Paul McDevitt

Guide Me

Paul McDevitt spent the winter months of 2006/07 on an artists’ residency on the North East coast of England. He began to draw a parallel between the self-imposed solitude of an artist in residence, and that of the religious hermit. In particular he was drawn to the region’s own St Cuthbert, who died in solitude on Inner Farne Island in 687. In an attempt to explore this further he ventured as close as was permitted to Inner Farne and proceeded to make the drawings that are collected here in Guide Me.

In total 112 drawings were made during the course of one day. These drawings recorded a complete day in a subjective and imaginary way, much like a visual diary. They are reproduced in this book in their entirety, unedited, in the order in which they were made. The exercise was an attempt to see where ideas (good and bad) come from when there is no reference material other than the horizon, and to explore the notion that inspiration can arise through isolation.

Published on the occasion of the exhibition Paul McDevitt: Guide Me at the Berwick Gymnasium Art Gallery, Berwick-upon-Tweed, 10 Nov – 16 Dec 2007.

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