Jan Bowman

' Murmuration'

The installation ‘Murmuration’ was created for Collect Open 2019 at the Saatchi Gallery.<br> <br>‘Murmuration’ comprises four large scale hand woven works which interpret the amazing spectacle of starling murmurations. Work one echo’s the flocks swooning orchestration of air born acrobatics, reflecting the grace and ephemerality of the starlings collective movement. Works two and three track the birds funnelling into the roost, evoking the raucous intensity of the mass as birds jostle for safe positions, this followed by eerie silence. Work four represents the birds leaving their roost quietly at dawn to join the vast freedom of the sky. <br>

'Implanted Hope'

I felt the need to create ‘Implanted Hope’ following the death of my husband Dave. The process of making the sculpture helped lead me through the intense grief I was experiencing.<br>The form of the piece is inspired by the collective movement of starling murmurations, representing the security and consensus of Dave and mines friendship. The starlings’ ephemeral dance becomes restricted as they fold and condense into the roost, here driftwood, echoing the darkness of my anguish as his illness progressed. Dawn breaks; the birds leave their roost to join the freedom of the sky, the hope of new day.<br>

'Pods'

The woven .‘Pods’ are based on Fritillaria Meleagris shade loving flowers. Their heads hang downwards offering safe space for the insects, particularly bees, to enjoy their rich pollen. My thoughts were focused on creating a cocoon, a safe place, a pod in which to take refuge in uncertain times.<br>Materials: Monofilament, willow, enamelled copper, paper, cotton.

'Oriental Dawn' Five Panel Spatial Divide

'Oriental Dawn'.<br>Five panel spatial divide made for the exhibition British Crafts in Japan, Ozone Design Centre, Tokyo, 2007.<br>Materials: monofilament, enamelled copper, reed, chenille.<br>The spatial divide is double sided with enamelled copper and reed forming the front and chenille on the reverse.

'Daybreak' Woven Panel

Materials: monofilament, snake grass, enameled copper, chenille, leaf metal. This is the first piece of work in which I began to explore integrating leaf metal into the woven panels. I was very fortunate to have been able to undertake a class with a master gold leaf artist in Kyoto in 2017. <br>