Due South

A visual record of a stay in Signy Island, Antarctica, containing sketches, photographs and a written journal. "Due South" is published to coincide with exhibitions at the Natural History Museum and Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum.

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Due South catalogues moments in time experienced during a journey to Antarctica, the last great wilderness. As selected artist with the British Antarctic Survey, my work is an attempt to present the reality of Antarctica, not simply a visual record, but an account of the emotions and fleeting thoughts of life in the 'freezer'. Increasingly I became aware of the great migration of life at the margin. The vast movement of wildlife within the air and the sea, dictated by the seasons and by the great exodus of life to the north with the first storms of winter. The confrontation with the sublime on such a scale was only possible due to that 'silent sea' of the inner self, into which one could retreat for shelter and reflection. And so it was that I turned to the sketch book and journal. Illustrated with photographs and line drawings, Due South is an evocative and personal account of an individual's encounter with Antarctica. Published to coincide with exhibitions at the Natural History Museum (24 February-1 August 2004) and the Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum (23 January-6 March 2005), it mixes text and image to recreate the extreme experience of the Antarctic landscape.