Soaring High Over The Moor

“The little black bird was singing, as a gentle wind ruffled his feathers, he shook his little black wings after he sung his beautiful song, then took flight into the open sky, the blue sky swallowed him whole, we look up and see he’s gone, nothing stays for long.” A. Bentley

There can’t be a person in the world that hasn’t imaged themselves as a bird gliding high in the sky, as the wind blows over them as they survey the patchwork of the countryside below. With modern advances we can come close to knowing what this might be like, looking down from a plane window or from hand gliding. This can be exhilarating but nothing can come close to the real flight of a bird, as nature intended.

These thoughts cross my mind when standing at the very top of a tor on Bodmin Moor, almost high enough to see the world through the eyes of a bird. As often as not, a bird would torment me with its majestic flight, a Kestrel will hover overhead or a buzzard would circle round using the thermals before diving down to swoop its prey. It is this that has inspired my latest pieces, which are to be added to my ‘Bodmin Moor Collection’.

Standing at the highest point on the moor ‘Brown Willy’ and the slightly lower ‘Rough Tor’ I sketched the land as if I were a bird soaring high above, marking the lines on the land and clitter slopes. From above, the moor is muted in colours of brown, beige, grey and green with red, pink and purple tones. It sits in contrast with the ever-changing sky, whose clouds cast flowing shadows over the land as the wind hurtles by, bringing storm clouds and blue skies alike. The moor's peaks and paths fade into a distant blur as the eye looks afar, until it finally merges with the sky above in perfect harmony.

From The Eyes Above

When making this pieces I imaged I was flying alongside a kestrel, watching it in all its glory as it hovers over the moorland below. Her yellow eyes glistening in the light of a clear blue sky as she seeks out her prey. Wings being gently caressed by the air, as they work in tune keeping her steady in the vast open sky. To purchase this piece and for more information and photos check it out on my website at https://www.nsltextileart.co.uk/product-page/from-the-eyes-above

A Moorland Drop

With hungry chicks to feed, hidden within the undergrowth of the moorland heather, a female Hen Harrier hears the call of its partner as it calls out to her. She knows the familiar sound and without a moment's hesitation she leaves her dependent chicks and takes to the sky. The male patiently waits hovering over the land until its partner appears close enough, at this moment he releases his food parcel from his talons and lets it fall towards the ground. As he does she immediately turns and rolls onto her back, catching the food in mid-air and takes it back to their young. To purchase this piece and for more information and photos check it out on my website at https://www.nsltextileart.co.uk/product-page/the-moorland-drop