The
space Catherine allows her subjects to exist in provides
a powerful and sometimes poignant backdrop. Primarily
it offers an uninterrupted view of the subject’s
carefully studied form. Perhaps more importantly however,
it asks of the viewer that they use their own intuition,
prompting them to contemplate what lies both within and
beyond the frame. In effect, this space acts as an imaginative
springboard that invites the viewer into the image to
explore it for themselves.
A gallery filled with Catherine’s silk-screen prints
acts like an open-ended storybook. Each image is a new
page and in each we encounter a new and different character,
the events of whose life we are invited to consider. Not
surprisingly it is Catherine’s experience as a children’s
book illustrator that has heightened not only her awareness
but also her fascination with the design aspect of each
artwork.
When creating a children’s book the layout of each
page must be carefully considered: how one image follows
on from another, where the text fits, and precisely how
much visual information a child needs in order to fill
in the ‘blanks’ for themselves. In this respect
it is just as important to consider which parts of the
page to leave empty as it is to decide which parts are
to be filled. Indeed, Catherine’s use of surrounding
space becomes seminal to her depiction of the animal itself,
encouraging in the reader a more thorough understanding
of movement, texture, and mood without unnecessary distraction.
This
doesn’t mean to say that background is never apparent
in Catherine’s picture book work. On the contrary,
she will often employ a carefully positioned strand of
meadow grass, or a suspended leaf, or subtly suggest a
pair of receding footprints in order to give just the
right amount of understanding of the creature and its
habitat. Added to this, Catherine’s considered use
of colour, weight of line and texture helps the animal
to ‘live’ within each image.
