On the evening of January 23, 2014 I was proud to open the doors to my first solo show - PAGAN - at the Type Director's Club in Manhattan. Below are some images from the opening reception as well as some new final images.
The series continues my preoccupation with the juxtaposition of clean, classically designed typography with the chaos of natural processes and organic materials. When combined, these aspects create a visual tension; a conversation between the typography and the surface, with each jostling for visual dominance.
The subject matter for the series is Pagan and Heathen terminology from the Old English dialects of 5th to 12th Century Britain. Pagan and Heathen in this context are taken to mean “country dweller” or “rustic” - without intending to invoke the religious connotations applied since the 20th century.
The typography was applied by hand using a method known as pyrography - a centuries old arts and crafts technique used for decoration, with the earliest surviving examples in Britain dating back to the 4th century.
Pagans traditionally wrote very little down, preferring to pass on stories and learnings by word of mouth - allowing me to treat the type freely. Tree worship was common in their culture, they believed them to be sacred and offered a way to communicate with nature. Here I have taken the words that they spoke in front of the trees and made them as one. As the pieces age over time, my hope is that it will appear as if the two have always existed together.
My good friends at La Moutique produced this great teaser video ahead of the event showing some of my process in creating the pieces.
For more information about the work and the event, visit http://tdc.org/event/craig-ward-pagan/ or the Facebook event page at http://facebook.com/events/279691222178199/
Sincere thanks to all that came and showed their support for the project. C x
