A reflection by Emma Constantine
On arrival at All That We Are, I immediately felt very safe. There was no expectation, no required outcome of my time there. The time was mine. Simon and Victoria made that very clear. Yet they were also incredibly willing to look at and encourage the work I did make. Their spirit and conversations gave me permission: I was free.
The time spent in pure nature did wonders. I don’t understand how, it just did. Silence. Clean air. Sunsets. Sunrises. Collecting shells. Walking on sand. Looking at trees. Staring at the sea. This cleared my mind and told me it was right for me to create.
It was easy for me to submit to the creative process during this artist residency. A lot of this was down to how Simon and Victoria hosted me in a way that welcomed and freed me to do whatever I needed to do with the time.
These are excerpts from Emma Constantine's book Reconnecting Skin, Stone and Sky, a memoir that accompanies her recent exhibition Body of Land in which she honestly reflects upon the joys and struggles of her creative process and in which her time at All That We Are is a main feature.You can purchase a copy here: https://tinyurl.com/y75ooluc