1/Many Postcard
I believe it is important to make work which exists to do good. Thankfully, so does John Pedder, who runs the 1/Many Postcard initiative through Instagram. The concept is beautifully simple: John announces a release date, and all participants create something they are happy to give away for free. People from around the world can ask for a copy, as long as they then make a donation to a charity of their choice in return. That’s it.
I’ve sent work all over the world as part of 1/Many, and raised hundreds of pounds for all sorts of charities, often grassroots ones I’ve never heard of.
Below are examples of the pieces I’ve created to date, some of which were so popular that they subsequently became greeting cards and editioned prints in their own right. Have a scroll, and click on any images to learn more
Fish in the Water
Inspired by a line from the folk song Hares on the Mountain “If all the young men were like fish in the water/How many young girls would undress and dive after?” I carved Fish in the Water whilst having a bit of fun
Black Dog
October 2021
My friend’s dog, a good boy. And an appropriate print theme created as the days become short, the nights long, the weather wetter, colder and wilder. It’s a difficult time for many people, but this black dog doesn’t care as long as he’s got someone to walk him and feed him
Half Moon Rising
January 2021
Lifted by the inauguration of President Joe Biden in the USA (actually by the beautiful poetry of Amanda Gorman at the event), I carved the half moon which was rising in the UK as the 46th POTUS was being sworn in across the Pond.
January Storm
Winter 2020
Taken from a small midwinter moment, walking down at the river in wild weather.
People in the Street
March 2021
Seeking the feeling of a return to the ordinary, immersed in the beautiful and simple world of Shirley Hughes, I carved a street scene of utter normality.
Meg the Mog
November 2020
Devastated by the news that my cat might be very ill, I carved this memento of her as she napped beside me at my desk. Meg in fact was not very ill in the end, and either way would not have let health - good or otherwise - stand in the way of a decent nap.
Mark Making Exercise
June 2020
Still reeling from weeks of lockdown homeschool and unable to hold a creative thought in my head, I set myself the challenge of making as many marks as I could.
Origami Stars
April 2020
A stolen afternoon in between the demands of lockdown 2020. I had had no time to make new work at this stage, so I cut up newsprint test prints of Down the Valley, and folded them into little stars.