Overwinter

I decided to make my own card deck to see me through a difficult winter, the first and hopefully only winter in which I would be unable to leave my second floor flat.

A Woman in the Polar Night is a memoir by Christiane Ritter of her year living in a hut in the Arctic. Like Ritter, I was looking down the barrel of a long dark stay in an environment that has to be carefully considered, was often impenetrable and full of unexpected dangers. Like Ritter, I knew that this harsh period would one day end, bringing in Spring, warmth and a greater freedom of movement. 

I created an art piece using the words of her memoir as a base.

Taking inspiration from Maria Popova's Almanac of Birds, and very much as a homage, I decided to make a card deck. Each day, I took a photograph from the windows of my home and cut words from one page of Ritter's memoir. I then put the words together across the photograph, letting my subconscious play.

This card deck shows the journey from October 1st, with the first bite of cold, to March 31st 2026, when Spring will be opening up the world again.