Fiona Parkinson

Space Oddities

2023

Space has always fascinated me, it engages with my inquisitive mind, like I suppose it has done since we’ve been on this planet. It has inspired wonder, mythology and science since the days when the only tools humans had to look on it were their eyes. Now it seems the more that we discover the more awe it has to offer and we’re searching within it for the answers to many of the important questions we have about our own existence. My fascination with it however has also always been a deeply emotional one, like somehow despite so much of it being on an inconceivable scale, I’m somehow connected to it and it somehow reflects my emotions. Often when I think about it I can feel an overwhelming sense of vulnerability and isolation even utter insignificance when faced with its enormity “Look again at that pale blue dot… every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there – on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam” Carl Sagan But think again and it can engender emotions of importance, uniqueness and potential, good fortune to think that given its enormity and the sheer improbability of us being here that somehow we are, and we actually are aware of it and we should be thankful that somehow it gave birth to us. “The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the universe to know itself” Carl Sagan The Milky Way, our home galaxy is home to up to an estimated 400 billion stars. One in a Billion comprises of 28 perfectly preserved butterfly...

Despite our best efforts to control and shield ourselves from the effects of our natural surroundings it’s influence, even through something as seemingly innocuous as the weather, seems to be intrinsic to our being. No doubt in earlier times whether we awoke to the sound of rain, or the heat of the sun had a direct influence on the sucess of our endeavours in the day. But despite all we have undoubtedly achieved what is happening in the skys continues to effect us emotionally, like an echo from previous generations. The rainbow has been a powerful symbol for humans throughout history and never more than now. But whoever it has been borrowed by it’s ability to cause wonder and awe through the promise of the sun breaking through the rain has prevailed deep inside all of us. “Awe, is almost always nearby, and is a pathway to healing and growing in the face of the losses and traumas that are part of life.” – Dacher Keltner A stunning rainbow, created using butterfly specimens with raindrops cut from the wings. Awe comprises of 58 perfectly preserved butterfly...

Considering the atoms and elements that link us, and have travelled so far to become us, creates a dichotomy of emotions between a deep sense of being a part of something and the rea...

Memento Mori by Fiona Parkinson features the stunning Deaths Head Hawkmoth, famed by Silence of the Lambs, perfectly preserved and designed as coffins ...

Sometimes when considering the enormity of our surroundings I can feel an overwhelming sense of isolation, but at other times it engenders feelings of connectedness, of being an impo...

Much of my work is about challenging our natural responses to situations, species and people who may seem somehow different to us. For me (and many others) spiders like these are cha...

Sculpture made of mixed media, vinyl & crystal glass. Printed artist signature and edition on underside of the feet. From the edition of 888. Original box included. Certificate o...

"Wine and Fish" is a framed mixed media on panel work by Dennis Campay, depicting a skillet with fish and vibrant sides alongside a glass of wine. Campay's painterly brushstrokes abs...

A Bed to Lie In, 2016 Lifejacket Swatches from Lesvos, Emergency Blanket Wrapped Artwork, 55 Digital Negatives, tape 118 x 188 inches (300 x 300 cm) ‘A Bed to Lie In,’ is a site...

Mireia Serra creates sensuous bronze and iron sculptures showing the beauty of snapshots caught in life which are full of emotions and feelings along the life journey. Her metal artw...

'I am a multidisciplinary artist with a focus on ecofeminism using fiber and mixed media constructions. My materials include hand-dyed commercially fished line and ghost gear, recycled and antique textiles, fabric printed with cyanotype emulsions and found objects. I change the existing surface of recognizable animals by creating a veneer of unexpected color and imagery. This forces the viewer to consider the shape more carefully by visually exploring its new topography. The creation process can be likened to painting with fiber (that has been tinted with hand-mixed dyes) on a three-dimensional canvas. Intense work is spent creating the eyes and ears to convey the emotion of each animal. I look to the work of Joan Mitchell and The Quilters of Gee’s Bend as inspiration for pattern and color, as well as charts, iconography, and satellite imaging.' -Gin Stone...

In a captivating new collection, Alex Guofeng Cao dazzles audiences with his unique twist on instantly recognizable images. Inspired by history and pop culture, Cao manipulates one i...