start on putting diary notes and sketchbooks together so work has begun.
The view from my wheelhouse window on the River Deben is the wooded slopes of Sutton Hoo and the burial mounds which contained the most famous Anglo-Saxon treasure hoard. The site is now owned by the National Trust and usually there are some excellent replicas of the treasures on display, but from this week you can see the real things on display – more details from the website: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sutton-hoo/features/swords-of-kingdoms-the-staffordshire-hoard-at-sutton-hoo
As an artist, I find the complexity of the craftsmanship endlessly fascinating, and as a sailor I’m equally interested in the skills of the Anglo-Saxons as seafarers and travellers. My blog post this month weaves both these themes together in preparation for a one day event called Suffolk and the Sea which is part of the Felixstowe Book Festival, and I was invited to do a guest blog on the River Deben Association website. Rather than repeat myself here, I’ll invite you to hop across to the RDA Journal site and have a read – https://www.riverdeben.org/rda-journal/suffolk-and-the-sea/#more-5242
We hope to see some familiar faces at ‘Suffolk at the Sea’ . If you’re not local then how fortunate we are to have the internet to help with the exchange of ideas and connections. Life was not so easy in the 7th century but the Anglo-Saxons managed to include influences in their craftsmanship from Scandinavia, the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Long may the human desire for new ideas and diversity continue!
