Giorria 06

I've been fascinated by folk stories since childhood. One of my earliest memories was of a relative teaching me a mythical rhyme about Leprechauns in Irish. To this day I can still recite it, even if I have forgotten the meaning behind it. My main interest was the animal stories explaining how our traditions were formed with more than a little bit of magic thrown in. Since having my son. I've turned to these stories more and more as I become nostalgic about my own childhood. Only recently I discovered this story of how the Hare came to live among us and it has inspired my latest collection 'An Giorria'.

When time began the sun and moon used their celestial love to create a daughter (The hare). The hare spent her days jumping between her parents and when she touched the sky her magic created a star. As she grew, she noticed the Earth below, Earth saw her and they fell in love. The hare told her parents, who were angry, they couldn't understand how someone as magical as her could fall in love with something so dull. The hare left anyway to follow her heart and from then on, she stayed on Earth. She became a symbol of love and fertility on earth and is still celebrated to this day. Adapted from 'Animal folk tales' by Sharon Jacksties